For some, spring simply means allergy season. For others, it’s the beginning of major league baseball. But to many others it means tuning in for the playoffs of either the National Hockey League or the National Basketball Association. For many years now, these two premiere athletic associations have competed head to head with each other during their respective playoffs. Some years, hockey has shined brighter behind the electrifying play of players like Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux.
Other times, basketball prevailed with thrilling moments powered by Michael Jordan and Larry Bird. But which league really has the better and more exciting playoffs?
This question is one that fans of either sport think they know the answer to, and rightfully so. Both fan bases are loyal and just crazy enough.
The NHL got its start due to World War I suspending the play of the NHA (National Hockey Association) in 1917, in Montreal, Canada. Since then it has expanded to 30 teams, six of which are in Canada and 24 in the United States.
The NBA began in 1946 in Toronto (or New York, where it was conceived) with a game between the Toronto Huskies playing the New York Knickerbockers. It has also grown to 30 teams, but only has one based in Canada, with the rest scattered around in the US. So if we just look at the age of the two leagues, the NHL has the edge.
I really wanted to do a whole section on playoff traditions, but after making my head hurt from staring at a computer screen for hours on end, I couldn’t find anything for the NBA. The NHL has several, highlighted by the annual players’ playoff beards, where they don’t shave their faces till they’re out of the playoffs, and the “End-of-Series” handshake, a great symbol of sportsmanship.
If anybody can think of any solid playoff traditions from the NBA, please comment online or e-mail me.
As far as playoff formats go, they both use a very similar format. Each series is played as a best-of-seven, starting at the higher ranked team’s home arena. The only difference is how the top four teams are seeded.
In the NHL, the top three seeds are always the three division winners. In the NBA, however, the top four are based on the records. This format was only adopted in 2007, however. I firmly believe that teams should be rewarded on their records, and the NBA’s playoff format reflects that, so I’m going with the NBA here.
I don’t like ties. So I’m not calling this one a tie. Ties suck (yes, I’m looking at you soccer). But in choosing which league has a better playoff, I can’t decide. I could throw out stats and facts all day long, but it comes down to which sport you enjoy more.
The question isn’t about the NBA or the NHL. It’s about basketball or hockey. Which sport are you a bigger fan of?