to solve their ratings crisis, the NBA needs a franchise in Chicago

3rd biggest media market has zero first-division clubs, there's opportunity here

As the NBA embarks on its first Christmas schedule going head-to-head with the NFL, it’s become popular to discuss the league’s slagging television¹ ratings. Though I suppose not necessarily ‘popular’ as it is simply eye-catching, as most - if you can get past the headline, and credit to you if you don’t - are bad faith and/or dumb arguments in search of a solution for a problem that shouldn’t matter to them.

And who am I not to try to get in on that?

Here’s my take on the issue, including a simple proposal of a practical, high-impact solution: put an NBA team in the city of Chicago.

The Bulls technically exist, but are only engaged with the league at the bare minimum, just as an opponent to complete the schedule. They have no star power and resort to a certain style of play to even stay competitive in games, a style that jaded 40-somethings and 60-somethings agree is aesthetically unpleasing.

Even with those factors, and with the teams from glamour markets like Milwaukee and Memphis resting their stars when they visit Chicago, they still do well in in-person attendance. But those fans aren’t watching TV! And I’m pretty sure the local telecast, which was in the news at the start of the season, has been cancelled due to lack of interest.

Chicago is the 3rd biggest media market in the nation, with a long history of embracing the sport of basketball, and even relatively recent history supporting the NBA. There has been talk of league expansion to Seattle (#15) to rectify the wrong of relocating the Sonics to Oklahoma City (#47). That makes sense, but there is also consensus that the next group of expansion targets includes Las Vegas (#40) or even going international.

Meanwhile, there’s precedent for adding teams in the largest markets, with some success. The Clippers and Nets each had changes in ownership - one forced upon by the league, another precedent - which has bolstered their own relevance, and one could speculate applies some competitive pressure to the Knicks and Lakers to also attempt to stay relevant.

Now that’s merely local TV ratings. Nationally, there would be a huge benefit to the league if they had reason to show the greatest team from the 1990s²:

Currently, the league’s national broadcast partners barely show a team from Chicago. They’re discussed even less, if at all only to comment on why they shouldn’t be.

Now instead imagine an NBA that could show a team from Chicago, perhaps (but not mandatory) with a historic and global brand. They’d be in high profile regular-season matchups, the NBA Cup, on Christmas Day, or even the playoffs????

This is low-hanging fruit for the league that they need to pick ASAP. Currently, the Chicago basketball franchise is a taker of revenue sharing while supplying no revenue benefit. This current status should not only be scrutinized by the league, but individual franchises (from big markets and small markets alike) and the players’ union.

The NBA is in a crisis, until they figure out what is going on they need to address the Chicago situation.

1. Television, the kind that ‘ratings’ measure, is a medium that was extremely popular in the late 20th century and still used in many homes, hotels, and hospitals

2. The 1990s were an extremely popular decade in the late 20th century