Charlie Saab said:
Johns has not played 60% of the games played the past 3 yrs and the game has gone along just fine without him.In fact ratings and crowds are at an all time high and have surpassed the "tina turner" era.
Johns is not the marquee player Jordan was to the NBA.
When Jordan left basketball the 2nd time after 1997/8 the ratings went down across america...and stayed that way for a while. It was only last yr that the NBA showed signs of life.
The game let sailor go, thats fine, but then they didnt learn their lesson when Lote decided to jump ship too.
The administrators of the game are reactive and proactive...thats a bad admin.
Agreed, Johns has been missing for the majority of the last 3 years where we as a competition have continued to grow on and off the field Charlie though in saying that, with Johns there for ALL games surely you cannot argue that he would of detracted from this growth? If anything, he would of added to it. e.g. I can watch ALL Newcastle games, as I did this season with Johns in the line-up, until he returns, I will be lucky to make an effort for a handful of those games. That's just me.
As for the Jordan comparison, your right, he is not at that level given the exposure the NBA has worldwide, though at the very minimum, like Jordan, Johns boosts ratings and puts bums on seats. He is also one player you want to hear and read about.
Finally, once again, I agree, the NRL is more "reactive than proactive", this has been something I have been vocal about as well.
Good to see this thread stayed on track ;-) :lol: Whenever we have a Johns thread, be prepared for comparisons to past and present players debating his standing in the rankings.
