On October 22, just 20 miles east of Concord, the National Basketball Association (NBA) season began at TD Garden with Al Horford tipping the ball to fellow Celtics player Derrick White. Coming back from its 4-month hiatus, the NBA welcomes back so many of its familiar veterans and introduces a cohort of young talents: shot-blocking bigs, high-flying guards, and highlight-reel machines. The league is finally back, and the excitement for its return is palpable.
For many residents of the Bradford House, basketball is a shared passion. This is evident from the many aspects of the house’s decor and composition—a significant number of the members are participating as school athletes on the basketball teams; there are cutouts of basketball superstars corresponding to each student in front of every dorm room; and even the weekly chore assignment sheet consists of miniature paper hoops and ping pong balls (Head of House Henrik Gombos ’25 spent hours hot gluing the hoops together). Given the enthusiasm for the sport and the new arrival of Athletic Director Sue Johnson as an affiliate of the House, basketball viewership has become ingrained in the culture of the space. When the Women's National Basketball Association Finals games were broadcasted in the common room, an unusual sense of nervousness circulated among the Bradfordians. Almost unanimously fans of New York Liberty, the common room would erupt into cheers of relief when they made a clutch shot, and descended into cries of disbelief when the Minnesota Lynx forced the game into overtime.
The celebration of the sport continues as the NBA season opens. Games are often broadcasted out loud from the comfort of sofas and pillows, and accompanied by the sizzling sound of a late-night snacker improvising a meal in the adjacent kitchen. There is something essentially communal about the event—whether it be the hardcore fans rooting for their home team, or the more casual viewers tuning in, perhaps looking to consume something beyond the uncooked ramen in their bowl—an NBA game is no fun watched alone. Of course, not everything is harmonious: NBA teams are competitive, and so apparently are their fans. Lakers fans and Warriors fans both hold a strong corner within the house and while they don’t see eye-to-eye, they are united in their disapproval of Celtics fans. It makes for a fascinating scene when any of the three teams is playing another.
With most of the season ahead of us, it is still unclear which team the championship will belong to. It might be the Boston Celtics, who have maintained their winning momentum and stacked lineup from last season. It might be the Oklahoma City Thunder, one of the youngest, most talented teams in the NBA. It might even be the Golden State Warriors, with their newly acquired 3-point specialist in Buddy Hield and a depth in their bench we haven’t seen since their championship run in 2022. Residents of the Bradford House seem to have already decided on a winner, or at least, their own winners. But the games go beyond winning: they are narratives, they are entertainment, they are passion, and they are human connections. Come watch a game of basketball in Bradford, and you’ll rediscover the real magic of the NBA.