Meet
Home Court Advantage
Posted by: Ben Hoeksel on October 6th, 2010
The author's views are entirely his or her own and may not reflect the views of the Utah Jazz.
So, once again the general managers around the NBA vote the ESA as the best home court advantage in the NBA. And all of us know exactly why that is.
The state of Utah is a bit of an enigma in the sports realm. We have extremely good sports teams, but are perpetual underdogs. For example, our college football teams. Year in and out either BYU or Utah is a very good football team. Yet up until next year they have always been in a non-AQ league. It doesn’t mean they are any worse than the best teams of the country. It just means the odds are against us to be considered amongst the elite. I feel comfortable saying that the one other sport that brings out the rabidness of the locals in this state, is college football.
We have essentially one major sports franchise, in the Utah Jazz. We have Real Salt Lake who is a professional club, but in a sport that still is working to achieve the national notoriety of the big boys. We don’t have professional baseball, football, or hockey. We’re relegated as fans in this state to hitching a ride with a team in each of the major sports from other cities across the country. While it’s all fine and good to be a fan of teams from other cities, it certainly doesn’t bring out the passion that you get when your team isn’t representing something personal to you, such as your city or state, or alma mater.
Put this little scenario into a little bottle, shake it up, and what you get is the crowd at Energy Solutions Arena. We’re rabid, we’re noisy, and we want blood. We have the combined passion of BYU fans, Utah fans, local NFL or MLB fans, all put together and pushed behind one banner, and one team: the Utah Jazz. No other state has the unique recipe of fandom, and that’s why our fans are the best. It’s not arrogant, it’s just how it is. We’re not trying to get on tv, we’re not there to hang out, and we’re not there just to be seen. We’re there to watch the Utah Jazz, and we’re there to watch them win. Period.
There’s an expectation in this state of winning. We expect to win, and we expect to win a lot. True, the dream is to win the ultimate prize of an NBA championship, and while that’s certiainly in the future to come (hopefully much sooner than later), we’re a fanbase that expects greatness.
That’s why it’s so fun to be a Jazz fan. That’s why it’s infinitely better to go to a game at Energy Solutions arena, and not just watch it on tv. I think if I were a Clippers fan (sorry Clippers fans), I would honestly rather watch it on tv. I could avoid traffic, I could avoid the ticket costs, and I could be silently irritated by myself at home when they lost. As a Jazz fan, I don’t care about the traffic, nor what it costs for a ticket. To be at Energy Solutions Arena for a big game is unmatched. And Jazz opponents are intimidated by it.
So, thank you NBA GM’s for recognizing the best home court advantage in the league. We intend to keep it that way. Go Jazz.
Replies: 9
Views: 1221
9 Responses
great post but 2 things i need to point out. your team being in your home city has nothing to do with the level of passion you have for it. i am passionate about the jazz and im born and raised here in sydney australia. you are missing the point that in every stadium the majority of the home fans come from that place so it is an irrelevant point. The other thing i want to point out is the traffic. is there actually traffic in salt lake city? i certainly didnt see any when i went there.
on the whole though, i love the post. its always good to see jazz fans get the recognition they deserve for making such an impact on home games. itd be interesting to see whether it would be the same if the team sucked but hopefully we never get to find out.
As a competitive runner from Florida, I visited SLC in fine shape. I went out to run and was sucking wind hard after about a mile-and-a-half with a burning chest and nose. No, the air was not filled with smog, it was a fine fall day in the low ’70’s.
That is one huge (if obvious) factor in the Jazz’s legendary HCA. High-altitude training makes for elite athletes whether they compete at altitude or sea-level, but sea-level-trained elites don’t do nearly so well up here.
Andrew:
Thanks for the input. You could very well be right, my only question, is if the Jazz were from Sydney, isn’t there a chance you’d be more passionate about them? Not that it matters either way…and yes we got traffic. Not LA 5 pm traffic, but we got traffic.
@mastersplinter23
Well said. Definitely an underrated advantage we appreciate here in ol’ SLC….
It is an amazing experience to go to a Jazz game at the ESA. Even against the lower tier teams in nov and dec fans are still crazy and fun. Fans are into it against the clippers, the t-wolves (probably cause they beat us a lot) the Nets not just the Lakers, the Celtics the Suns etc.
I love that the players can count on us fans to help bring the X-Factor.
I agree Andrew, traffic is light, but the drivers are dumber to the 10th power of almost anywhere you may go.
No professional Baseball?? Salt Lake, Ogden, and Orem are all minor league affiliates. ALL the players have signed a professional contract..
@Larry
Well, then we’d have to say the Grizzlies, the Flash, and Bees are all pro teams.
Yet, I haven’t seen the Flames, or the Mets come to town.
Sorry, I know what you mean….but you know what I mean too, right?
Thanks for the comment.
@Ben Nice post. There are definitely reasons we are the best home crowd in the NBA. Just ask Ric Bucher why…we just don’t have anything else to do!
Love the post. I would love to feel what it would be like playing for the Jazz when the ESA is going crazy. On a side note, I just tried out to be a Jazzbot and would love some feedback from you. Check my post out if you have a minute.