A little hope is now just - little hope

As of 10-28-11, the NBA has announced that they will be cancelling all NBA games through November 30th, effectively ending any hope of a full 82 game season being played this year. This is expected to lead to a loss of approximately $400 million in salaries. Money that will never, ever come back. And even worse, at present there are no more talks planned by the league between the owners and the players union. After a week where the news was mostly positive, and most of the reports were giving signals that progress was being made towards resolving most of the outstanding issues of a new CBA - we still have nothing. And by all accounts the sticking point behind the falling apart is still yet the division of the BRI, or basketball related income. The owners group wants a 50/50 split, and the players union isn't going to budge below a 52/48 split. And while its estimated that 1% of the BRI is worth about $280 million, it really seems like there is more to this issue than meets the eye.

For why else would the players union risk $400 million in salaries for $280 million of BRI? Has this become something of a pissing contest between David Stern and Billy Hunter? Or something else entirely? Jason Whitlock of Fox Sports has written a recent article intimating that Derek Fisher is in league with Stern and that there was a handshake agreement between Fisher and Stern to deliver the new agreement to the owners at a 50/50 BRI split. This would be an unbelievable betrayal of the players union if true. And could be exactly the kind of thing that would lead to Billy Hunter rejecting an agreement the owners would bring to the table and just walk out away from the negotiating table. And would be exactly the kind of backup plan that Stern would have wanted before these negotiations began - holding the power of a continued paycheck AND an ace in the hole in Fisher’s complicity in his plans? A brilliant move on Stern’s part if true. You gotta admire the guys moxie, if nothing else.

But where has all of this gotten everyone? No basketball means that everyone loses. Kevin Durant has been playing flag football for crying out loud! This guy could very well be the MVP of the league this season and he’s been reduced to shredding the local comp at black top parks all across the US and putting up (admittedly very interesting) YouTube videos to pass the time. This is a clear sign that this lockout has gone on far too long. And KD is not the only example of NBA stars for all intents and purposes sitting at home doing nothing but waiting for the phone to ring. While the Twitter campaign by the same name wasn’t a spectacular success, I think it really is time to “Let Them Play.” Past time, actually.