These kind of takes crack me up. Have you ever watched a game from the 1980s? Nobody played defense until the fourth quarter and you'd regularly see players out of breath walking up the court. There was actually not a single season in the 1980s where the pace of play was slower than the pace of play during this current season. You had teams like the Nuggets whose defense consisted of waving at the opposing players as they passed by.
The rules of the game today certainly favor offenses, but the defensive talent is arguably the best it's ever been too. Especially post All Star break with the refs swallowing their whistles more and allowing the game to play out. Scottie Pippen used to be a freakish outlier because he was an athletic and aggressive 6'8 wing that could switch onto anyone, but in today's game you will see teams trying to build an entire roster of guys like that. It's okay to have nostalgia for the way the game was played when you were young, I think we all do, but don't let that blind you from the crazy amount of talent that is on display in the league today.
The rules of the game today certainly favor offenses, but the defensive talent is arguably the best it's ever been too. Especially post All Star break with the refs swallowing their whistles more and allowing the game to play out. Scottie Pippen used to be a freakish outlier because he was an athletic and aggressive 6'8 wing that could switch onto anyone, but in today's game you will see teams trying to build an entire roster of guys like that. It's okay to have nostalgia for the way the game was played when you were young, I think we all do, but don't let that blind you from the crazy amount of talent that is on display in the league today.
