NBA Commissioner David Stern last night issued a "bill of health" concerning the state of play in the NBA amid more critics debating the "fragile state of on-court affairs in the NBA," according to Sekou Smith of NBA.com. Stern said television ratings "are at record highs over last year and they were at records last year, our attendance is the same as last year, which was a great year, and our consumer products and sales are up." Smith noted with a "rash of injuries to players around the league," suggestions are that the "overall play in the league has been sloppy, at best, with the abbreviated training camp and compressed season being pointed to as a significant part of the problem." However, Stern "offered another perspective on those theories that lockout has had a detrimental effect on the game action this season." He said, “We’re putting 80 percent of the games into 75 percent of the season ... I saw someplace today that said we made a mistake rushing in to play at Christmas and the only thing I’ll say about that is that we sat down with the players and together we said, ‘if we make a deal tonight we can play by Christmas and get 80 percent of the season and not to mention 80 percent of the gates and 80 percent of the salaries, and things like that.’ And I dare say that that was a good carrot for us, indeed a magnet, to stay there until 3 or 4 in the morning and say, ‘okay, if we get a deal done tonight we can get off to a good start,’ which we did. Christmas Day was great and we are having a good season” (NBA.com, 2/8).

NOT A FAN OF THIS YEAR'S GAME: CBSSPORTS.com's Ken Berger wrote, "Welcome to Lockout Ball. ... The NBA and its players' association chose to compromise just in time to have a season but too late to have a good one. Sometimes, it's so bad you just have to laugh to keep from expiring from a new threat to national security and public health known as Bad Ball." The NBA has "breathed life into false stereotypes about its product and given credence to the notion that college basketball is so much better than NBA basketball even though it is obviously so much worse." Berger: "The NBA has done itself a disservice with this quasi-season, a detour in the league's rise in popularity that was completely preventable" (CBSSPORTS.com, 2/8).

There has been "nonstop chatter" among NASCAR fans about the Daytona 500 Mid-Race Leader Award since it was announced last week, according to Ryan McGee of ESPN.com. The award will give $200,000 "to the driver who is leading when the field crosses the start-finish line at the end of Lap 100." The largest group of fans talking about the promo "claims that the bonus money is unnecessary and even unsafe." Some media members "have agreed with them," while others "shrug it off as an in-race promotion that will be forgotten as soon as the Daytona 500 begins." The "eagerness to 'race too hard' is at the root of the most common criticism" of Daytona Int'l Speedway President Joie Chitwood's bonus plan. However, a look at the numbers "on and around the halfway point of last year's four restrictor-plate races reveals one indisputable fact -- these guys can't race any harder than they already are." McGee noted among owners, drivers and crew chiefs a trend "quickly revealed itself." Those "living on the top rungs of the sport almost unfailingly referred to it as a 'bonus.'" They each said that they "wouldn't plan their race around it, but if they were in position nearing Lap 100 they would certainly go for it." However, those "further down the food chain were more pointed." One owner said, "It would be great to throw at the bottom line at the end of the year. It really is a big deal. It's very appealing." Another owner said, "200K would change our entire year financially. We could hire back people we had to lay off."

ALL PUB IS GOOD PUB: Chitwood said Monday, "All I know is that they're talking. As long as people are talking about the Daytona 500, then we're selling tickets for the Daytona 500. I don't think people are lining up to buy tickets to see who wins the mid-race money. But they're talking about our race. No way that's a bad thing." Last year Chitwood "gave out the same amount of bonus money, awarding $50,000 to the leaders at each quarter, Laps 50, 100, 150 and 200." But those checks "translated into virtually zero buzz." So this year Chitwood approached NASCAR Senior VP/Racing Operations Steve O'Donnell with the idea of "combining those four smaller payouts into one big one and resurrecting halfway money." O'Donnell approved and now, nearly three full weeks ahead of the race, the promotion has "already paid for itself in media coverage" (ESPN.com, 2/7).

La Liga club Real Madrid had $638.1M (all figures U.S.) in revenue during the '10-11 season, up 9.4% year-over-year and giving the franchise the top spot among all soccer clubs for the seventh straight year, according to annual rankings compiled by Deloitte’s Sports Business Group. The EPL placed seven clubs in the top 20, compared to five for Serie A, four for the German Bundesliga, three for La Liga and two for Ligue 1 in France. The top 20 clubs generated a combined $5.9B million in revenue, up 3% from last year’s top 20. That total also represents over a quarter of the total revenues of the European football market. Three new clubs made this year’s top 20 -- Dortmund, Valencia and Napoli -- while clubs Atletico de Madrid, Stuttgart and Aston Villa fell off the list (Deloitte).

REIGN IN SPAIN: The PA noted the Deloitte report shows EPL club Manchester United’s revenues continue to grow, but “they have not kept pace with the Spanish giants who have the advantage of being able to negotiate their individual TV rights deals" (PA, 2/8). Meanwhile, REUTERS' Keith Weir noted revenue at Europe’s 20 leading clubs has "increased again despite the economic crisis shaking many countries across the continent." Deloitte Sports Business Group Partner Dan Jones said among the top 20 clubs, "Large and loyal supporter bases, ability to drive strong broadcast audiences and continuing attraction to corporate partners has made them relatively resilient to the economic downturn." Spain has been one of the European economies "hardest hit by the euro crisis but Real Madrid and Barcelona are global brands that can be marketed to international viewers and sponsors." Valencia, which ranked 19th, was the "only other [Spanish] club to make the top 20." The gulf between the rich and poor is "wider in Spain than other countries because clubs sell TV rights individually rather than collectively" (REUTERS, 2/8).

SHUFFLING THE ORDER: BLOOMBERG NEWS' Bob Bensch noted Bundesliga club Schalke's 45% increase in sales made it the "biggest climber, up six places to 10th.” However, Schalke "didn't qualify for this season's Champions League." EPL club Tottenham Hotspur had the second-biggest increase “after it reached the quarterfinals in its first Champions League appearance" (BLOOMBERG NEWS, 2/8). MARKETING WEEK's Sebastian Joseph notes the top seven clubs "remain in exactly the same position as in the previous year" (MARKETINGWEEK.co.uk, 2/9)

The AP noted NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell is "thanking fans for their support in a postseason letter and promises the league will pursue ways to enhance the game on and off the field." Goodell said Tuesday that the league is "proud of the quality of the sport that attracted record crowds this season." He added that the NFL "will continue to evolve and invites people to look at the new website, www.NFL.com/evolution, which highlights the history of how the game has changed." Goodell: "Our commitment to improve everything we do is ongoing" (AP, 2/8).

PREEMPTIVE PUSH? In N.Y., Andrew Keh noted with former MLBers like Roger Clemens, Sammy Sosa and Barry Bonds set to appear on the Baseball HOF ballots this year, the HOF yesterday announced a "new outreach program to educate teens and young adults about the dangers of performance-enhancing drugs." The program -- called "Be a Superior Example, or BASE -- will start with educational components online and an interactive kiosk at the museum in Cooperstown." As fundraising for the initiative "continues, the Hall hopes to expand with on-site programs in different cities and a meeting in Cooperstown of experts and educators." HOF President Jeff Idelson said the program “is not intended to cast a directive to voters about Hall of Fame-worthy candidates" (NYTIMES.com, 2/8).

MY KIND OF TOWN: In Chicago, Teddy Greenstein cites sources as saying that the PGA Tour's BMW Championship "will return to the Chicago area in 2013." Lake Forest's Conway Farms "has been awarded the event, with one source calling it 'a done deal.'" When the news is announced "in the next two months, it will mark the end of Cog Hill's long run as host." Conway Farms was selected as a Chicago-area site "after the PGA Tour and WGA also strongly considered the Glen Club, an upscale public course in Glenview." The only "knocks on Conway Farms are its location -- 35 miles from the Loop -- and the fact holes 4-7 are far from the clubhouse." Some PGA Tour officials also are "concerned about how a links course would look on TV if fans don't populate certain holes" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 2/9).