I keep hearing commentators make misguided comments about this year's free agent moves and claiming the cap bump is a problem for small market teams. When I look at the markets in the NBA, I see SA's dynasty in one of the league's smallest markets. I see the top 5 market teams having only a single team in last year's playoffs (LAC out of NYK, BRK, LAL, and CHI). I see Cleveland winning the title in a middle of the pack market. I see Miami having a recent superteam with a middle of the pack market. How many times have OKC and Memphis missed the playoffs in the last decade, despite being in very small markets?
What do people mean by "small market" anyway? Does the market for Boston include Cambridge? Does it include NH? Maine? Are people basing market size on individual team revenue -- which would be absurd since winning is a mediating variable for revenue.