Might as well throw basketball into the mix...
I rarely watch basketball on TV. College is tolerable. Pros not so much. (Non-contact sport!?! Right!!) And just for the record, I played college basketball.
I think basketball suffers from one major thing compared to any other major sport...no single play early in the game really makes that much difference in the outcome of the game. You could see the greatest spinning, twisting, slam-dunking move in the history of basketball early in the game and yes...it's great to watch the athleticism. But did it really, dramatically impact the outcome of the game? Not really. Even if the game ends up close, you won't look back and say that move won the game. It was just another basket.
But in baseball or football, a 1st inning home run might be the only run of the game. And if the game ends 1-0, that home run hitter is the hero of the game. Or if an opening kickoff is returned for a touchdown, or there is a long, spectacular touchdown run or pass in the first quarter, and the games ends up a low scoring battle, maybe 10-7 or something like that...that play will be looked at as the deciding play of the game.
You never know when the "big play" is going to happen in football or baseball. In basketball, the "big play" can't happen until the clock is winding down near the end of the game.
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