NBA Lockout Watch, Day 43: Stern Optimistic About Deal To Save Season

NBA Commissioner David Stern on Thursday night "appeared hopeful about a labor agreement despite the fact that the league and the Players Association have had only one negotiating session in five weeks," according to Gary Washburn of the BOSTON GLOBE. At the Basketball HOF reunion dinner, Stern said, "I would say that we have very smart players, who recognize that this system is very good to them. You got 13 players on a roster averaging $5 million apiece, that’s $65 million, and what the owners have said is, 'We’re going to try very hard as we reset this thing to keep you as close to that number as we can.'" He indicated that he is "optimistic about an agreement" that could save the '11-12 NBA season. Stern: "I expect that we’ll make a deal because the alternative is very destructive. It’s destructive of $2 billion worth of player salaries and it’s destructive most important to our fans of the game. And if it spirals badly, everyone gets hurt." Washburn reports Stern did reveal that a negotiating session scheduled for earlier this week "was canceled by the players." Still, he said, "They’ll be smaller meetings, conversations. ... Eventually we’ll get it done. I will not set a deadline on Aug. 11" (BOSTON GLOBE, 8/12). However, NBPA officials disputed Stern's contention that the union "canceled a scheduled negotiating session Wednesday with the league." NBPA sources said that the players "didn’t have a meeting scheduled with Stern and his negotiating team" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 8/11).

A PLEA TO PLAY: Lakers G and NBPA President Derek Fisher appeared on the series finale of TBS' "Lopez Tonight" Thursday, where host George Lopez asked Fisher, “Is there going to be basketball this season?” Fisher said, “If it was up to me, yes, definitely yes. But right now, it's in a very tough place.” Fisher said he has been “extremely involved” in the CBA negotiations, “in the middle of all of it." Fisher: "We want to play basketball. There's no question about it. We want to play basketball for you.” Actress Eva Longoria also was a guest on the show, and Lopez jokingly said to her, “So guess what Derek's wife wants him to do while he's not playing basketball? ... ‘Dancing With The Stars’” ("Lopez Tonight," TBS, 8/11).