Behind the Line

Reason UFC Is Growing While NBA & MLB Decline

With the exception of the NFL...every major sports promotion in America has been in decline since 2020. NBA ratings are down...Major League Baseball has been in decline for 20 years...but upset many in their audience by moving the 2021 All-Star Game out of Atlanta.

Adam Silver will give the usual excuses as to why NBA ratings are declining. He will claim people are streaming games...or consuming the NBA differently than traditional television. That could be part of it...but that's not the reason the NBA is suffering.

How is the UFC the only sports promotion growing in 2021? We explain how Dana White flew under the political radar in 2020 by staying out of politics...and how he led the way for the country getting out of the covid pandemic and back to normal.

We also explain how fighters in the UFC can get away with being political...and it not be a stain on the organization that it is in the NBA with LeBron James.

Woke NBA Sucks...But League Has Other Problems

We have fought against LeBron James and the NBA going woke since last year. Make no mistake...the embracing of woke politics by LeBron and the NBA has negatively impacted the league...but they have more problems than woke politics.

We look into several problems facing the NBA in 2021...and how these issues are contributing to low television ratings. We explain why the playoffs and NBA Finals are likely to reach record low ratings this year.

Is Adam Silver part of the problem...or part of the solution?

LeBron James Is NBA Biggest Problem

For most of his career...LeBron James has been the NBA's biggest asset. He's an international superstar. He once drew television ratings that came close to matching the Michael Jordan era of the 1990s. He was beloved by the majority of NBA fans.

However...slowly over the past decade...and especially over the last year...LeBron James has become the NBA's biggest villain. His relentless promotion of woke politics and social justice causes has turned off nearly half of the NBA's audience.

Television ratings for the NBA playoffs and NBA Finals last year were record lows...and the league is in danger of eclipsing those record lows this year. LeBron once again angered many people last week when he jumped to conclusions in a case involving a police officer in Columbus, Ohio.

We go back and look at LeBron's career the last 10 years...and how he slowly became more and more political. We examine how LeBron's commitment to political activism has impacted the NBA's ratings since 2012.

Does Adam Silver and the NBA have a solution to this problem? We explain how Adam Silver is part of the problem...and why the NBA is in rough shape due to the embracement of woke politics by their biggest superstar.

Anthony Davis Will Not Save the Lakers Season

The Los Angeles Lakers received good news this week. After missing 30 games...Anthony Davis returned to the lineup Thursday night against the Dallas Mavericks. Although AD was understandably rusty in his return...it was good to see him back on the court.

However...Anthony Davis isn't enough to save the Lakers season. Though he is a top-5 player in terms of talent...Anthony Davis has proven he's incapable of leading a team to victory by himself. He's always needed help...he's a strong number two...but not a number one.

We explain why the Lakers are screwed if LeBron James isn't 100 percent healthy for the playoffs. The return of Anthony Davis is nice...but he's not enough to save the Lakers if LeBron remains sidelined.

LeBron James & Brett Favre Prove Woke Hypocrisy

LeBron James has once again proven the hypocrisy that's rampant in the woke community. We compare and analyze the two situations that happened this week with LeBron James and Brett Favre.

Favre made some comments on his podcast in regards to the Derek Chauvin verdict. Wokers everywhere were highly offended...including our favorite woker...Captain Woke Shannon Sharpe. We take Sharpe's comments about Brett Favre...and compare those to his reaction to LeBron James.

LeBron jumped the gun...and subtly threatened a cop's life after he saved an African American teenager. After serious backlash...LeBron deleted the tweet. We analyze LeBron's reason for deleting the tweet...and explain how he continues to ruin his legacy...while taking the NBA down with him.

Las Vegas Raiders Learn Hard Way to Stay Out of Woke Politics

It's always a bad idea for professional athletes or sports teams to get themselves involved in politics. Politics by design are meant to be divisive. When athletes and teams get themselves involved...they're in a lose/lose situation.

Mark Davis and the Las Vegas Raiders found that out the hard way on Tuesday. After the verdict was released in the Derek Chauvin trial...the Raiders sent out a simple tweet in support of the family of George Floyd.

Problem is...the wokers took offense to it. We analyze the tweet and the subsequent outrage...and explain why this is yet another example of why sports and politics don't mix. 

Woke NBA On Pace for Lowest Ratings EVER in Regular Season

Last summer was catastrophic for the NBA. LeBron James led the league down the path of true wokeness...and ratings for the playoffs and NBA Finals were at record lows. Adam Silver announced in October that the league would return to a semblance of normalcy for the 2020-21 season...and the woke politics would be off the court.

Unfortunately for the NBA...it seems the American public isn't so quick to forgive them. After experiencing a spike in ratings during the first two weeks of the season...ratings for the NBA regular season are nearing record lows.

We explain why the NBA has lost half of its audience since 2012...and how Zion Williamson could be the only player that could save the league.

Lonzo Ball Wrongly Blamed AGAIN for Pelicans Failures

The New Orleans Pelicans lost another heartbreaking game Sunday afternoon against the New York Knicks. It was another instance where the Pelicans had a lead late in the game...and still found a way to lose.

Lonzo Ball was blamed by the media for the loss...and was even thrown under the bus by Stan Van Gundy. We explain how Lonzo was at fault...and had a bad game...but was not the reason the Pelicans lost to the Knicks.

We also identify what could be the real problem with the Pelicans...and how it could lead to the eventual departure of Zion Williamson.

Baker Mayfield: Is He a Franchise Quarterback

For young quarterbacks in the NFL...the offseason entering year 4 is the most important of their career. In most cases...the fourth offseason is when it's determined whether or not they're considered to be a franchise quarterback.

Kevin Stefanski and the Cleveland Browns have reached that point with Baker Mayfield. At some point this offseason...Baker Mayfield is going to request a contract extension from the Cleveland Browns.

Will the Browns give him the extension? Is Baker Mayfield worth paying $150-$200 million over the next four or five years? Has he proven that he's capable of being a franchise quarterback? 

We answer all of those questions...and explain why it would be a major mistake for Kevin Stefanski and the Browns to rush into any decisions regarding the future with Baker Mayfield.

Biggest Problem Facing the NBA in 2021

If you were born in the 90s or after...it's a real shame that you never got to experience the greatest era in the history of the NBA. The Michael Jordan era of the 90s propelled the NBA to heights the league had never seen before...or has seen since.

There was a specific mentality players of that generation shared that is missing in today's NBA. We explain that mentality...and how LeBron James is one of a few players in the modern NBA that compare to the players of the 90s.

We also tell you why Wednesday night was a major embarrassment for the NBA. Not just once...but twice...and how Adam Silver is doing nothing about it.