There are 92 teams among the three major American sports leagues – the NFL, NBA and major league baseball (sorry, WNBA, NHL and MLS. Major leagues.). Teams spend millions of dollars to make sure we're aware of them, including gear that acts as free advertising. The leagues broadcast games every week.
Everyone knows the Dallas Cowboys. New York Yankees. Los Angeles Lakers, yet there are teams that we forget exist.
These teams generally don't win. They're often from overlooked parts of the nation (no New York or Chicago teams here). They tend to not have big stars (although there are exceptions). The main thing they have in common? When we hear their team name, we say, "Oh yeah, I forgot about them!"
With bonus points for NFL teams (since that's the biggest sport by far, so it's harder to be forgotten), here are the 10 most forgettable major sports teams, in reverse order.
10. Carolina Panthers. Even when they played in the Super Bowl (twice!) I forgot them. Maybe it's because Carolina isn't a town? Maybe it's because they didn't exist when I was a kid?
9. Orlando Magic. The NBA likes to put teams in a small market and hopes it works (Sacramento, Salt Lake City, Charlotte). I guess it does sometimes. Not in this case, though.
8. Atlanta Hawks. They should be memorable since Atlanta is the capital of the South. The Hawks have had exciting players (Dominique Wilkins! Trae Young! Other guys!), but ask me to name NBA teams and I forget they exist.
7. Tennessee Titans. As the Houston Oilers, they were unforgettable. They moved northeast and we forgot them, despite them being good virtually every year. Maybe NFL teams named after states are forgettable?
6. Indiana Pacers. Four former ABA teams joined the NBA in the 1976 merger, so we're nearly five decades into always forgetting the Pacers exist.
5. Colorado Rockies. Another forgettable team named after a state. They're also forgettable because the Rockies have been largely irrelevant for most of their 30-year history.
4. Washington Wizards. Arguably professional sports' most blah team over the long haul, which is saying something. They're never good, they're never horrible, they're never memorable. Can you even picture their uniforms? Can you name three players from the past decade?
3. Los Angeles Angels. How can a team that claims to play in Los Angeles (it plays in Anaheim), has arguably the greatest player in the history of baseball (Shohei Ohtani) and had the best player before him (Mike Trout) be so forgettable? I don't know. What team were we talking about again?
2. Charlotte Hornets. Charlotte had an NBA team, lost it to New Orleans and got another team. The NBA figured basketball was big in North Carolina, but who knows? Who even can tell? Who is this again?
1. Jacksonville Jaguars. They could be a playoff team, but as soon as I finish writing this paragraph, I'll forget the Jags exist. Jacksonville is America's 11th largest city by population, yet I know nothing of it. Oh, it has an NFL team? I'd already forgotten.
That's it. The 10 most . . . wait. What about the New Orleans Pelicans of the NBA?
Reach Brad Stanhope at bradstanhope@outlook.com.
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