‘What Happened to the Game I Love?’—a meme history

What Happened to the Game I Love? is a catchphrase meme attributed to NBA commentator Mark Jackson's reaction during the 2023 Western Conference Finals. A foul called during the game led the analyst to bemoan the state of basketball today.

Meme basics:

• Meme Creator: @jdeezy3_/X
• Meme Type: Catchphrase
• First Appearance: May 18, 2023
• Origin Source: X
• Peak Popularity: February 2024
  

What game is 'What Happened to the Game I Love?' from?

NBA commentator Mark Jackson uttered, "What Happened to the Game I Love?" in response to a flagrant foul called during Game 2 Western Conference Finals. The game featured the Denver Nuggets playing the Los Angeles Lakers.

The foul was called against the Lakers' D'Angelo Russell for a foul against the Nuggets' Jamal Murray. While it was ruled a flagrant foul, Jackson and broadcasting partner Jeff Van Gundy disagreed.

"This league astounds me," Van Gundy said. "What do we want D'Angelo Russell to do? Get out of the way?"

NBA aftermath

D'Angelo Russell commented on the moment after the game, one of several Lakers who noted questionable calls by referees that evening.

"Few questionable calls that really dictated a lot of movements forward. So, it is what it is; we all saw it."

The moment bubbled up again in late July 2023 when it was announced that Mark Jackson was leaving ESPN.

Meme spread

Viewers, particularly longtime NBA fans, flocked to the sentiment and quickly began spreading it across Twitter.

Memes featuring Mark Jackson saying the phrase in different situations began to appear on X (formerly Twitter).

As time passed, it was applied to different scenarios, both in sports and other areas of entertainment. In February 2023, the memes experienced a spike during a newsy period across several sports—the NBA, the NFL, the NHL, and the WWE.

Meme examples

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