There are 5.7 million people who live between P-Cola and Lafayette

"Small market" doesn't always mean "no people".

It also means "no corporate money".


San Antonio is one of the ten largest cities in the US by population but there isn't much of a corporate presence there for whatever reason.

No problem GoatMilk..

Home of the Wahoos, Emmett Smith, Blue Angels

stretch that out to laffy. Got quite a few fans there.

Facts I have this discussion all the time. Everybody keeps saying Zion wants to be in a big market. But the fact of the matter is Zion is from Spartanburg South frickn Carolina. Went to college in Durham North Carolina. No big market aspirations

All the talking heads conveniently forget that LeBron James and Kevin Durant played in small markets and seemed to make it work just fine. I get playing in the big market opens you up for hella more opportunities, but the good players will always get their fair share.
Zion shouldn't take Anthony Davis into account - no offense to AD but I think his lack of endorsements, etc. come less from him playing in a small market and more from him having the personality of a wet towel and looking uncomfortable in interviews

Bruh Zion is the most well known NBA rookie since LeBron (And id argue that since Zion is in the social media age, he’s even bigger than Lebron was). They pushed him enough in college. He will have absolutely no problem getting the endorsements these other guys get, no one is gonna forget about him, and the Pels are gonna be on prime time a few more times and ESPN is gonna put the most mediocre Zion dunks on top ten lmao.

The notion that “Zion’s career died” when we won the lottery is absolute BS. The media will continue to slog on the knob if their golden boy Zion

Lonzo Ball has his own page on USA Today's website devoted to news about him. What do you all think the bigger factor behind that is - him playing in the second largest market in the country (if so, where are Kuzma's and Ingram's sites) OR his family acting like a bunch of asshats?
Bigger market exposure can't be ignored but in the NBA personality is everything.

Mobile baw right here. We do have a presence here it’s just a bad spot for the NBA in general. Plenty of Saints fans and connection to NO as a city though. Zion should build up the fan base here.

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I get tired of hearing small market this is just the excuse.

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I admit I’m nothing more than a casual basketball fan. I enjoy going to games when I get the opportunity but it’s just not my sport.

But why the hell does this “small market” mantra freakin matter? I used to hear the same nonsense pre-Katrina about the Saints. And then the Bensons decided to get serious, hired a great coach, who got one of the greatest players to ever play the game of football, and completely embraced the city and integrated with the fans in a very personal and at the time unique way. And what’s followed is a level of sustained success that’s not only historic but has turned the Saints into one of the legit draws in the NFL.

So why, I ask you, can that not happen in the NBA? You already have an all time great player, you’re in position to get another. Hire the right coach and embrace the community. And above all else, get your players to understand the importance of that. There is absolutely no reason this isn’t a premier destination for Pro sports. If you embrace this city it will love you unconditionally in ways that literally can not compare to anywhere else.

all about corporate money not pennies from the fans.