WWE vs NBA is an on-going series dedicated to Justin Pinotti’s obession with comparing NBA Players with WWE Superstars.
Being a fan of both the NBA and WWE I find that there is a similarity with how the internet perceive certain types of superstars. In the NBA, over the course of the many decades, the stat points per game (ppg) had become overrated in a sense as it wasn’t a true reflection of a player’s efficiency. In the WWE “looks the part” had become overrated due to the idea that Vince McMahon wanted wrestlers who looked a certain way, and de-prioritized the more workman like smaller wrestlers that are often fan favorites.
While I think the push back to points per game and wrestlers that “look the part” is in general healthy for discussion, I do think the internet narrative has shifted considerably to the point where the conversations around those attributes have become almost underrated….In the NBA, a volume scorer like Carmelo Anthony is almost seen as a non-star to the more analytically minded these days, and guys who look like adonises in the WWE are almost instantly chalked up as a “Vince guy” and disregarded.
That’s why Roman Reigns and Blake Griffin are the perfect cross-product comparison. There’s a few reasons why I feel this way, so I’m gonna spell-it-out-for-ya:
1) They are both more than their meme:
In many internet discussions Blake Griffin is often seen primarily as a dunker, but most of those discussions don’t talk about how he’s possibly the best passing big man in the NBA (an assist percentage of 27% which is close to most point guards), a really good rebounder and an underrated defensive player…Blake is more than just dunks.
On the wrestling side, Roman Reigns was once legitimately seen as raw with upside but has realized that upside into a legitimately good worker. Sure he’s only got 5-7 moves, but so did Stone Cold and The Rock, the goods are in the execution of those moves and Roman has really turned into a reliable performer. He had a great 2015 with incredible matches at almost every PPV and with enough of a variety of wrestlers (Daniel Bryan, Brock Lesnar, Randy Orton/Seth Rollins/Dean Ambrose, Bray Wyatt, Dean Ambrose, Sheamus) where you can’t just pin it on the other guy in the ring.
2) They have natural star power
Another interesting comparison between Reigns and Blake is that they are both kinda shoved down fans’ throats in a sense. I’m personally not offended by this as I like both talents, but I can see how seeing Blake Griffin in 50 commercials during the NBA Playoffs can be draining, and Roman Reigns is on WWE TV all the time. They are both very good looking and charismatic in their own way, and those are attributes that can invite divisiveness from the commonwealth of fans, but it’s hard to deny they have a magnetism about them. Even if you don’t believe someone like Reigns is a star in the ring, he does have a presence about him that many other wrestlers lack.
3) Is it even a bad thing?
I’ve already spoken about how Reigns having “the look” and Blake being a dunker are attributes that are sometimes seen as overrated qualities on the internet, but is that even really the case?
Consider in basketball, the point of the game is to put the ball in the basket, and a dunk is the most efficient way to accomplish that task.
In wrestling, this is essentially a TV show, and to be on TV you do need to be visually appealing…Is it really even a bad thing that these are the attributes that stand out about the respected individuals?
I am both a Reigns and Blake fan, and I think they both fall on the stardom spectrum about the same: are they the single most talented guy in their profession? No. However, do they have legitimate star power and are really good at what they do? Absolutely.
Both of them have attributes that are probably overrated in more casual/mainstream audiences, but they also can be drastically underrated with those more hardcore fans as well, attributes that get overrated get overrated for a reason: because what they have is actually quite valuable.
How’d I do? Let me know by following me on twitter @JustinPinotti and give me a shout out. I’m usually live tweeting RAW or the NBA Playoffs and am down to talk about either.
