Category Archives: NBA Lockout

by | November 26, 2011 · 11:16 AM

A Tentative Agreement reached by the NBA and Players

Goal tending

Nuclear winter is a relatively short season after all. The lockout is not over. Not yet at least, but the two sides in the 149-day long lockout have come to a tentative agreement that should end the NBA lockout. Before a season can begin both the players and the owners will have to ratify the agreement.

After a long and bitter lockout, the league has plans to begin the NBA season on Christmas Day with a triple-header. From there, a 66 game season will take place. Training camps will begin on December 9 which will also mark the beginning of free agency. Of course, this is all predicated on whether the two sides will agree to the proposed deal.

For players, who dissolved their union on November 14, their lawsuit, the players initially filed two separate ones but they consolidated them into one in the Minnesota courts, against the NBA must be dropped and the union must reform before a vote can take place on whether or not to approve the agreement reached. The players need a simple majority vote to ratify the deal. As for the owners, Commissioner David Stern will take the proposed deal before the NBA labor committee later on Saturday where they are expected to approve the deal. Fifteen of the 29 owners, the league owns the New Orleans Hornets, must vote in favor of any new collective bargaining agreement.

Throughout the duration of the lockout, seemingly every issue brought to the table was a contentious one. Basketball-Related Income and system issues became the focal points of the talks and were frequently the reason that the two sides would abandon negotiations all together for periods of time. Now what remains is six pages of “B-List” issues that need to be sorted out. These include the NBA age limit, drug testing, and rookie salaries. All of these items will have to be resolved before the NBA Board of Governors can vote on the deal.

Details have not fully emerged on how the new CBA is structured but it appears that the previous 49 to 51 percent band of BRI will remain in place. Also, as Larry Coon reports, there will be a relaxed stance on the mid-level exception that the owners had pushed for with the elimination of smaller mid-level exceptions for tax-paying teams. Sign-and-trade contract extensions, which hardline ownership had vehemently opposed, will remain in the new CBA and penalties for teams paying luxury taxes are not as significant as some owners had wanted. However, they will be harsher than they were under the last CBA.

With the impending  ratification of a new agreement there is room for celebration. Yet, that celebration is marred with the knowledge that there is no winner. Basketball wins, but as Nike has pointed out during the lockout, basketball never stops. This was an ugly dispute and the two sides have no one to blame but themselves. They had two years to come to terms on a new labor agreement but instead chose to go down a path of no return. This is their doing.

When the season begins there will no doubt be a high degree of animosity between some players and owners, especially those owners that were singled out as hardline, wanting the players to concede more and more on every issue. These are the Michael Jordans, the Dan Gilberts, the Rob Savers, and the Paul Allens. These are the small market teams that preached “competitive balance” but who really wanted to bleed the players dry. There will be a rift. Over time though, it may close.

For now, fans and players wait. Fans wait for confirmation that there will be an NBA season. Players wait for the opportunity to approve the agreement that has been reached. They will ratify it. There is no doubt that they will. However, there will be voices around them that will say that the deal does not benefit them, that they lost. Yes, the players conceded to the owners. Yes, their share of BRI is significantly less, but without a season they would have no income at all (endorsements aside).

This Christmas, NBA fans will not rush to see what is under the tree. Instead, they will rush to see what is on TV. Whether they have been naughty or nice they should be treated to the gift that is NBA basketball. If the schedule stands as it is fans can expect to see the Boston Celtics play the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden, the Miami Heat playing the defending champion Dallas Mavericks in Dallas (oh, what a day for Mark Cuban to raise the banner), and the Chicago Bulls travel west to play the Los Angeles Lakers. That is quite a lineup and it will be a good present. However, the bitter pill that we were forced to swallow since July 1 will still loom large as the NBA starts its second shortest season in history.

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by | November 14, 2011 · 3:58 PM

You Maniacs, You Blew it Up: NBPA rejects Owners’ Offer, Disbands

David Stern was offering a 72 game season starting December 15. Of course that offer came with plenty of strings attached to the tune of some $300 billion in concession and restricted player movement. The players, who the owners though would cave to their demands, did not care for any of the deals placed before them. That is a concise version of what has transpired up to this point. Today the players threw down the gauntlet and rejected the ultimatum issued by Stern and will dissolve their union.

The union issued a notice of disclaimer on Monday afternoon which officially begins the process of union dissolution. Issuing a disclaimer is a quicker process in terms of moving legal filings to the courts rather than waiting 45 days for a vote from players on decertification. From there a anti-trust lawsuits will be filed against the league by the players. The dissolution of the union voids the ability of the league to not be sued by the players. These filings will be handled by attorney David Boies, who was hired by the players. Boies was involved in the NFL’s anti-trust suit.

Some players and many agents pushed for the union to decertify in July once the owners began the lockout. Union director Billy Hunter dismissed those early calls but has now, along with the players, decided that the league has not negotiated in good faith and begun the process.

The fate of the next CBA will have to wait until what will likely be a lengthy courts process is concluded. That means that the possibility of an NBA season is very dim. Courts are notoriously slow moving and will not move more quickly just because professional athletes are involved.

So here we are. We, at the Beef, have held a rather pessimistic view of the entire lockout so the events of today are not surprising. It was foolish to think that “cooler heads will prevail” in this matter. There are no cool heads. This has not been about the money or system issues for a long time. It was always about ego and wanting to watch those who opposed you crumble to your demands. This was the position of the owners and the league.

The players conceded across the board and the owners wanted more and more. It has not been stated yet, but the owners will likely reset their offer to the players and revert back to their 53/47 percent split of basketball-related income and a hard cap. This helps no one. This is not a tactic of  “good faith” negotiating. In no way does this bring either side closer to a resolution.

Understand this: there will not be an NBA season (I hope I am wrong). Stern has stated that there needs to be 30 days from an agreement on a new collective bargaining agreement before the season can begin. Time is not on the side of a season, especially with the involvement of the courts, and the league will not flinch at the players’ move to decertify. If anything, the hardline owners will be given the reins in all future negotiations. This is simply a disaster. If you have followed the lockout in any amount you have to be rolling your eyes. This is just frustrating. Grown men using the media to wage a public relations war equates to playground bickering.

Stern stated on SportsCenter that the union used the threat of decerticification as a tactic. Yes, they did. Just like Stern used every tactic, especially scare tactics, in the book throughout the course of the lockout, the latest being the ultimatum.

If certain teams were losing money at alarming rates how can they hope to recoup those loses now that there will likely not be a season at all. Smart move. At this point there is nothing nice to write about what took place today. Both sides are at fault. A complete overhaul of the people involved seems to be the only way that progress can be made but that will never happen. Both sides will never admit that they are the problem.

In the meantime, we lose. We all lose.

Damn you! Goddamn you all to hell!

 

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by | November 13, 2011 · 5:12 AM

Josh Howard’s Celebrity All-Star Basketball Game

Charity rocks!

Oh, you had better believe we were there, and we live Tweeted it. The NBA is not going on right now, and may not be for quite some time, so we took in the best basketball game our city has seen since game five of the NBA Finals. No, it was not as hype as a playoff game. No, it was not super packed and yes, the game was played on a DISD court, but this is all we have right now and dammit, we enjoyed it.

Jeff Caplan of ESPN Dallas estimated about 2,000 spectators to be in attendance for the game. However, having tweeted him during the game he might have had that number confused with the amount of three-pointers that Damon Jones took. Seriously, Kevin Durant was just feeding him the ball all night (Russell Westbrook take notice). Honestly, the game could not have been more entertaining. It was a perfect mix of pickup game, meets no defense, meets traveling galore, with sprinkles of flash.

Josh Howard, Nick Young, Andray Blatche (yes, it was a Wizards’ scrimmage essentially), Jarrett Jack, LaMarcus Aldridge, Desanga Diop, Corey Brewer, D.J. Mbenga (in Dallas we still love him), Reggie Evans, Marquis Daniels, Damion James, Jeremy Evans, Anthony Randolph, Trevor Booker, who coached the blue team, Damion Wilkins, Jason Maxiell, Hamady N’Diaye,  and would-be rookie Isaiah Thomas were among the notables playing.

Unfortunately, both Jeremy Evans and Mbenga had to leave the game after both being walloped in the face at one point.

Other than Durant shoveling the ball to Jones on every possession, Young was doing everything in his power to command this game. He was streaking out on the break (there was no transition defense), he was driving the lane (there was no interior defense except for a couple of Diop and Mbenga blocks), and he was knocking down an off-balance outside shot (sometimes). Look, this is what we have and it was fun. Jason Terry and John Wall were in the building as well but they were not dressed out.

Yes, it was sloppy. At one point Durant just tossed the ball out-of-bounds intentionally. It looked as though he may have been going for the off the wall dunk but he missed horribly. He was more concerned about assists on this night. At one point he ran over to the scorer’s table to ask if they were keeping statistics because he wanted to set a personal high in assists. They were not. However, he probably did set that mark.

Without an official score keeper it is safe to say that Damon Jones led all scorers. All of those three-point attempts (and they were plenty) gave him that edge. Yet, his game is boring and he is not even in the NBA anymore.

Howard’s team won the game, despite him not playing in the second half, 139-128.

Thank goodness there were people with Ball is Life t-shirts on there filming the event. The highlights will be posted here when they are available for YouTube embedding, but right now you can view them here. We will post our grainy camera phone pictures on our Tumblr.

After the game was over outside, I shouted at Blatche and Young that I hoped they have a season. Young said that he hoped they did too. Blatche was more occupied by the two women in front of him. Oh, Andre.

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by | · 4:07 AM

Team USA continues Despite the Lockout

 

What the future may hold

LeBron James is in, Kobe Bryant is a go, and Kevin Durant will likely suit up. After that the state of USA Basketball for the 2012 Olympics in London is up in the air, especially with the possibility of losing the entire 2011-12 NBA season.

Monday looks like the day that could make or break any possibility of an NBA season. This has been stated many times over during the course of the lockout but with the players union preparing to rejected the latest offer from the league, this is quite possibly the last grasp at a 72 game season before talks completely break down with the owners reverting to their hardline 53/47 percentage split of basketball-related income and the decertification of the NBPA. With that possibility looming, where does Team USA stand?

USA Basketball are not conjoined at the hip, though they are virtually inseparable. The national team, since FIBA altered their rules in 1989, has been comprised entirely of NBA players. This will not change even with a lockout. It would be foolish to send a team of college players to the Olympics and expect to compete with the likes of Spain, Argentina, and Lithuania. Yet, there can be no denying that the lockout could strain the eventual formation of Team USA.

Head Coach Mike Krzyzewski has no NBA affiliation as he coaches the men’s team at Duke University. There should be no complication with him returning to coach the program. However, aside from Jim Boeheim who coaches at Syracuse, the assistant coaches coach in the NBA. Mike D’Antoni is the current head coach of the New York Knicks and Nate McMillan coaches the Portland Trail Blazers. As per the rules of the lockout, neither D’Antoni nor McMillan is allowed to have any contact or communication with the lockout players.

Herein lies the first hurdle for Team USA. They will be without two of their assistant coaches if the lockout persists. With Krzyzewski, D’Antoni and McMillan have successfully orchestrated the present liquidity that embodies Team USA. The Redeem Team that won gold in 2008 at the Beijing Olympics was completely dismantled two years later, partly do to lack of interest and previous engagements by the players who were a part of that team, and transformed into a lengthy and quick, uptempo and undersized bunch who won gold at the World Championships in Turkey in 2010. D’Antoni is fluent in the rules and style of the international game having coached for years in Italy which has helped NBA players transition to FIBA rules and style. Losing both coaches will be a hit for Team USA but not one that will completely derail the coaching staff.

The coaches can be easily replaced. Though this means that the staff may not have the same continuity with the pool of players eligible to fill out the fifteen man roster. However, other college coaches such as John Calipari, who is always looking to increase his recruiting pool, Tom Izzo, and perhaps even Roy Williams could be considered to fill the roles of the assistant coaches. Other names may also be included if D’Antoni and McMillan cannot return to the bench. Larry Brown jumps out as a possible candidate having been head coach of Team USA before. Yet, this is all just speculation at this point and is predicated on the length of the lockout.

Team USA could also be without their trainers Casey Smith and Keith Jones, who work for the Dallas Mavericks and Houston Rockets respectively. If the NBA season is lost, not only will Jerry Colangelo have to recruit players to join the 2012 incarnation of the national team but he may also have to rebuild his coaching and support staff.

Colangelo is still a minority owner of the Phoenix Suns. His position as managing director of USA Basketball, however, has allowed him to remain apprised of players’ interest in joining Team USA, though he cannot discuss the lockout in any terms. Colangelo believes that despite the lockout, a team can be assembled with players from both the 2008 and 2010 squads.

According to the official team roster at USABasketball.com, the pool of players available is much greater than just those who have played on the national team before. Other than Bryant, James, who have both committed, and Durant, how the roster will fill out is anyone’s guess. It is likely that Dwight Howard and Carmelo Anthony will return, and Chris Sheridan has speculated that Blake Griffin is a “shoo-in.” Chris Bosh will probably return, as will Dwyane Wade and Chris Paul. After that it becomes dicey (as if speculation was not already). There are still six spots open on the roster if these players to indeed return.

To fill the remaining vacancies will require coach Krzyzewski to determine the style of play that his team will execute in London. As stated above, the 2010 national team was swift and agile relying more on their athleticism than on physical size.

The candidates that are left are Lamar Odom, Tyson Chandler, Kevin Love, Russell Westbrook, Derrick Rose, Deron Williams, possibly Kendrick Perkins, and perhaps Eric Gordon. None of those players are slouches and if Team USA prefers to reincarnate the 2010 team then Andre Iguodala should also be considered.

At this point, nothing is certain. The Olympics are where players build their brand. It is not completely about national pride, do not delude yourself. This is a stage on the global market. In most countries outside of the U.S. everything stops so that they can watch their nation compete. NBA players fortunate enough to be selected to the national team know that and so do their agents and sponsors. The Olympics are a big deal and London has been a world city since the middle ages. That is not lost on the players.

With the season in flux and headed towards what might be complete and utter fail (pardon the meme), the Olympic games in the summer of 2012 are the last remaining legitimate basketball that NBA players could see for some time. As of now, Team USA is keeping their summer schedule conservative, understandably. Official rosters must be submitted in June. On the slate for Team USA is two exhibition gamed against Spain in July 2012 as well as a friendly against Great Britain. France will also likely get a friendly in too before the start of the summer games. However, a quick resolve to the lockout could change everything.

The lockout threatens only the NBA at this point. Team USA is still in good hands.  No matter what happens to the 2011-12 NBA season, there will be a formidable team fielded by the United States. They will be the favorites to win it all. Haters will pick Spain with their frontcourt of Pau Gasol, Marc Gasol, and Serge Ibaka. Honestly though, a team representing a country in as many financial hardships as Italy cannot be taken too seriously. There is a reason all their players moved to the U.S. (financial aside). The United States has reestablished itself as the dominant force in international basketball. Do not for one second, or one lockout, that players do not want to maintain that supremacy. A gold medal might not be the Larry O’Brien Trophy but it still speaks wonders unto itself.

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by | November 6, 2011 · 11:03 AM

David Stern issues Ultimatum to Union

Wednesday, bloody Wednesday

The latest round of mediation between the NBA, its owners, and the NBPA ended, after nearly eight and a half hours stretching into Sunday morning, the same way that every prior mediated session and talks have. There is still no deal. However, without directly referring to a proposed deal on the table as an ultimatum, NBA Commissioner David Stern did in fact issue one. A fact that was not lost on the union and its players.

Steve Novak of the San Antonio Spurs was one of  the first player to react using the term ultimatum on twitter, “U gotta love an ultimatum! How does basketball ever even get to this point?” He was not the only player to express his disbelief in the owners’ proposal, Tony Allen of the Memphis Grizzlies also tweeted after the terms of the proposal were made public last night, “57 53 49 : wow.”

The proposal that is on the table for the players to accept by the close of business on Wednesday, which Stern set as the cut-off point when the deal would be removed and the owners would again revert to their previous stance that the players should receive 47 percent of basketball related income and that a flex cap (read: hard cap) be in place, inches slightly closer to what the players have been asking for but does so in a way in which the owners proposal of a 50/50 split of BRI is the more likely outcome. Under the previous collective bargaining agreement, the players received 57 percent of BRI. As Allen referenced in the above tweet, the union has come down from 57 percent to 53 percent, then 52.5 percent and now is faced with close to earning just 49 percent of BRI.

Under the current proposal, which is a band deal, the players could earn between 49 and 51 percent of BRI. However, union attorney Jeffery Kessler, who was representing the players at the talks with union president Billy Hunter under the weather, along with Derek Fisher scoffed at the proposal. Under it the players would receive 50 percent of BRI with the ability, if league revenue grows at a projected four percent annually or further “significant growth” Stern said, to earn 51 percent of basketball related income. If revenues were to remain stagnant or decrease the players would earn just 49 percent of BRI. The reason Kessler flatly rejected the proposal is because “the proposal that this is a robust deal at 51 is a fraud,” he stated. Under the deal the players could not expect to legitimately earn 51 percent and that it would take “the wildest, most unimaginable, favorable projections and we might squeeze out to 50.2.”

“They came in here with a prearranged plan to try to strong-arm the players,” Kessler added. “They knew today they were sticking to 50, essentially 50.2. They were going to make almost no movement on the system, and then they were going to say, ‘My way, or the 47 percent highway.”

During the mediation the NBPA issued a proposal of a 51/49 percent split of BRI in which one percent would go towards benefits for retired players helping them with heath care, insurance, and pensions. This proposal was never addressed by Stern and the owners.

Where the two sides could also not make headway was the issue of the luxury tax. The proposed deal on the table would fine each team over the tax limit on a one-for-one amount for every dollar over the tax a team spends. That is down from their previous offer of a $1.50 penalty for each dollar over the limit. The union wants to see a 50 cent tax on the first $10 million over the salary cap limit and then raise it to one dollar after that.

What the league is proposing would make it difficult, if not impossible, for championship caliber teams to retain certain players under their proposal. This would adversely effect teams such as the Los Angeles Lakers, Dallas Mavericks, Boston Celtics, Miami Heat, and Orlando Magic, and New York Knicks. In the case of Dallas, the reigning NBA champions, starting center Tyson Chandler spoke bluntly about this proposal earlier in the week as reported by the Dallas Morning News:

“With the collective bargaining agreement and some of the things that they’re trying to enforce, it would basically prohibit me from coming back,” Chandler told KESN-FM FM in Dallas. “It would take it out of my hands — and the organization’s — because it would almost be pretty much impossible for me to re-sign. I just think that can be the worst thing that can happen.”

“For years, the Lakers have been able to win championships and re-sign their players and keep them there so they can go out for another title,” Chandler said. “Now, to put that deal in place after we win ours, I don’t like it one bit.”

Mark Cuban, Jerry Buss, and James Dolan are probably none too thrilled with the potential ramifications of that scenario. But they are not the ones spearheading the move to limit the power of the players. However, teams just above the luxury limit will be given a reprieve under the owners’ proposal with their taxes cut in half.

Further, the two-sided disagreed on the length and money of the mid-level exception, which teams over the salary cap use to sign players. The players want an MLE that is worth $5 million for four years occurring every other year. The league’s proposal is $2.5 million for two years every other year.

Teams who are playing luxury taxes, the league insists, would also be exempt from any sign-and-trade deals like the one that sent LeBron James from Cleveland to Miami.

These hardline proposals from the league are the result of a few owners in small markets, which it was revealed this week are led by Michael Jordan. Hardline owners want to wrest the money-making power from the players and limit the ability of large market teams to willing spend beyond the cap to put together winning teams. The irony of Jordan leading the charge to clamp down on the players is that he is the man who embodied the move towards player control in the league. It was he that wanted more money as a player, it was he that the league bowed down to for a decade. During the 1990′s the NBA saw its highest ratings and ratings have almost come back full circle to those levels now. Yet, he is one of the owners strangling any potential growth the league could have seen this year. Strangling is a job for Latrell Sprewell, but he left the league long ago to feed his kids. Jordan’s position is understandable and his drive to constantly win and/or crush is opposition is well documented but a stricter set of regulations on the players and teams willing to spend is not in character with Jordan the player. He famously told Abe Pollin who owned the Washington Bullets and then the Wizards during the 1998 lockout, “If you can’t make a profit, you should sell your team.” How the tables have turned.

Now, the players have until Wednesday to decide whether to accept the deal, replete with the demands of the hardliners, that the league has proposed. It is not the deal that they want. It is nowhere close to what they will accept. Kessler stated as much after the mediation process ended and Stern singled out Kessler as the one who rejected the league’s offer.

This morning, Novak chimed in again on Twitter, “I was really hoping I would wake up and the owners were gonna say jk!U guys have already given us 200M a year! But no,I guess they want more.” Novak, a trillionaire in his own right, expresses the sentiment of just about every NBA player. They want to play but they do not want to kowtow to the owners demands. Now there are rumblings that a move to decertify the union are more than underway.

Union decertification, a step the NFLPA took early on during their lockout, requires 30 percent of players, about 130, to sign off on the idea. From there it would be another 60 days before a vote would take place for or against decertification. Boston Celtics’ forward Paul Pierce has reportedly taken the lead to decertify the union with many other players, including Deron Williams who tweeted, “I’ve been ready to sign a decertification petition since July? Can’t believe we are just now going this route! SMH,” and agents supporting the move. If the union is disbanded, which would require a favorable vote from at least 50 percent of the players, the players could then file an antitrust lawsuit against the league. A move to decertify could also give the players more leverage in the negotiations with the owners but it is uncertain just how anything will play out at this point.

Wednesday means nothing. It is just an arbitrary day that Stern chose before the league reverts its position back to what it was. It is merely a talking point for the media. The players have already rejected it. The owners have not changed their stance. They have not moved beyond the 50/50 split to meet the players. All this is, as it has been all along is a public relations war of attrition. There can be no winner in this lockout, yet that is what each side is angling for. Not even a Pyrrhic victory is attainable at this point. At the very least the lockout will grow uglier as it drags on. Small pieces of false hope are continually leaked from the meetings between the two sides. It is unclear why people believe them still. There is no hope. This is not even a tug of war. This is two sides hunkered down in their trenches prepared for a protracted engagement. It would be nice to have an NBA season this year, but at this point it does not look likely. Both sides know that and neither is willing to move with the owners more than willing to wait until the players surrender to their demands and because of that everyone has already lost.

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by | October 29, 2011 · 9:38 AM

November Games Canceled, NBA Still Broken

Let me tell you a story

“Until this afternoon, we’ve had a pretty good several days of give and take,” David Stern said after negotiations broke down yet again on Friday. Then he offered to those in attendance at the press conference that the subject of Basketball Related Income was approached after making headway on certain system issues and that is when the talks. Stern said that the owners were willing to go as far as a 50/50 split on BRI. He then spun a half truth laden yarn about union president Billy Hunter packing up his papers and walking out. Hunter did walk out, the NBPA has lowered their desired share of BRI down to 52.5 percent from their previous stance of 53 percent, but he is not the only one to blame for the collapse of the talks.

Those who have paid attention to these frustrating negotiations know that Stern has played this game before. A pure 50/50 split was offered by the owners on several occasions. It is their olive branch. Only this branch has a snake on it. An even split on BRI seems to rear its head each time gains have been made by each side. For the owners it is their showing of good faith, a fair split of revenue. However, for the players it is just more double speak. To date, a 50/50 has led to a lopsided counter offer that favors the owners several times.

The players are still the ones making concessions on a grand scale in these negotiations. They have managed to keep guaranteed contracts, a $5 million mid-level exception, and kept the owners from implementing at hard cap. Owners have already won in terms of reducing players’ salaries $1.3 billion over the next six years with smaller raises, a more harsh luxury tax, and shorter overall player contracts.  However, at this point in all the folly, everyone is losing. After the talks (if the two sides actually do talk to each other while they are in the room together) fell apart, Stern made it official that all games through November 30 were canceled. He added further that squeezing in an 82 game season in the time allotted will not happen. (I have been opposed to trying to get that many games on the schedule in a very constrained timetable especially with the Olympics on the horizon. So there is my one happy point in all of this.)

With the month of November completely scrapped the NBA and the players stand to lose an estimated $400 million. Apparently, that is not enough Samolians to move a few percentage points in either direction. Ken Berger of CBSSports.com has a good breakdown of what each side had to gain or lose now that November is lost:

…the only way it could possibly make sense to squander a chance to recoup two weeks of canceled games (worth about $400 million to the owners and players) and lose two weeks more (for a total of $800 million) by refusing to even attempt to close a two-point gap in basketball-related income (BRI).

Think of it another way: If Hunter had been willing to move from 52.5 percent to 51 percent Friday, that would’ve been a $60 million concession in Year One of the deal to get back the lost games worth $400 million — a net gain of $340 million. Instead, the players decided it was better to lose the games, and thus $400 million, which made it a $740 million decision to walk out of the room without a deal.

If Stern had been willing to move from 50 percent and meet Hunter at 51, it would’ve been a $40 million concession for the owners to get their approximately $400 million share of the lost November games — a net gain of $360 million. But instead of offering to make the economic move Stern had said Thursday night he was prepared to make, he decided it was better to lose the $400 million — a net swing of $760 million. So collectively, Hunter and Stern cost their business $1.5 billion by walking away without a deal Friday.

Whoa! That is quite a substantial amount of duckets that have been cast aside. Oh, to be a rich man and be care free with heaps of cash. One can only dream, or at the very least occupy a park.

The players have no business making further concessions. They should not meet the owners at 50 percent as they have already given up $1.3 billion in salaries for the next six years. Owners have given up nothing except a few hardline stances that were not on the books in the first place. What else is there to even discuss? Sure there are all the details of the system issues but those seem to have been worked out for the most part. Right now, it is time for the owners to give ground. Notorious B.I.G. should have qualified his famous line “more money, more problems.” It should have read, “more money begets self-imposed problems based on the perceived notion that money is power and with money comes invincibility vis-à-vis greed and the neglect of all others.” But that probably would not make for a good rap lyric.

Now, all that we can do it wait, flustered and tired. Both Hunter and Stern will meet again soon, perhaps this weekend, perhaps next week (no date has been set) and the broken record will continue to skip. If more games are canceled then both sides will lose more money but this is not about basketball anymore. It is about how two grown men, representing the interests of their respective parties, can spit folly, spin, and hold firm until one of them blinks. That is all it is. A show of bravado. They think that this is a title fight, everyone else sees it as a mockery of a league that enjoyed a dramatic upswing in popularity. Bravo! Keep grappling! Next time the meetings start I hope either Stern or Hunter quotes Henry V: “once more into the breach!” Oh, what a noble cause these negotiations are!

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by | October 17, 2011 · 6:04 PM

Dwight Howard: “There’s more you can do in a bigger place.”

Should I stay or should I go?

Dwight Howard is well known for his smile, defense (he is the two-time Defensive Player of the Year), awkward post game, blocked shots, and poor free throw shooting. When the NBA resumes, if it ever does, Howard could very well have a new description to add to that list: most coveted almost free agent since that Carmelo Anthony character. First thing is first, though. He wants to shore up a rock part of his game. This summer he has been working on his free throw shooting with a new coach in an attempt to limit the amount of hack-a-Dwight he will see in games. From an interview in Esquire Magazine (via TrueHoop):

The only way my game is going to free up is if I start shooting 80 per-cent or better from the line. That’s going to be my main area of concern this year, getting my free throws better. I met the best shooting coach I could ever find — I’ve seen him make 200 free throws in a row with his eyes closed, all net, no rim, nothing. He’s all science, man — he’s one of the smartest people I’ve ever met.

200 free throws in a row? That is just silly. It is like a robot shooting free throws. The longest made free throw streak in the NBA belongs to Michael Williams, of the Minnesota Timberwolves, who made 97 consecutive free throws from 1993-2003. Obviously, he did not go the line very much. Howard attempted 916 free throws last season and connected on 546 for a percentage of 59.6. So, yes, Howard needs to improve that aspect of his game dramatically but shooting free throws in a gym is far different than an in-game situation. If he does, then Orlando Magic fans will have even more reason to love their lone superstar. Well, for a time at least, that is.

It seems that Howard feels that he is meant to do bigger and better things in life. To do those things it would behoove him to be in a location that was not in swampy central Florida. There is only so much one man, who is not named Disney, can do in Orlando anyway. More from Howard’s interview:

There’s more you can do in a bigger place. I’m stuck in a tough position because I feel like right now, where I’m at, I’ve done so much. And I just don’t know what else I can do. I can’t live for everybody else. I don’t know what decision I’m gonna make as of right now. It’s been crazy. Everybody wants me to come here, come play here, come to our team, do this. It’s a great feeling, though, to be wanted.

The toughest part for me is the city — the people. They’ve got burgers named after me in Orlando, they’ve got a Web site saying, “Please stay.” I love the people in the city. I’ve literally sat on the bench with a towel on my head crying, because I feel the passion in the stands. I just think about what’s going to be best for what I want to accomplish in my life. And I don’t want that door to close on me, wherever that door is. I don’t want it to close.

It certainly sounds like he is about to close the door on his time with the Magic, no reading between the lines necessary. Sure he will be sad about leaving. Who would not want to eat a burger named after themselves? However, when the time comes, there are bigger cities out there with greater planking opportunities. Until that time comes, Howard will continue to tout the union’s line during the lockout and hold out for the best deal possible.

It is important for all Magic fans to understand that the lockout and whether Howard stays in Orlando or not is all predicated on money. “I don’t want my money cut short,” Howard stated about the lockout, but the same can be said about playing for the Magic. Last season, the Magic surrounded Howard with the bloated salaries of Gilbert Arenas, who earns more than Howard, Jason Richardson, and Hedo Turkoglu. In return the team did not make it past the first round of the playoffs. It seems as though not only was his money cut short, but so was his season. If that happens again, it is almost a certainty that he will leave, however, he will not be doing so in an hour-long televised event.

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by | October 10, 2011 · 8:39 AM

NBA Players hold the Line at 53 Percent

Fishing for a better deal

Sunday evening saw the NBA and the NBPA sit down for further negotiations. Earlier in the week, talks had been broken off, with what looked like little hope of resuming, over the lingering issue of Basketball Related Income. However, as the deadline to cancel the first two weeks of the season, set for Monday by David Stern, quickly approached, the two sides sat down for what is their first round of eleventh hour talks.

The meeting in New York lasted for roughly five hours, finishing just before midnight on the East Coast. As with all previous negotiation sessions between the league and the players’ union, those who were involved were tight-lipped over what, if anything, was accomplished. What is known about the meeting is that the two sides discussed system issues; the salary cap, length of contracts, and the luxury tax for example. BRI was allegedly not a subjected that was broached during the meeting.

Another meeting is scheduled for Monday afternoon at 2 P.M. Eastern Standard Time. Union president, Derek Fisher said after the meeting Sunday night that the players and the owners were “not necessarily any closer than we were going in tonight, but we’ll get back at it tomorrow and we’ll keep putting time in.” Yet, time is something that both sides have little of if they hope to salvage the beginning of the season.

Due to the importance of Monday’s meeting in New York, the players canceled a union meeting scheduled in Los Angeles for Monday.

Before negotiations resumed on Sunday night, owners and the league had seemingly issued an ultimatum, according to the union, to the players that they must accept a 50 percent split on BRI before negotiations could resume. The owners reject the union’s assertion that they established any preconditions. Nonetheless, the owners  made it clear that no further meetings would occur because they would not go beyond an even split in revenue sharing.

All along, the players have been holding steadfast at their mark of 53 percent of BRI. They were receiving 57 percent of basketball related income under the previous Collective Bargaining Agreement. Many of the league’s marquee players were not present at the meeting on Sunday night as they were playing in the rematch of the Drew League and Goodman League in Los Angeles. However, they were very cognizant that the meeting was taking place and held rank when they spoke about the labor dispute.

“We’re going to stand firm no matter what,” Kevin Durant said. “If we miss games we miss games. We might have to sacrifice a few for the betterment of the league, but I don’t think we’re going to give in just because we missed a few games.” He added, “We moved down from 57 to 53 and I think the owners got to work with us.” Other players echoed those remarks.

It has been the players who have given up the most in the labor negotiations so far. The owners, and Stern, will be quick to point out that a hard cap is no longer on the table and that they have moved their demands that the players accept just 42 percent of BRI all the way up to 50 percent. In terms of monetary losses, however, it is the players who have sacrificed. Dropping from 57 percent to 53 percent represents a cumulative loss of approximately $160 million in player salary. If the players were to move down to the 50 percent that the owners want their losses would increase to $280 million. The owners have yet to concede one dime.

With the players and owners holding firm, the two sides have reached an impasse. Monday’s meeting could tell a lot about where the two sides stand or, more realistically, if either side will flinch. Monday will be the sixth time that the NBA and NBPA have met in the past eleven days in an attempt to resolve their issues. During the lockout in 1998, the league and the union only met once before regular season games were canceled. At least this time the two sides appear to be trying.

However, they will have to try harder. That will not be an easy task as the owners have a proposal for an amnesty clause to be included in the new CBA. The clause, nicknamed the Gilbert Arenas Clause, which would allow teams to shed a bad contract in which a team sees no dividends but is paying an exorbitant amount for a player. Essentially it would allow the owners to wipe clean their bad business decisions. In the real world only a government bailout can save a business from itself, bad business decisions are rarely rewarded with a provision to erase mistakes. Owners also want to do away with a player’s “Bird rights.”

The owners are asking for a considerable amount from the players but the amnesty clause and the Bird exception are not the elephant in the room. BRI is the point of contention. If the two sides cannot come to an agreement on it then the likely hood of the season starting on time is nil. The players have drawn a line in the sand at 53 percent and, judging by what has been said leading up to Monday’s meeting, will not move from it. For the players, this is their Alamo, they are taking a stand against a larger and more powerful foe, intent on extracting as much from them as possible. Hopefully for the players, this scenario turns out better for them than it did for the men inside the mission in San Antonio. If they are forced to capitulate, however, they will be the rallying cry at the next CBA negotiations.

No matter the outcome of the meeting Monday, it is unlikely that the NBA season will start on time. The two sides would need time to draft the new Collective Bargaining Agreement. Then there would have to be a week of free agency, which would likely be one of the most frantic weeks that the NBA has ever seen. Beyond that, there needs to be time set aside for training came and the possibility of a few preseason games. In total, it would take and estimated three to four weeks, and that is if all matters were to be resolved Monday. The regular season is scheduled to begin on November 1.

Games will be lost, there is no doubt about it. Neither side has shown a willingness to compromise as the clock strikes eleven. Everything could change after the meeting on Monday, but why should it? The closest whiff of a deal between the two sides was “How u.” Get used to more exhibition games because they will be the only games that players will take part in for the foreseeable future. At least most of them are streaming online now.

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by | October 8, 2011 · 9:35 PM

Recap of the South Florida All-Star Classic

It was a good show

In what is possibly the biggest recruiting ploy in Isiah Thomas’ stint as the head coach of the men’s basketball team at Florida International University, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade hosted the most recent NBA player charity game. The two players from the Miami Heat reportedly approached Thomas about hosting the South Florida All-Star Charity Classic, which benefits the FIU First Generation Fund through the Mary’s Court Foundation (named after Thomas’  late mother). Yes, the event was for charity but Knicks fans have to be a tad squeamish knowing that Thomas spent as much time as he did in the same gym as Carmelo Anthony and Amar’e Stoudemire. Heck, the NBA and NCAA should be squeamish about Thomas’ continued activities with NBA players. Seriously, it is fairly shady.

The teams were divided into Team Wade and Team LeBron. From there, players were partitioned based on their shoe deals, Jordan Brand and Nike sponsored players had priority placement on the teams. Team LeBron featured the aforementioned James, Chris Bosh, Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant, Rajon Rondo, Lou Williams, Rudy Gay, Jamal Crawford, Jonny Flynn, and Damon Jones. Wade’s team was composed of Wade, Mario Chalmers, Caron Butler, Dorell Wright, Stoudemire, Anthony, Chris Paul, Wesley Matthews, John Wall, and Eddy Curry. However, in a classic Curry (aka the Hamburglar) move, he did not suit up for the game. Matthews and Williams also did not appear in the game and were replaced by James Harden and Tristan Thompson.

The players were not the only clebrities in the building, Floyd “Money” Mayweather was in the crowd as well as Gabriel Union among the 4,000 on hand for the game.

Kevin Hart coached Team Wade, and channeled coach Bob Knight at one point by throwing a chair on the court, while Udonis Haslem coached Team LeBron.

Aside from an attrocious free throw display, the game featured some fairly competitive ball. Both teams played more than passive defense. However, play around the rim, especially from Team LeBron in the first half, was sloppy at best. It is lockout basketball. It does not matter in terms other than entertainment, yet there are referees officiating the game. The refs really did not play a role in the game, other than the players looking to them for calls regularly, until the last two minutes. During the last two minutes the game grew increasingly competitive as the players took hard fouls, Anthony gave James an NBA foul and Wade and James found each other defending one another.

It came down to Anthony with Team Wade trailing by three. He delivered on a shot from the wing to tie the game at 127 with three seconds to go in the fourth quarter to send the game to overtime. Unfortunately, Anthony began cramping early in the overtime session. Though it did not look to be too serious, it was a reminder that players, without the aid of trainers, are vunerable to injuries as they continue to barnstorm. If James Dolan was watching, he along with Knicks fans everywhere probably held their breath for a beat or two.

In the end Team Wade triumphed 141-140 despite James’ half court make at the end of overtime. James led all scorers with 34 and Wade poured in 25. Bosh added 17.

This game was just another result of the ongoing lockout of the players. After the game, Anthony said, “The way it looks right now they’re going to cancel the first two weeks of the season.” The players and owners continue to not see eye to eye in terms of Basketball Related Income. Owners offered a split of 50/50 to the players last week but the players rejected it. Since then the owners and the league have refused to schedule any further meetings without the players first agreeing to the 50/50 BRI split. Players have said that they would go as low as 53 perecent but the owners refuse to climb higher than the 50 that they offered.

David Stern has recently stated that the owners have conceded on many of their hardline stances in an effort to reach an agreement with the players. However, this is just more double speak from the commissioner. The owners have given up nothing in monetary terms to date. It has been the players that have shouldered the biggest financial burden as their former BRI percentage was 57. It should not be the players who are forced to be held accountable for bad player investment by the the owners.

With the talks stalled for the moment, the barnstorming and exhibition games will continue and with them support for the players will increase. The NBA must return, all sides involved know this. However, it will probably get uglier before it gets better. Until then we will continue to see players don “Basketball Never Stops” shirts in sold out gyms.

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by | · 5:01 PM

Stephen Colbert understands the NBA Lockout

The owners and the league have been catching a lot of flak recently because of their refusal to actually concede anything in the ongoing Collective Bargaining discussions. Is this right, though. Billionaire owners are people too. They have feelings and just what their opinions expressed. A 50/50 Basketball Related Income split is really just an olive branch. It is the players that are being greedy. Each one of them has a lucrative shoe and sports drink deal on the side, don’t they? They are the ones hurting the fans and preventing thousands of arena workers from having gainful employment. Stephen Colbert knows this and that is why he, like all red-blooded Americans should, has sided with the owners. Forget player rights, the owners are the ones being slighted on their investment. Poor owners, we feel for you…and we do not want to watch hockey. Ever.

 

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