The NBA will be "cancelling at least two more weeks of its season," according to a source cited by Isola & Lawrence of the N.Y. DAILY NEWS. The cancellations are "expected to total at least 102 more games, through Nov. 28." The league and union have "no further talks" scheduled, but even "with the impasse at the bargaining table, the feeling is that the league still thinks it can get a deal and save its traditional Christmas games." NBPA Exec Dir Billy Hunter appeared yesterday on Bill Simmons' ESPN podcast "The "B.S. Report" and said he will call the owners "to see if they want to get back together." He added, "If they still say they'll only meet if I accept their 50-50 (proposal), to me that's a non-starter. I can't agree to meet if I don’t know what is going to happen on the other issues. That is intolerable" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 10/25). The Atlanta Constitution's Jeff Schultz on his Twitter feed asked, "Does David Stern plan to cancel NBA games two weeks at a time just to remind everybody that there's a lockout?” Newsday's Alan Hahn wrote, "FWIW: #NBA may cancel more games today, but really entire sked as we know is essentially defunct. So actually canceling 'time' not games."
GIVING AN OPT-OUT: Hunter during the podcast said he told the owners he would give them “an opt-out” of a new CBA. Hunter: “If you do a six-year deal, I’ll give you an opt-out like you had in 1998, three years in or two years in, wherever you think you want it. But more importantly ... if things become so desperate or dire and we have to sit down two or three years out and tear up the agreement and do another agreement, trust me if things are that bad (with the economy) there’s no way in the world that the players are going to stand in the way of that.” Hunter said the players “are prepared to make an adjustment to the system so we’re accommodating your economic loss but you can’t come and tell us now you want to completely rollback contracts, you want to eliminate guarantees, you want a hard cap ... so that’s where the struggle is.” Hunter said he told the league negotiators, “Why don’t you park your 50/50? … I’m not asking you to compromise your number, I’m not asking you to reconsider your number, but since we’re kind of bogged down let’s go talk about the system because if we’re able to talk about the system and resolve some of these other issues on the luxury tax, on the exceptions, etc., then maybe we can come back and maybe your 50/50 will be more palatable to the union and players than it currently is, and they said, ‘No, no, no. It’s 50/50.’” Hunter addressed the owners and said there are some in the room who wanted to talk about the other issues, “but then they asked me to leave the room, and they asked me to leave the room because those in charge might have been losing control. They then informed me 20 minutes later they sent a message saying no, that was their position. It was either we had to agree to the 50/50 in order to discuss anything else.” Hunter: “Never in the history of our negotiations … have we ever put a precondition on them about anything and so all of a sudden they resorted to the preconditions” (“The B.S. Report,” 10/24).
CUBAN'S PLAN HAS NO CAP: Hunter said, "I thought we were trying to reach compromise when we were there last week. I suspect it's more about an internal battle that may be brewing or that's occurring between the big and small markets over the proposals we've submitted. We don't want to be totally exploited." Hunter said that during last week's mediation sessions, "there were multiple ideas presented, with one interesting concept coming" from Mavericks Owner Mark Cuban. Hunter indicated that Cuban "came up with a structure called the 'Game-changer' that included no salary cap." Hunter said that he took the idea "back to the players and they had a version of it they liked," and "two or three owners were very excited about it." But then a "couple small market owners put the kibosh on it." Hunter also tried to explain why NBA Commissioner David Stern is "being so hard-headed on these negotiations." He said, "The reason David's being so stubborn is he's got a new crop of owners. He's got all these guys who are extremely successful, making billions of dollars and they bought these franchises. And they just have a different perspective" (CBSSPORTS.com, 10/24). Hunter added, "After a while it just [becomes] a principle. For a lot of these players, that's what it's about. They feel as though the owners have dug in. They've taken the hard line, they're determined to break the players and the union and they refer to the NHL as an example of what can happen here. And so the players are a little more strident" (ESPN.com, 10/24).
MEDIA REAX: ESPN.com's Simmons wrote about his hour with Hunter, noting Hunter "seems convinced that his players are absolutely sticking together; he feels like the league is in a much better place than it's pretending to be; he's more than happy to work with the more thoughtful owners on ambitious big-picture solutions; he believes the owners' side has a built-in advantage with the media and how events are spun" (GRANTLAND.com, 10/24). CBSSPORTS.com's Royce Young wrote, "It's honestly easy to hear Hunter's side of the story and lean towards the players. He presents a side that's very open to every compromise, open to every idea but is being met with a hard wall of stubborn owners looking for a blowout victory in these negotiations" (CBSSPORTS.com, 10/24).
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Battier is optimistic that owners and players
are having more dialogue during this lockout |
PLAYERS' PERSPECTIVE: In Memphis, Marlon Morgan notes free agent F Shane Battier has "tried to put thoughts of his future on the back burner until it becomes more clear how the new collective bargaining agreement will shape up." Battier said, "I'll get signed. It's not a question of if, it's a question of when." He said of the negotiating process, "I've been encouraged that we've taken so many meetings. It seems like most of the meetings have ended poorly, but there's dialogue, compared to 1999 at the last lockout. There was very little dialogue." Morgan notes Battier has "played for both a small market team in Memphis and a large market one in Houston," which allowed him to experience "firsthand the discrepancy of revenue sharing." Battier said, "Teams like Memphis, Milwaukee, Sacramento, they're at a disadvantage because of the economics of their cities. I would like to see us have a true partnership in every sense of the word. Let's all share" (
Memphis COMMERCIAL APPEAL, 10/25). T'Wolves F Michael Beasley said Sunday, "Fighting over 3 percent, that’s kind of retarded to me. But it is what is. We’ll come to an agreement. The quicker we can get a deal done, the better. Like I’ve been saying before, the main ones suffering are our fans." In Oklahoma City, Darnell Mayberry noted what is "most interesting about Beasley’s opinion is that it is one of a rank and file player." Beasley is a "middle-of-the-road player," and a player "whose likes the union is striving hard to protect." Mayberry: "If a vote of the players was taken today, how many of these same rank and file guys gladly would accept an even split?" (
NEWSOK.com, 10/24).
ON THE GIVEBACKS: In N.Y., Beck & Belson note the owners "remain unified for now in seeking big givebacks from the players -- even at the cost of canceling games." But their views "cannot be easily categorized by market size, revenue, personal wealth or championship aspirations." SportsCorp President Marc Ganis said, "There is uniformity on meaningfully changing the system. But what that means can mean different things to different people." Ganis also said that defining owners "as hawks or doves is simplistic, but it is possible to put them under several umbrellas." Beck & Belson note approval "of a new labor deal requires a simple majority, or 16 votes," but Stern "would be better served politically by gathering as broad a majority in favor of the deal as he can" (N.Y. TIMES, 10/25). NBA.com's David Aldrige wrote if the league "gets the 10-year deal it has previously offered to the union ... that means the NBA's teams will get, at minimum, $1.8 billion in direct transfer from the players' wallets to the owners' wallets over the life of the deal." But $1.8B over 10 years "is a substantial giveback, not a mere gesture," and at "some point, a win becomes a rout." Aldrige wrote, "The owners are getting everything. ... It's time to declare victory and go home. It's time for all of us to go home" (NBA.com, 10/24). FS ARIZONA's Randy Hill under the sub-header "Why Parity Should Be Avoided" wrote, "The NBA needs antagonists, villains ... players and teams you love to hate." Hill: "Parity is the way to go ... the way to go stale. So, while we wait for the next wave of lockout rumor to hit our shores, the NBA will continue to carp about competitive balance, unwilling to admit that many owners believe it's more important to profit than prevail. Wise teams often manage to do both" (FOXSPORTSARIZONA.com, 10/23).
IDEAS & OPPORTUNITIES: NBA.com's Shaun Powell wrote the "immediate goal of the owners and players should be to salvage those Christmas Day games, which loom larger than ever." If the league is "trying to get forgiveness from the public, playing on Christmas would be a great start" (NBA.com, 10/21). ESPN.com's J.A. Adande wrote this is "the opportunity to get the shorter regular season that everyone who doesn’t directly profit off every game has wanted." Adande: "Play 76 a season. Cram them into the compressed calendar this year, then plan accordingly the following years. The games that remain will have slightly more meaning" (ESPN.com, 10/24). ESPN THE MAGAZINE's Peter Keating offered his "stab at a basic business plan" for the NBA. The "National Players League (NPL)" will provide "the highest-quality competition and entertainment." The NPL's "overall goal is to raise $500 million" in funding (ESPN THE MAGAZINE, 10/31 issue).
FAN EFFECT: In Orlando, Brian Schmitz wrote he was "going to ask season-ticket holders and fans to pledge this: For however many additional games that Stern cancels, those are the number of games that fans will refuse to attend or watch on TV once the season resumes." Schmitz: "And then it hit me: Who am I fooling?" Oklahoma City's Cox Convention Center drew "nearly 13,000 fans" Sunday night for an exhibition game featuring Thunder F Kevin Durant and Heat F LeBron James. Schmitz wrote, "Some pushback, huh? Such a movement already is a lost cause if fans are showing up in droves for exhibitions" (ORLANDOSENTINEL.com, 10/24). MARKETWATCH.com's Bill Mann wonders if hockey during the lockout will "win over the hearts of disgusted pro basketball fans," and notes there are "increasing signs it might already be happening." Mann notes, "Head to head with basketball, the NHL has a hill to climb, TV ratings-wise. But that hill is getting less steep with every day of the NBA strike" (MARKETWATCH.com, 10/25).
NEWS & NOTES: In Portland, Mike Tokito reports Portland Mayor Sam Adams has "joined list of mayors from cities with NBA teams asking the league and players' union to consider consequences of the ongoing lockout and move to quickly resolve the issues" (Portland OREGONIAN, 10/25)....Trail Blazers F LaMarcus Aldrige announced on Twitter that he will "host an exhibition basketball game Nov. 6 at 7:30 p.m. at an undisclosed Portland location" (Portland OREGONIAN, 10/25)....The N.Y. DAILY NEWS' Isola & Lawrence report the first game of the two-week global tour of NBA stars "has had trouble securing written commitments from several of the 18 players who had been promised by game organizers." If the game "doesn’t come off, it could jeopardize the rest of the schedule, which includes stops in London, Macau and Melbourne" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 10/25).
