Ja Morant

At Smoothie King Center in New Orleans they serve frozen daiquiris, at State Farm Arena in Atlanta they serve frozen daiquiris, and at FedExForum in Memphis they play the Oscar winning film Hustle and Flow.

All three teams are in the playoffs. The Atlanta Hawks and New Orleans Pelicans will play on Friday in the first round of the playoffs. Last night both crowds in Atlanta and New Orleans brought the energy that they sometimes don't have on a nightly basis, but the crowd in Atlanta and New Orleans showed their support for the team.

For most teams it takes a playoff run for the fans to truly get into the spirit that makes the energy felt through the television set, and hopefully the Hawks and Pelicans win their games on Friday, so for at least one playoff round, we can all have the treat of these three unique metropolitan

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The NBA games are more intimate. Arenas generally hold no more than 18,000 people and the players aren't hidden from view. It's common to see Joakim Noah running around the court high-fiving fans after a triple-overtime game, or Patrick Beverley jumping on the scorer's table and throwing his jersey into the stands. Frank Deford once described the NBA as having more sex appeal than the other sports, and I agree with him. The fans are so close to the court that they can see everything, which makes the game more attractive to viewers. The culture is part of the experience when you watch the teams play at home.

Memphis is a unique city. The metropolitan area includes north Mississippi and west Arkansas. It is a different experience from the rest of Tennessee in the Smoky Mountains. In Memphis, they have some Mississippi blues to go along with the barbeque and it runs up the chimney. When he first arrived in Memphis, the perception of his career and personality was unknown. He's the lifetime mayor of the city now.

When you first arrive in New Orleans, you will ask yourself if you are still in America. You can walk around all day and never be bored because of the gumbo that was made from the French, Caribbean, and Spanish influences. If the mood strikes you, you can purchase your own second-line parade for $300. It is also more of a basketball town than you think. The team that has finished over.500 three times in the last five years is the Pelicans. Mannie Fresh and Juvenile performed at halftime of the regular-season finale, and any team that gives their fans that kind of treat is fine with me.

I saw a peanut butter colored car roll down the street in Atlanta, and the words "peanut butter" were written on the side of the car. There is a club in the arena as well as a barber shop, and the Hawks made sure to follow suit with the stadium renovations. Atlanta has a reputation for not supporting its teams, but the community forgives it for having other options when the teams are boring. Go to a United soccer game or a Hawks playoff game. If you give the people something worth supporting, they will do it just as big as they do everything else.

Three great American cities are all different, but they all embrace the same thing. Even though the play-in games in Atlanta and New Orleans weren't as compelling as the Clippers game on Tuesday, the environment at both arenas was very much like the cities both teams represent. I like NBA basketball, I like a good time, and I like the fact that these three teams embrace the culture of their cities and can have moments like an entire crowd yelling.