On January 25th, Brooke and I attended
the Detroit Pistons vs. Miami Heat basketball game. The score at the end of the
first half was 56-50, Miami. However, in the third quarter, each team scored
the same amount of points, making the score at the end of the third, 80-74. In
the fourth quarter, the Pistons scored more than the Heat, yet not enough to
bring home the win. The final score was 101-98, Miami. Within the length of the
game, we witnessed the talent of some of the top players in the NBA, as well as
the newest recruit for the Pistons, 20-year-old Brandon Knight. According to Huizinga in Homo Ludens, “Play begins, and then at a certain moment it is
‘over’” (9). In just four twelve-minute quarters, we witnessed countless plays,
turnovers, rebounds, and even dunks. However, as the buzzer sounded at the end
of the fourth quarter, the game ended as quickly as it started. Although people
spent hours talking about the game before it began and after it was over, the
actual play only occurred from the moment it started to the moment it ended. In
addition to the fact that the game was set for a pre-determined time, the game
was also in a distinct setting—The Palace of Auburn Hills. As we discussed in
class, having a distinct setting is another feature of game play.
Going into the game, the Pistons had lost twelve of
their last fourteen games. Despite this rough patch, they always had each other
to depend on in order to maintain their positive attitude. Compared to the
Heat, who made it to the championship in 2011 and are ranked first in the
Southeast Conference, the Pistons are one of the weakest teams in the NBA. For
this reason, the Pistons did not have much to lose if they did not win. Thus,
when the game started, the competition level was very low. The Pistons would
not be as upset losing to the Heat as they would be losing to a team such as
the Cleveland Cavilers, who are only ranked one spot ahead of them in the
Central Conference. According to the article, Ranks and Rivals: A Theory of Competition by Stephen Garcia,
competition is at its greatest level when you compare two counterparts of
similar capability. Since the two teams had such different rankings, there was
not much competition when the game began. However, as the game went on, in the
fourth quarter the score became very close. This generated more competition
because the Piston’s chance of winning was now within reach. In the end, the
Heat did win by three points. However, Garcia would assert that the Pistons
would have accepted the loss much more easily if they had lost by a greater
amount of points. This disappointment is a result of the Social Comparison
Theory.
NBA Basketball is very competitive because it is
both a popular form of entertainment for the public and also a form of income
for the players. Huizinga states:
“Play is superfluous. The need for it is only
urgent to the extent that the enjoyment of it makes it a need. Play can be
deferred or suspended at any time… It is never a task. It is done at leisure,
during ‘free time’” (13).
We
do not believe that professional basketball meets these terms for what is
considered to be play. A NBA game cannot be suspended at any time because the
schedules have been set months in advance. Further, playing basketball for the
NBA is a career for the players. This makes it a form of a task, rather than a
recreational activity done during their “free time”. This is not to say that
the players do not enjoy playing the sport, as most have dreamed of playing
professional basketball since they were just toddlers. However, professional
basketball includes more than just a recreational aspect, as it is also the way
in which the players earn their salary. Thus, as an official career, the
players must obey the rules of their contract. With this being said, the game
of basketball is not completely leisure because there are certain regulations
that both the players and coaches must follow. Basketball as a form of play
goes beyond pure recreation. It is recreation for us as fans but not
necessarily for the players, coaches and other team members. They are judged
based upon their performance and must uphold a positive image.
Basketball is a team sport. Therefore, even after
the buzzer sounds to officially terminate the game, the players must continue
to work together. They are a team even after they leave the court. Although the
game is over, their commitment to each other is not. Their relationships must
carry on from one game to the next. Huizinga in Homo Ludens writes, "A play-community generally tends to
become permanent even after the game is over" (12). Both the Pistons and
Heat players remain “apart together”, a term coined by Huizinga. The players on
each team are teammates for the entire season, both on and off the court. They
are distinct from other teams and the rest of the world because they have a
special membership in their team. In a way, they are like a family. Simply
because of their mutual commitment to the team, they have an everlasting
commitment to each other.
Works Cited
