By Sam Reeves (@samr33v3s)

The NBA is a global phenomenon, expanding their brand rapidly. They have players in the league from several continents.

However, they are missing a huge component necessary to grab audiences and take their viewership to the next level. I am talking, of course, about bench celebrations.

The game of basketball is a beautiful thing when a team is executing in all phases. It is even more beautiful when both teams are performing at their best.

Teams usually have 1-3 players that they go to in crunch time to really seal a win or try to make a comeback. Then you also have players who rarely see game action. But these are the same guys that can really take their team to the moon.

Sitting on the bench for an entire 48-minute NBA game doesn’t sound like a ton of fun. I mean, yeah, they are getting paid handsomely to sit and watch while the rest of us are paying to sit and watch. However, you can still feel bad for them. They worked hard their whole lives to make the NBA but they can’t even get in a game. That has to be brutal.

This particular situation also happens in college basketball. The end of the bench guys just wait for their chance to shine.

The key difference is that college kids make it fun! They have celebrations for all sorts of scenarios and they are PLANNED. That’s incredible, not only the coordination, but all the planning and rehearsal involved. That also seems to mean good locker room chemistry. Jealousy is just a part of life and you know they want to be on the court more than anything. Yet, these players STILL make being a benchwarmer a really appealing position to be in.

The crazy part about the NBA benches is that you literally have every day guys WANTING to sit on the bench. They call it “load management” but guys just want a night off. If you have ever seen a player exercising “load management” they are usually having some fun with the bench guys.

Even still, it’s not as entertaining as college basketball benches. Why is that? Ego? Professionalism? Being plain oatmeal boring? I need ANSWERS.

If you are getting paid to sit on the bench, why aren’t you making it fun? That would be my entire personality if I were ever lucky enough to get that job. I would be out there every practice huddling guys up like I was setting up a game plan. Going over the X’s and O’s but where guys will stand for when we execute a cool celebration. Look at the NFL, they celebrate after a touchdown or turnover and it’s fun! Granted, it took time for them to be allowed to, but that’s a different story.

With a pun very much intended, NBA benchwarmers doing celebrations should be a slam dunk. Get weird, get crazy, show the kids you’re having fun! I know baseball is known as the “Kid’s Game” more than any other sport, but kids play all the games because their body isn’t deteriorating at a rapid rate like us adults. If you want more fans to get involved, then run a special broadcast where you have a “Bench Cam.” Let the team prepare and do some cool celebrations.

I get that in the playoffs this might not be a thing, but shouldn’t it be? It’s the biggest games in the biggest moments, so they should have the biggest celebrations. That’s when NCAA Basketball players bring their best bench celebrations. It’s national TV, get noticed and have some damn fun. Adam Silver, hire me for your PR team and I will take the NBA to places it has never been before. Not really sure where that is but someone will have to fill me in.