Last week Pete wrote a great piece about the NBA lockout. I was going to throw in my unsolicited two-cents, but Jeff MacGregor at ESPN beat me to it. His article pretty much sums up my feelings on the lockout and the NBA in general, especially this passage:
Let it fail. I'm tired of being played for a sucker.
There's basketball everywhere.
In an economy this bad, most of us will be happy to watch college ball the next six months; or the satellite package withLega Basket Serie A on it and the Israeli Basketball Super League, down at the corner bar; or we'll thumb through our own season on the Xbox. Or just watch the kids play in the driveway. These are lean days, Clueless Billionaire.
Or maybe the players will start their own league and barnstorm from armory to armory the way they did it back when. The value in the NBA is the talent, after all. And as start-ups go, it wouldn't cost much: just $89 to incorporate in Delaware. Call it the Peoples' Traveling Basketball League (patent pending). Twenty bucks a seat.Read the rest of the article at ESPN.
At this point, I would MUCH rather see an independent league run by the players, for the players, than the current rich guy, country club economic model they have now. Wouldn't you?
And the players would play a full season for peanuts?? Not with their thirst for mansions, fast cars, and fast women. You start a league run by players or hamsters, and that requires large investments, not including scheduling arenas that hold enough people. And you would need an administrative infrastructure. The players would play, so the people who would do this also will command salaries appropriate for their position. Then add that to the business model the NBA is currently laboring under, and you have an economic structure that cannot be maintained.
ReplyDeleteRichard would be right ... except for the fact the players HAVE been doing exactly that for the past four months. I know a lot of smart people are saying the players are silly for thinking they can win this, and that whatever gains they expect to reap will be vanish after a month of lost salaries, but those people are forgetting that there are plenty of overseas jobs available, and that (some) owners are going to be losing a fortune for every missed game.
ReplyDeleteHow much money do the Lakers lose for every vacant night at Staples, or the Mavericks for every missed opportunity at AA, or the Heat in Miami? Yes, the players are losing a bunch, but so are the owners.
As for the "thirst for mansions, fast cars, and fast women," see MALOOF, FAMILY OF if you want proof that owners are just as dumb as players. Rich white people aren't necessarily smarter than rich black people. They just have less tattoos.
For better or worse, the players ARE the league. As much as Stern and his minions would like you to think people come out to games for the atmosphere and the fancy luxury boxes, people come to see the players, period. It doesn't matter if it's Key Arena or the Ballard Boys and Girls Club, if LeBron plays, the people wil pay.
ReplyDeleteThe players need the league. That will become apparent when players can't find real money overseas or anywhere else for that matter. I hope the owners crush 'em!
ReplyDeleteMr. Stern, if you'd please use your real name instead of Anonymous, we'd be happy to hear your side of the story.
ReplyDelete