The golden age of basketball is over.

Basketball is quietly cooling down.

The courts are becoming empty, fewer people are watching games, and young people rarely talk about basketball. The once-top sneaker culture has gradually faded from the mainstream.

Has basketball become worse? Has the sport lost its charm?

Yesterday in the chat room, Brother Di raised such a question.

As a result, we received a blazing 647 comments.

I summarized everyone's opinions into a few categories, which might represent 90% of the sentiments.

Superstar Gap

The explosion of any nationwide sport often relies on the support of phenomenal idols.

The golden age of basketball was built on the influence of generations of legendary players.

Jordan, Kobe, James, Curry, and domestically, Yao Ming and Yi Jianlian.

For fans born in the 80s, 90s, and even early 2000s, basketball is not just a sport; it is the faith of an entire youth.

But now, the legends of this generation are fading.

The young superstars have stats, honors, and ability, but they lack compelling stories and the charisma to break out of the niche.

Take the CBA for example. After Yi Jianlian retired and Guo Ailun played sporadically, the number of people watching games has indeed decreased.

National Team Performance

Once, the popularity of campus basketball and grassroots basketball was inseparable from the public's expectations for Chinese basketball.

People love basketball not only because they enjoy the sport, but also because they hope local players can rise and the Chinese men's basketball team can stand on the world stage and win glory for the country.

But in the past decade, the Chinese men's national basketball team's performance in major tournaments has been declining and unstable, repeatedly shattering public expectations and draining the patience and passion of fans. This is also a key driver of the continuous decline in basketball's popularity.

I don't want to dwell on all the regrets and failures of the past ten years. I believe every old fan who has watched the games knows them well.

Those moments of disappointment have long been etched in our hearts.

Everyone just needs to understand that the national team's performance is extremely important to us.

Passion Lost to Daily Necessities

Brother Di's brothers will feel this deeply.

Before writing, I specifically checked the fan demographics from the backend: 26 to 35-year-olds account for 36%, and 36 to 45-year-olds account for 21.45%.

These people, like me, were the core audience of the golden age of basketball. But now, they have long lost their youthful innocence. Some have high blood pressure, some have pot bellies... and they have a unified name:The Workhorses.

These middle-aged people face multiple pressures: workplace competition, salary pressure, mortgage, car loans, supporting the elderly, raising children, etc. Survival has become the top priority.

It's hard to save money for sneakers, stay up late to watch games, or get excited about a game for half a day like before.

In other words, the group that loved basketball the most is now trapped by life and swept by reality.

Very true, and also painfully realistic.

Diversification of Entertainment

When we were in school, our extracurricular and after-school entertainment options were extremely limited.

During the 10-minute break, we would run to the court and shoot a few baskets, or gather around with classmates to secretly watch a text live broadcast.

If we could watch an NBA live broadcast on CCTV5 on the weekend, that was already satisfying enough.

Nowadays, kids are "too busy".

The widespread adoption of short videos, mobile games, PC games, and e-sports has completely changed leisure habits.

Lying in bed or sitting at home, you can get a quick dopamine hit with just a few finger taps.

Low cost, zero barrier, effortless – no need to travel, gather people, or expend physical energy. You can kill fragmented time anytime, anywhere.

Besides electronic products, sports like cycling, mountaineering, camping, hiking, tennis, badminton, and fitness have rapidly risen, occupying the offline leisure market of young people.

In other words, it's more diversified; you don't have to play basketball.

Brother Di's Final Words:

Quoting writer Lu Sihao:

"The stars we chased have retired, the comics we read have ended, the singers we liked have withdrawn, the authors we read have passed away, the idols we worshipped have disappeared, the coordinates of our childhood are gone. The post-90s generation has begun to lose, and an era is passing."

Today's topic is the cooling of basketball, which is also an inevitable trend of the times.

Entertainment diversification, sports variety, and the utilitarian nature of life – all these changes are diluting the once single and pure passion.

But basketball has never truly disappeared.

There are still people who love basketball, and there are still people who hold onto the court.

Brother Di still believes that at the moment when brothers see this post:

On ordinary campus courts and rural open spaces, there will still be a group of dark-skinned children, under the scorching midday sun, barefoot and tirelessly running, jumping, and drinking big gulps of water on the court.

Just like me 20 years ago....