On a day that goes beyond tradition and is inextricably linked to sports as an essential part of the day, in the United States the NBA overlooks Thanksgiving Day in its calendar, unlike the NFL, which on this occasion delighted its fans with a triple-header.
However, the reason why this professional league ‘disdains’ tradition and the large amount of advertising dollars that are handled during the day and which becomes really millionaire in television broadcasts is not yet known.
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Why is there no NBA on Thanksgiving Day?
It has been almost 15 years since the NBA scheduled any games on Thanksgiving, and the precedent was a doubleheader in 2010 featuring the Sacramento Kings, LA Clippers, Atlanta Hawks and Washington Wizards, which was broadcast by TNT. Since then, they have never issued an official statement explaining the reasons for such a decision and it remains an unwritten rule.
However, the NBA does not disdain ‘Black Friday’ and always has games scheduled for the day after Thanksgiving dinner to satisfy the thirst of its fans who this year have already experienced two breaks in three weeks, the first for the recent presidential elections.
When did this become the norm in the NBA?
The year 2008 marks the last time the NBA played games on Thanksgiving Day and, apparently, this decision has been made on several occasions, only to be stopped for reasons that were also never explained to the public. The years 1982, 1994 and 2006 are examples that someone within the NBA still has doubts about playing on this traditional day, but the reasons why the enthusiasm was turned off again remain in the dark.
