Two NBA Teams May Put Fans' Names on the Court

Have you always dreamt of having your name listed in small letters on an NBA court, but just didn't have the ability to make it happen?

Well, it appears there is now a solution to your problem. 

Just move to Cleveland or Milwaukee and purchase season tickets from either the Cavaliers or Bucks. 

According to the Sports Business Journal's John Lombardo, both Cleveland and Milwaukee are looking into putting season ticket holders' names on their playing courts in an effort to make purchasing ticket packages more attractive. 

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"The teams, Cleveland and Milwaukee, intend the plan as another benefit tied to their year-round membership and fan-loyalty clubs. Details are still being finalized and must be approved by the league, but the program would allow for the names of the season-ticket holders who are part of the loyalty clubs to be placed on the apron that surrounds the playing floor — or possibly even on the playing floor itself.

One source said the Cavaliers are proposing to put the account holders’ names on the sideline aprons while the Bucks are considering putting the names near the half-court line on the playing floor. The locations are subject to change depending on league response to the proposal."

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The article goes on to say that the names will be in fairly small letters and will not be visible on television.

Now, I know a lot of people are going to be outraged by this, but this is simply the cost of doing business in the NBA. Teams like the Cavs (22nd in attendance last season) and Bucks (27th) are facing an enormous uphill battle when it comes to competing against their big market brethren. 

In fact, the Bucks currently rank 30th on Forbes team value list, showing why they need to be creative when it comes to making money. 

So if this is what it takes to add another Gary Neal or Earl Clark to the mix—so be it. 

The bigger question isn't why the teams are doing it—but instead—why on Earth this would convince any fans out there? Just seems like a pretty small segment of people would be on the fence about throwing down thousands of dollars for Bucks or Cavs season tickets, only to be convinced by having their name written in small letters on the side of the court. 

The article went on to mention that the names could be approved in time for this coming season, but even if they're not, expect more changes like this to come eventually. Even with the salary cap and luxury tax penalties in place, large market teams are still in a position to dominate thanks to the disparity between local TV deals in a market like Milwaukee compared to Los Angeles or New York. 

Small market teams need to be creative to try and earn money. This is one small step towards that. 

As for what some folks around the league think, well, their split. 

 Stay tuned on this as the season draws closer. After all, your name could be coming to a court near you.

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The teams, Cleveland and Milwaukee, intend the plan as another benefit tied to their year-round membership and fan-loyalty clubs. Details are still being finalized and must be approved by the league, but the program would allow for the names of the season-ticket holders who are part of the loyalty clubs to be placed on the apron that surrounds the playing floor — or possibly even on the playing floor itself.

One source said the Cavaliers are proposing to put the account holders’ names on the sideline aprons while the Bucks are considering putting the names near the half-court line on the playing floor. The locations are subject to change depending on league response to the proposal.