The first of September "marks the third month" of the
NBA lockout that has "shut down business ... and threatens
to jeopardize" the '98-99 season, scheduled to start
November 3, according to USA TODAY's Greg Boeck, who
examines the labor dispute in the paper's "In Focus"
section. The two sides "likely" won't negotiate again until
after arbitrator John Feerick's ruling on whether owners
must pay 220 players with guaranteed contracts during the
lockout. The hearings are set to "resume Thursday and are
slated to end" September 8. NBA Deputy Commissioner Russ
Granik: "It doesn't look like we're getting anywhere" (USA
TODAY, 9/1). In a sidebar, USA TODAY's David DuPree writes
that even if Feerick rules against the owners, and states
they need to pay the 220 players, they "still have something
else in their favor: Human nature." About 200 free agents
won't get paid, a fact that "might not sit too well."
DuPree: "If anything, that will drive a stake through the
players' solidarity. ... [H]ow long are the guys who aren't
getting paid going to be willing to wait with a smile?"
DuPree writes that players who are getting paid should
divide their earnings in a "solidarity move" that may "drive
[owners] back to the bargaining table" (USA TODAY, 9/1).
ON THE LOCKOUT WATCH: Heat President of Business
Operations Jay Cross said that he is "not planning any
layoffs, even if the lockout extends into the regular
season" (Barry Jackson, MIAMI HERALD, 8/30)....In UT, Doug
Robinson compared the plight of the NBA players to the
striking US West employees under the header, "Say, Those NBA
Guys Really Have It Rough." Robinson: "The US West
strikers are fighting for better conditions to go back to
work again. The NBA players are fighting so they never have
to work again. ... Nobody seems to understand or relate to
the NBA players' side. Strange" (DESERET NEWS, 8/29).
PLAYER REAX: In DC, Michael Wilbon wrote on Pistons F
Grant Hill's promotional appearance for Fila, where he
discussed the lockout. Fans began lining up at 2:30pm for a
7:00pm event. Hill: "The fans getting hurt is a big deal to
me, in part because I'm a fan, too, not just a player, and I
can sympathize" (WASHINGTON POST, 8/29)....T-Wolves F Tom
Gugliotta, on the labor woes: "To be honest, it's
embarrassing. It's important; I'm not saying it isn't. But
people don't want to hear about it. ... By now, things
should have been settled" (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 8/30).
STOP THE PRESSES: The SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL's Andy
Bernstein reports that "several" publishing houses are
"dropping their annual NBA guides due to the lockout." The
"biggest names to bow out" are The Sporting News and Sport.
Sport will "probably release some smaller variation" once
the lockout is resolved (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 8/31).
