Some of you may or may not know that I live in Detroit. Detroit has four major sports teams (the Detroit Pistons in the NBA, the Detroit Lions in the NFL, the Detroit Red Wings in the NHL, and the Detroit Tigers in MLB). There are a number of close college ties here to the University of Michigan (in Ann Arbor) that has usually strong football and basketball programs, as well as Michigan State University (farther north in East Lansing) that can claim the same. In fact, some of the "best" players in the NBA have come from those two places, like Magic Johnson, and uh, Glen Rice. Okay, maybe "best" is an exaggeration, but those teams are damn solid. Even Oakland University and University of Detroit-Mercy are developing their bball chops. Why list all these teams?
Well, because on the radio here in Detroit they are trying to see what fans care more about -- slow growth that builds up for a championship, being perpetually good but not being a contender, being a contender, or something in between. The Red Wings have 11 Stanley Cups, and are always a contender. The Tigers have four World Series titles, and won the AL Pennant 10 times, but only rarely seem to get so far in the playoffs. The Pistons have 3 NBA titles (and 2 NBL titles from the 40's), and have won their conference 7 times. In recent history they went to the Eastern Conference Finals six times in a row. And the Lions, well, the Lions don't have a championship history; but they seem to be a team on the rise now.
The responses on the radio have been interesting. People in Utah have the whole UoU/BYU thing, Real Salt Lake, minor league baseball, and the Utah Jazz. Not being a Utah guy I don't know how you feel. I don't know how the front office feels either. They don't take my call anymore, but I do still have access to the best Jazz fans on the planet here at SLC Dunk. So I'm simply asking . . .