The Real Reason Why Grand Rapids Should Be Considered The Best Sports City in Michigan
Michigan loves sports. From college to professional, we have some of the best (and worst) teams in America. And it's not just us blowing our own air horns- we're seeing a study from the financial website Wallethub, that is showing what cities in America are the best for sports fans.
If you were to take a guess, you'd probably assume that Detroit ranked the highest of all of the cities in Michigan (even if the Lions are sometimes bringing the average down) but weirdly, you'd be wrong. According to Wallethub, Ann Arbor was the highest ranked Michigan city, hitting number 7 on their mid-size cities list.
But, besides all of the University of Michigan teams, are they really carrying the rest of the mitten state in sports? I'm here to argue that the title should be going to us on the west side of the state in Grand Rapids.
Why should Grand Rapids be considered the best sports city in Michigan?
It's simple- we have the best teams. The Grand Rapids Griffins celebrated their 25th anniversary last season, sneaking in a winning overall record after a difficult year during the pandemic.
But they aren't the only team in Van Andel alone who is shining like a star, we have The Gold, which is the NGA G-League affiliate of the Denver Nuggets, who just upgraded their home court to one of the nicest in the league. Last season they were able to host some pretty incredible players from the NBA including Isaiah Thomas.
We're also home to The West Michigan Whitecaps who are the affiliate team for the Detroit Tigers, saving you a trip across the state to see their big brothers in the MLB. This landed them second place in their division.
So sure, we don't have major league teams here in Grand Rapids like Detroit does. But, how are you going to say that Ann Arbor has a better sports scene just because they have some quality college teams? Grand Rapids - we deserve the title!