For the last several years, sportsbook fans had witnessed a decline in the popularity of the Pro Bowl. The NFL tried to help ignite fans’ interest in the league’s All-Star game by hosting it one week before the Super Bowl. Previously, the Pro Bowl was held one week after the NFL’s title game, giving those players who competed in the Big Game a chance to participate in the annual Pro Bowl. However, fans weren’t all that interested in seeing NFL players haphazardly competing on a game that had nothing on the line. Recent observations by basketball betting sites reveal that the NBA may be facing a similar predicament.
To help spark sportsbook fans’ interest in a trivial football game, the NFL moved the Pro Bowl to one week before the Super Bowl. This helped fill the void created by the media week and the results were undeniable. Fans began to show more and more interest in the Pro Bowl. The NFL then furthered the appeal of the Pro Bowl by having players compete in drills, games, and even a dodgeball tournament to help give more appeal to the Pro Bowl. In the end, the NFL’s outside-the-box thinking proved to be auspicious, as this last Pro Bowl had one of the best receptions in years.
Unfortunately for online NBA betting fans, the same cannot be said about the NBA’s All-Star game. With nothing to play for, this year’s All-Star ensemble featured player’s who reeked of nonchalant. In the end, the West came out on top 192-182. But since there was nothing on the line, what’s the point of knowing who won?
In fact, arguably the biggest headline from this past weekend’s festivities was the fact that the announcer misspoke and introduced Kevin Durant as ‘Oklahoma City’s own’. Whether the jab was intentional or not remains uncertain, but online NBA betting fans all got to share in what is indubitably the most awkward moment we’ve seen on the basketball court in quite some time.
The All-Star game was fairly boring to say the least. Some sportsbook fans who favor the Clippers might have been excited to see DeAndre Jordan compete in his first nod to the All-Star game. But in the end Jordan tied for the least amount of time played with DeMarcus Cousins, who is about to be traded. Other than that, online NBA betting fans got treated mostly featured Anthony Davis dunking everything in sight and then some.
Overall, this year’s All-Star game was memorable for the lack of tenacity and voraciousness the players displayed. In years past, defensive play and effort played a key role in determining who won the exhibition match. This year’s game abandoned those notions and can best be described as ‘a dunk line from start to finish’.
Even social media turned a blind eye to the All-Star game by the start of the 4th-quarter after news of the DeMarcus Cousins trade broke. After that, all sportsbook fans could talk about was the fact that New Orleans just got massively robbed.
