In some ways, going from Culture to the N.B.A. beat is the perfect crossover. Basketball players, maybe more so than athletes from any other sport, are deeply ingrained in our culture. Just think about how many hoops players are getting involved in film and television: LeBron James has his name on more than a dozen projects himself; Kyrie Irving starred in “Uncle Drew” last year; Blake Griffin is a stand-up comedian. (Seriously!) The list goes on and on. That’s not even including the large number of basketball players who have dropped a music album of some sort.

The cultural currency of N.B.A. stars has something to do with how accessible they are. They don’t wear face masks or padding. If you can afford it, you can literally sit next to them on the court. Basketball players are recognizable. They’re usually the biggest and tallest guys in any given room. People know who they are. They’re the brightest lights in American sports.

The subculture in the N.B.A. is something else in itself. Players routinely talk trash to each other on and off the floor. They’re trolling about everything from missed shots to more personal things. This isn’t even including #NBATwitter, a magical, faraway place where bloggers, players and fans all convene to meme, feud and lust for analytics.

This suits me as a comedian in particular. I’ve been performing stand-up in New York City for the last seven years or so, and let me tell you: The N.B.A. is the funniest league to follow. Heck, “Inside the N.B.A.,” TNT’s studio show, matches any late night comedy offering out there. When Kawhi Leonard won’t even fist bump Norman Powell in the tunnel until they’re in their normal spot, or when Joel Embiid says of his conditioning, “I think I’m at, uh, 81 percent. Shout out to Jalen Rose,” I have trouble staying upright. What other professional sports league is like this?

Image Sopan Deb fanboying with Robert Parish of the Boston Celtics in 2006. Credit... Courtesy Sopan Deb

But if I’m being honest, the job that prepared me most for covering the N.B.A. was the one I had before I got to The Times: covering the Trump campaign for CBS. Covering sports and politics requires the use of some of the same muscles, as I’ve realized over the past two months. Instead of delving into poll numbers, I’m diving into box scores. Access is often limited, especially as the stakes are higher. News about what is going on behind the scenes often gets more attention than what is happening on camera. The quality of spokespeople varies from team to team, just as they do for individual candidates, and they often reflect the quality of the team they represent.