As the NBA gets set for the quarterfinals of its inaugural In-Season Tournament, and publicity is in full swing for the upcoming big-screen adaptation of the Mean Girls musical, a stark similarity presents itself — both NBA commissioner Adam Silver and Regina George lackey, Gretchen, have an unhealthy interest in seeing their pet projects succeed.
For Gretchen, it's trying to get the term “fetch” in the zeitgeist as a choice new slang term for cool/fire/stylish. For Adam Silver, it's trying to generate interest in a meaningless mid-season NBA tournament that has no bearing on the post-season or much of anything else for that matter.
The only question that remains is which NBA mean girl is going to be brave enough to look Silver in the eye and tell him, “Adam, stop trying to make In-Season Tournament happen. It's not going to happen!”
Sure, the colorful floors for In-Season Tournament games on Tuesdays and Fridays are fun. Occasionally the games feel a bit more competitive on these nights. But trying to wrap one's head around how the tournament works, who advances, and what it all means is as fruitless as trying to figure out why Mean Girls needed another big-screen adaptation (wasn't the point of making the musical that it was different enough from the source material movie to justify, but now we're making a movie of the musical and now my head hurts?!).
If the In-Season Tournament had an international component, such as a FIBA World Cup-like pairing of the best teams from around the world taking on the NBA's best teams, I might be more into it. After all, this is how many of the in-season tournaments in professional soccer leagues work.
As is however, trying to figure out why I should care about who wins the first-ever NBA Cup is as elusive as the meaning behind the new hot pink Mean Girls character posters (also side note: NBA Cup sounds more like something a player forced to guard Draymond Green should be required to wear).
Fetch may have a cult-like following as a classic line from the original Mean Girls, but it's still not a thing, and history probably won't be as kind to Adam Silver‘s NBA In-Season Tournament. All we can hope is that the Plastics make a derogatory page about the tournament in their burn book, then it's sure to blow up and create some serious drama.