Top 10 Stories of the Decade - #5 The Changing Face of the NBA

Our #5 Story of the Countdown is perhaps the most overlooked one of the decade. In the past 10 years, the NBA has come a long way. From the Malice in the Palace to the Redeem Team, it's been a roller-coaster ride for the Association. But with a wave of new, young stars and the reinvention of others, the NBA is finally moving in the right direction.

For several reasons, the NBA was akin to a ship lost at sea for much of the decade. At the beginning of the 2000's, the Lakers and Spurs began sowing the seeds of their dominance. Behind the dynamic duo of Shaq and Kobe, the Lakers won the first 3 titles of the decade. However, their success was fleeting. Neither could live with the other in complete harmony. Despite coach Phil Jackson's best efforts, Kobe and Shaq were destined to separate.

Meanwhile, San Antonio, led by the most unappreciated athlete/coach combo of the decade, Tim Duncan and Gregg Popovich, became the quiet dynasty, winning 3 titles later in the decade. However, the Spurs could never capture the national conscience like Jordan's Bulls or the Shaq/Kobe Lakers. Their Finals appearances in 2003 and 2007 would be responsible for the two lowest-rated NBA Finals in history. The NBA also had an even bigger challenge than a championship team nobody wanted to watch.

The unequivocal face of the league, Michael Jordan, had ended his second retirement and joined the Washington Wizards in 2001. But, even though His Airness was back, the league was hurting to find its next great superstar. Vince Carter wowed with his Dunk Contest performance in 2000, but he could never take his game to the next level. Allen Iverson established himself as one of the league's toughest competitors, but his close association with the hip-hop generation of players and his checkered past didn't endear him to the NBA's marketing machine (not to mention one of our favorite soundbytes in 2002). Grant Hill was to be one of the stars of the decade, but his injured ankle caused him to play 47 games in 4 years after signing with Orlando (2000-2004). As Jordan's career finally wound down in 2003, the league was absent a reliable star.

The vacuum created by Jordan's retirement wouldn't be fulfilled by a new wave of stars immediately. Instead, the NBA would be thrust into two of the most dramatic controversies seen in sports. First, in July 2003, Kobe Bryant, three-time NBA Champion and the heir apparent to the Jordan throne, was arrested in Colorado and charged with sexual assault. Although Bryant's criminal charges were dismissed, Kobe had to succumb to a civil settlement and the loss of endorsements. Added to the personal embarrassment of a public apology and losing to the underdog Pistons in the next year's Finals, Kobe Bryant's image was at an all-time low. His "engineering" of Shaq's trade to Miami the next year in the summer of 2004 cemented Bryant as one of the league's villains, not as the face of the post-Jordan era.

As if things couldn't get any worse, the NBA reached an all-time low point on Nov. 19, 2004. At first, it seemed to be just a normal regular season game between bitter rivals, the Detroit Pistons and the Indiana Pacers. However, late in the game Ron Artest and Ben Wallace started a scuffle between the two teams. Just as it looked like cooler heads were going to prevail, the madness began to unfold that would forever be known as Malice in the Palace.

Bill Walton certainly summed it up best, the lowest point in the NBA in 30 years. Children crying at your sporting events isn't exactly the best way to invite and grow fans. Suddenly, the NBA was at a crossroads. They had already been through the JailBlazers and the widening gap between the common fan and the new breed of NBA players, but never had an American professional league had to deal with such a debacle. Credit David Stern for ruling with an iron fist in the wake of the brawl. In total, 9 players were suspended 146 games, including Artest's suspension for the remainder of the season. Stern implemented further reforms after the brawl, including implementing a new dress code, which was seen as a racially-tinged backlash against the growing hip-hop influence on its players. Although not directly related, in 2005 Stern also put into place an age limit preventing high schoolers from making a direct jump to the pros. Although the age limit still isn't perfect, both of these reforms helped rehabilitate the image of the league.

However, the NBA still needed someone to lift the Association from the depths of despair. The NFL and college football had exploded in popularity, while the NBA seemed to lag behind. The worldwide appeal and prestige of the NBA game had even taken a hit with their first international loss in the 2002 World Championships and a shocking 6th place finish. This was followed by a bronze medal in the 2004 Olympics, a first for a "Dream Team". But in the aftermath of all of these negatives, finally, a new crop of exciting, and marketable young stars began to take control of the league.

The 2003 NBA Draft will forever be remembered for giving the NBA a trio of fresh new faces which have carried the NBA back into mainstream acceptance. LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Carmelo Anthony all started strong as rookies, and have grown into legit superstars and reliable ambassadors for the game of basketball. James especially has become the marketing face of the NBA and the hope of an entire city, Cleveland. Wade has won a championship himself and Anthony has become one of the game's top scorers. These three have been joined by other likeable young stars like Dwight Howard, Chris Paul, Kevin Durant, Brandon Roy and others in raising the profile of the league. David Stern also wisely embraced an influx of international talent to grow the NBA globally better than any other American sports league, thanks in large part to players like Yao, Dirk, and Steve Nash (I know, I know, but technically Canada is an international market).

The culmination of the good will established by a new generation of post-Jordan stars was the 2008 Olympics. Instead of shunning the Olympic stage, these young athletes embraced the challenge of regaining Olympic glory and reestablishing the NBA game on the international stage. The "Redeem Team" did just that, capturing Olympic gold in Beijing.

In addition to success abroad, franchises like the Celtics and Lakers also have seen a revival, winning back-to-back titles in 2008 and 2009 respectively. The 17th banner for the Celtics gave a first championship to the popular trio of Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, and Paul Pierce. Even the Lakers latest championship has seemed to unofficially welcome Kobe Bryant back in to the circle of accepted NBA icons. In every way possible, the league has recovered from their poor image, international failures, and on-court controversy. Even the recent Tim Donaghy scandal has done little long-term damage to the sport, although the referee debate will continue into the next decade. Thanks to a bevy of likeable, marketable, talented young stars, led by King James, the NBA is finally on the way back. As we close the decade, the NBA is in the best place it's been in the post-Jordan era. And for once, its future looks even brighter than its present.

We'll be back with our Top 4 Stories of the Decade after the Christmas holiday as well as Part II of our Bowl Pick 'Em Extravaganza! Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you and yours from RSS!