Stern Paycut?

Left unsaid in the angry rhetoric about David Stern's forced paycut for NBA referees (he wants them to cut salaries by 10%, they're willing to take about 5 or 7%), is this question:

What sort of paycut is David Stern willing to take?

According to what you read on the internet (I know, I know), Stern pulls down an annual salary of approximately $10 million. After spending some time researching the issue, I could not find any information as to whether Stern has opted to take the same paycut he is forcing the officials to take.

Now, that's not to say that he hasn't - absence of proof is not lack of proof, after all. One of our astute readers may be able to point me in the direction of an article which shows that the commissioner has, indeed, taken a pay cut this year.

But, if he hasn't, how hypocritical is that? On the one hand, he's sacrificing his officials upon the altar of the economic recession, yet he seems to not feel the need to do that for himself.

I hope I'm wrong, and that Stern is doing the honorable thing. But, somehow, knowing his character, I doubt it.

Stern to Refs: Nuts

Difference between the NBA and their refs in an ongoing labor dispute that caused Commissioner Stern to contemplate using scab officials this season: $700,000

Amount of time it would take for the NBA to earn $700,000, based on last year's revenue of $3.2 billion: 1 hour, 50 minutes

No Reign Forecast for Beijing

I'm puzzled as to how I missed this, but according to Chinese news sources, Shawn Kemp was all set to participate in Chinese Summer League basketball this past month.

Of course, Shawn being Shawn, it all fell apart in a mixture of miscommunications and prior commitments, the end result being Kemp has now tantalized and disappointed fans in North America, Europe, and Asia in the past 12 months, a considerable accomplishment for a guy whose last professional game was so long ago, Danny Manning was in the opposing lineup.

So, what's next for The Reign Man? Why not Australia, where Kemp could visit former teammate Sedale Threatt, or perhaps Africa, where he could provide an ironic twist on seeing teenage phenoms come from Africa to the U.S.? The possibilities, it would seem, are endless.

Much like Shawn Kemp's career.