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  • #16
    Derek Fisher urges unity, patience


    n his latest letter to fellow players, NBA Players Association president Derek Fisher called for unity, stressing that "we drive this game" and insisting that he still believes there is a "divide" in the ownership ranks that will ultimately lead to a labor agreement the players can accept.

    In the letter, sent to players Monday and obtained by ESPN.com, Fisher preached patience, saying that "we can't sell ourselves short for instant gratification."

    Fisher wrote: "Our game has never been more popular and we're poised to see tremendous revenue growth over the next 5 to 6 years. ... We must share fairly in the continued growth of our business. Any deal that decouples us from a fair share of the revenue growth in the years ahead is a deal we cannot accept. Period!"

    Fisher said he still firmly believes that the NBA's 30 teams do not share the same goals in the lockout -- a point he made in a letter to the union's membership last week.

    "There are a number of team owners that will not lose the season over the hard cap system. We've been clear from Day 1 of this process that we cannot sign off on a deal that attempts in any way to include a hard salary cap for our teams. That has not changed," Fisher said. "Unless you, the group we represent, tell us otherwise, we are prepared to hold the line for as long as it takes to preserve the system we've worked so hard to build."

    The owners also remain divided over a revenue sharing model, Fisher said, adding that the union still believes a stronger revenue-sharing system would help resolve economic issues facing the league's smaller market teams.

    "The same way our max players sacrificed for the larger body of players in the last collective bargaining agreement, it's time for our large market teams to share some of the wealth with each other. We continue to remain firm on the idea that not all of the purported loss figures should be made up solely through the reduction of player salaries," Fisher said.

    "We still haven't been presented with any real specifics or proposals that include what a new revenue sharing model will look like," Fisher said. "It is my belief that if they can get us to be short-sighted and agree to an unfair deal they won't have to share more revenue amongst themselves. They will have gotten what they need from us. We can't allow that to happen guys. Not under any circumstances.

    "It is also my belief that once they have worked out more of their internal issues, the opportunity to negotiate and get a fair deal done is there."

    CBSSports.com reported earlier Monday that the league and the union have scheduled small group sessions for Tuesday and possibly Wednesday to continue talks. Numerous sources close to the situation have told ESPN.com that a deal must be struck by Oct. 15 at the latest to preserve the scheduled start of the regular season Nov. 1.

    The union canceled a scheduled regional meeting Tuesday in Miami, sources said, so its negotiators can resume talks with the owners in New York.

    The NBA on Friday postponed training camps indefinitely and canceled 43 preseason games from Oct. 9-15, one day after the latest negotiating session failed to produce a deal. The lockout entered its 88th day on Monday; camps were expected to open Oct. 3.

    It remains to be seen if Fisher's comments that the union would back away from its longstanding opposition to a hard cap -- if the group at large consents to that concession -- represents a softening from the union side or become a rallying point that strengthens the players' resolve to resist it.

    "I want to make something absolutely clear about this process," Fisher wrote. "You ultimately have the voice and the power in these negotiations. Those of us that are in the room negotiating with the NBA cannot agree to any deal or deal points, good or bad, without taking your vote. Despite what you may hear, we don't have the authority to sell you out or sell you short."

    "We are a group of some of the most talented, savvy, businessmen and business owners in the world," Fisher added. "We have built our own brands, launched our own and other people's companies, helped our communities. I keep that in the forefront of my mind each time we go into a negotiating session.

    "If a Bill Gates, Warren Buffett or Russell Simmons were in this, there is no way they would take a deal that is unfair. Not when we are the talent, the most coveted asset, the most valuable resource that drives this business. Keep that in your mind as we walk down this road shoulder to shoulder," he said.

    Fisher's first letter was more adversarial in tone, challenging the faction of agents who have discussed the possibility of pushing for the decertification of the union. ESPN.com reported earlier this month that five of the league's most influential player agents -- Arn Tellem, Bill Duffy, Mark Bartelstein, Jeff Schwartz and Dan Fegan -- spoke by phone Sept. 12 about the process of dissolving the players association.

    "What would be appreciated by the 400-plus players would be the support of our agents and constructive ideas, suggestions and solutions that are in our best interests," Fisher wrote in the first letter. "Not the push for a drastic move that leaves their players without a union, without pensions, without health care. We just aren't there."

    The league locked out the players on July 1 after the expiration of the old labor agreement. Owners and players still haven't agreed on how to divide revenues -- players were guaranteed 57 percent under the previous deal -- or the system that will divide those revenues.

    During Thursday's negotiations, league officials offered players a 46 percent share of basketball-related revenue, 11 percent less than they received in the last deal and 7 percent less than the last proposal by players, Bucher reported. Sources say that the players' union has offered to reduce its percentage to as much as 54 percent, with the stipulation that a mechanism would be instituted to reward the players if future revenue increased.

    The owners agreed to try to come up with a mechanism to solve their issues without adding a hard salary cap before the next meeting, according to one source. But a hard cap is presumed to be the owners' overwhelming preferences after claims they lost $300 million last season.

    Union chief Billy Hunter told reporters two weeks ago that he has already cautioned players that they might have to be willing to sacrifice half of the upcoming season to secure a deal that does not include a hard cap.


    http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/70...ty-nba-players
    sigpic


    "The last time I was intimidated was when I was 6 years old in karate class. I was an orange belt and the instructor ordered me to fight a black belt who was a couple years older and a lot bigger. I was scared s---less. I mean, I was terrified and he kicked my ass. But then I realized he didn’t kick my ass as bad as I thought he was going to and that there was nothing really to be afraid of. That was around the time I realized that intimidation didn’t really exist if you’re in the right frame of mind." - Kobe Bryant

    Comment


    • #17
      NBA team renamed Brooklyn Nets


      New York (CNN) -- Brooklyn Nets. This is what the NBA world will now be calling the New Jersey Nets.

      Media mogul Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter revealed the name Monday, along with Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, Forest City Ratner Companies Chairman and CEO Bruce Ratner, and Barclays Center and Nets CEO Brett Yormark, at Atlantic Terminal in Brooklyn. They were near the construction site of the Nets' future home, The Barclays Center.

      "We are proud to announce this highly anticipated decision to name the team the Brooklyn Nets, a choice which reflects the decades-long tradition of our team and fans, as well as the dynamic new place that will be our home," Nets Chairman Chris Charlier said.

      Carter, a part owner of the Nets, also said he will be the first to perform at the venue's opening, scheduled for September 2012.

      "From the moment the Barclays Center became a reality, I knew this meant something significant for Brooklyn," Carter said. "This is where I'm from, I'll always be Brooklyn, and opening this arena will mean more to me than anywhere else," he said. "We're going to create an atmosphere like only Brooklyn can."

      The Barclays Center is set to host major entertainment and sporting events, which could mean some competition for New York's staple Madison Square Garden. It will also feature four bars, three clubs and a restaurant.

      Carter invited 25 students from George Westinghouse High School, where he attended, to take part in the announcement, which included the unveiling of a marketing campaign for fall's All Access Pass featuring Carter. Marketing includes 250,000 coffee cups, 150 taxi tops, print ads, pay phones, direct mail and a billboard across the street from the venue.


      http://edition.cnn.com/2011/09/26/sp...s-name-change/

      Comment


      • #18
        The Nets and NBA Economics


        T
        en years ago, a New York real estate developer named Bruce Ratner fell in love with a building site at the corner of Atlantic and Flatbush Avenues in Brooklyn. It was 22 acres, big by New York standards, and within walking distance of four of the most charming, recently gentrified neighborhoods in Brooklyn — Park Slope, Boerum Hill, Clinton Hill, and Fort Greene. A third of the site was above a railway yard, where the commuter trains from Long Island empty into Brooklyn, and that corner also happened to be where the 2, 3, 4, 5, D, N, R, B, Q, A, and C subway lines all magically converge. From Atlantic Yards — as it came to be known — almost all of midtown and downtown Manhattan, not to mention a huge swath of Long Island, was no more than a 20-minute train ride away. Ratner had found one of the choicest pieces of undeveloped real estate in the Northeast.

        But there was a problem. Only the portion of the site above the rail yard was vacant. The rest was occupied by an assortment of tenements, warehouses, and brownstones. To buy out each of those landlords and evict every one of their tenants would take years and millions of dollars, if it were possible at all. Ratner needed New York State to use its powers of "eminent domain" to condemn the existing buildings for him. But how could he do that? The most generous reading of what is possible under eminent domain came from the Supreme Court's ruling in the Kelo v. New London case. There the court held that it was permissible to seize private property in the name of economic development. But Kelo involved a chronically depressed city clearing out a few houses so that Pfizer could expand a research and development facility. Brooklyn wasn't New London. And Ratner wasn't Pfizer: All he wanted was to build luxury apartment buildings. In any case, the Court's opinion in Kelo was treacherous ground. Think about it: What the Court said was that the government can take your property from you and give it to someone else simply if it believes that someone else will make better use of it. The backlash to Kelo was such that many state legislatures passed laws making their condemnation procedures tougher, not easier. Ratner wanted no part of that controversy. He wanted an airtight condemnation, and for that it was far safer to rely on the traditional definition of eminent domain, which said that the state could only seize private property for a "public use." And what does that mean? The best definition is from a famous opinion written by former Justice Sandra Day O'Connor:

        Our cases have generally identified three categories of takings that comply with the public use requirement. … Two are relatively straightforward and uncontroversial. First, the sovereign may transfer private property to public ownership — such as for a road, a hospital, or a military base. See, e.g., Old Dominion Land Co. v. United States, 269 U. S. 55 (1925); Rindge Co. v. County of Los Angeles, 262 U. S. 700 (1923). Second, the sovereign may transfer private property to private parties, often common carriers, who make the property available for the public's use — such as with a railroad, a public utility, or a stadium.

        A stadium. The italics are mine — or rather, they are Ratner's. At a certain point, as he gazed longingly at the corner of Atlantic and Flatbush, a light bulb went off inside his head. And he bought the New Jersey Nets.

        E
        arlier this year, NBA commissioner David Stern was interviewed by Bloomberg News. Stern was expounding on his favorite theme — that the business of basketball was in economic peril and that the players needed to take a pay cut — when he was asked about the New Jersey Nets. Ratner had just sold the franchise to a wealthy Russian businessman after arranging to move the team to Brooklyn. "Is it a contradiction to say that the current model does not work," Stern was asked, "and yet franchises are being bought for huge sums by billionaires like Mikhail Prokhorov?"

        "Stop there," Stern replied. "… the previous ownership lost several hundred million dollars on that transaction."

        This is the argument that Stern has made again and again since the labor negotiations began. On Halloween, he and the owners will dress up like Oliver Twist and parade up and down Park Avenue, caps in hand, while their limousines idle discreetly on a side street. And at this point, even players seem like they believe him. If and when the lockout ends, they will almost certainly agree to take a smaller share of league revenues.

        But Stern's success does not change how strange the NBA position is. There is first of all the hilarious assumption that owning a basketball franchise is a business — at least as that word is used outside of, say, the president's mansion in Pyongyang.1 But beyond that is a second, equally ridiculous assumption, which is that the economics of basketball teams are principally about basketball. As it turns out, they are not.

        B
        ruce Ratner's original plan for the Atlantic Yards site called for 16 separate commercial and residential towers and a basketball arena, all designed by the superstar architect Frank Gehry. The development would be home to roughly 15,000 people, cost in excess of $4 billion, total more than eight million square feet, and make his company — by some calculations — as much as $1 billion in profit. To put that in perspective, the original Rockefeller Center — one of the grandest urban developments in American history — was seven million square feet. Ratner wanted to out-Rockefeller the Rockefellers.

        Ratner knew this would not be easy. The 14 acres he wanted to raze was a perfectly functional neighborhood, inhabited by taxpaying businesses and homeowners. He needed a political halo, and Ratner's genius was in understanding how beautifully the Nets could serve that purpose. The minute basketball was involved, Brooklyn's favorite son — Jay-Z — signed up as a part-owner and full-time booster. Brooklyn's borough president began publicly fantasizing about what a professional sports team would mean for his community. The Mayor's office, then actively pursuing an Olympic bid, loved the idea of a new arena in Brooklyn. Early on, another New York developer, Gary Barnett, made a competing play for the railway yard. Barnett's offer was, in many ways, superior to Ratner's. He didn't want the extra 14 acres, so no land would have to be expropriated from private owners. He wasn't going to plunk a small city down in the middle of an already crowded neighborhood. And he tripled the value of Ratner's offer. Barnett lost. He never had a chance. He wanted to build apartments. Ratner was restoring the sporting glory lost when the Dodgers fled for Los Angeles. As Michael Rikon, one of the attorneys who sued to stop the project, ruefully concluded when Ratner's victory was complete: "It is an aphorism in criminal law that a good prosecutor could get a grand jury to indict a ham sandwich. With regards to condemnations in New York, it can fairly be said that in New York a condemnor can condemn a Kasha Knish."2 Especially if the kasha knish is being eaten to make way for a professional basketball arena.

        Ratner has been vilified — both fairly and unfairly — by opponents of the Atlantic Yards project. But let's be clear: What he did has nothing whatsoever to do with basketball. Ratner didn't buy the Nets as a stand-alone commercial enterprise in the hopes that ticket sales and television revenue would exceed players' salaries and administration costs. Ratner was buying eminent domain insurance. Basketball also had very little to do with Ratner's sale of the Nets. Ratner got hit by the recession. Fighting the court challenges to his project took longer than he thought. He became dangerously overextended. His shareholders got restless. He realized had to dump the fancy Frank Gehry design for something more along the lines of a Kleenex box. Prokhorov helped Ratner out by buying a controlling interest in the Nets. But he also paid off some of Ratner's debts, lent him $75 million, picked up some of his debt service, acquired a small stake in the arena, and bought an option on 20 percent of the entire Atlantic Yards project. This wasn't a fire sale of a distressed basketball franchise. It was a general-purpose real estate bailout.

        Did Ratner even care that he lost the Nets? Once he won his eminent domain case, the team had served its purpose. He's not a basketball fan. He's a real estate developer. The asset he wanted to hang on to was the arena, and with good reason. According to Ratner, the Barclays Center (the naming right of which, by the way, earned him a cool $400 million) is going to bring in somewhere around $120 million in revenue a year. Operating costs will be $30 million. The mortgage comes to $50 million. That leaves $35 million in profit on Ratner's $350 million up-front investment, for an annual return of 10 percent.3 "That is pretty good out of the box," Ratner said in a recent interview. "It will increase as time goes on." Not to mention that the rental market in Brooklyn is heating up, the first of Ratner's residential towers is about to break ground, and his company also happens to own two large retail properties directly adjacent to Atlantic Yards, which can only appreciate now that there's a small city going up next door. When David Stern says that the "previous ownership" of the Nets lost "several million dollars" on the sale of the team, he is apparently not counting the profits on the arena, the eminent domain victory, the long-term value of that extra 14 acres, or the appreciation of Ratner's adjoining properties. That is not a lie, exactly. It is an artful misrepresentation. It is like looking at a perfectly respectable kasha knish and pretending it is a ham sandwich.

        And let's not forget Mikhail Prokhorov. How does he feel about buying into the financial sinkhole that is professional basketball? The blog NetsDaily4 recently dug up the following quotation from a 2010 interview Prokhorov did with the Russian business newspaper Vedomosti:

        "We have a team, we're building the arena, we've hired professional management, we have the option to buy into another large project, the building of an office center. For me, this is a project with explosive profit potential. The capitalization of the team will be $700 million after we move to Brooklyn. It will earn approximately 30 [million]. And the arena will be worth around $1 billion."

        Let us recap. At the very moment the commissioner of the NBA is holding up the New Jersey Nets as a case study of basketball's impoverishment, the former owner of the team is crowing about 10 percent returns and the new owner is boasting of "explosive" profits. After the end of last season, one imagines that David Stern gathered together the league's membership for a crash course on lockout etiquette: stash the yacht in St. Bart's until things blow over, dress off the rack, insist on the '93 and '94 Cháteau Lafite Rothschilds, not the earlier, flashier, vintages. For rich white men to plead poverty, a certain self-discipline is necessary. Good idea, except next time he should remember to invite the Nets.

        O
        ne of the great forgotten facts about the United States is that not very long ago the wealthy weren't all that wealthy. Up until the 1960s, the gap between rich and poor in the United States was relatively narrow. In fact, in that era marginal tax rates in the highest income bracket were in excess of 90 percent. For every dollar you made above $250,000, you gave the government 90 cents. Today — with good reason — we regard tax rates that high as punitive and economically self-defeating. It is worth noting, though, that in the social and political commentary of the 1950s and 1960s there is scant evidence of wealthy people complaining about their situation. They paid their taxes and went about their business. Perhaps they saw the logic of the government's policy: There was a huge debt from World War II to be paid off, and interstates, public universities, and other public infrastructure projects to be built for the children of the baby boom. Or perhaps they were simply bashful. Wealth, after all, is as often the gift of good fortune as it is of design. For whatever reason, the wealthy of that era could have pushed for a world that more closely conformed to their self-interest and they chose not to. Today the wealthy have no such qualms. We have moved from a country of relative economic equality to a place where the gap between rich and poor is exceeded by only Singapore and Hong Kong. The rich have gone from being grateful for what they have to pushing for everything they can get. They have mastered the arts of whining and predation, without regard to logic or shame. In the end, this is the lesson of the NBA lockout. A man buys a basketball team as insurance on a real estate project, flips the franchise to a Russian billionaire when he wins the deal, and then — as both parties happily count their winnings — what lesson are we asked to draw? The players are greedy.


        http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/...-nba-economics
        sigpic


        "The last time I was intimidated was when I was 6 years old in karate class. I was an orange belt and the instructor ordered me to fight a black belt who was a couple years older and a lot bigger. I was scared s---less. I mean, I was terrified and he kicked my ass. But then I realized he didn’t kick my ass as bad as I thought he was going to and that there was nothing really to be afraid of. That was around the time I realized that intimidation didn’t really exist if you’re in the right frame of mind." - Kobe Bryant

        Comment


        • #19
          With owners split, NBPA aims to unite players, turn corner



          NEW YORK -- The point guard has the ball in his hands, and though it isn't quite 0.4 seconds left against the Spurs for Derek Fisher, it is unmistakably the fourth quarter -- the final push for an NBA labor deal that saves a full season.

          Negotiators for the NBA and its embattled players' union will meet in some fashion Tuesday, with the goal being to force overtime Wednesday and finally turn the corner in talks that have been stuck on two key points for two years. But before they do that, Fisher needed to draw up another play in the huddle, one that was as sound strategically as it was calculating. Whether it will be successful -- whether it will work -- is something that won't be known Tuesday or Wednesday, but will be put to a high-stakes, potentially bloody test over the next 2½ weeks.


          In a second letter to union membership, Fisher's words Monday were as important for their intended targets as for their content. Point No. 1: The owners are divided, Fisher reiterated, with enough of them not willing to lose an entire season for the privilege of instituting a hard salary cap. Point No. 2 was a more subtle, better crafted version of what Fisher delivered in his first letter to his fellow players: Despite what your agents might be telling you, Billy Hunter and I will not sell you out for a bad deal.

          This is the rhetoric being perpetuated at all levels of the player hierarchy: that Fisher and Hunter are incapable of delivering a fair deal, and will cave to the owners' demands. Not true, Fisher wrote to the players Monday. Not true, despite what you are being told.

          "You ultimately have the voice and the power in these negotiations," Fisher wrote to the players Monday in a letter first obtained by ESPN.com. "Those of us that are in the room negotiating with the NBA cannot agree to any deal or deal points, good or bad, without taking your vote. Despite what you may hear, we don't have the authority to sell you out or sell you short."

          For the second time in as many weeks, this was a carefully worded shot at the agents representing enough players to force a vote decertifying the union -- and perhaps even enough to reject a deal negotiated at the bargaining table -- from Fisher, the point guard who senses the time is now to begin controlling the game. Sources told CBSSports.com Monday that some of the same agents who've privately been pushing for decertification -- the nuclear option in collective bargaining -- are beginning to make noise that they will urge their clients to reject a deal presented to them by Hunter and Fisher if it doesn't meet their clients' needs.

          "This has never been about getting a fair deal to the owners," one high-profile agent said Monday. "This has been about waiting the players out, waiting for them to miss paychecks and then forcing a bad deal down their throats. [The owners] haven't negotiated through this whole process."

          These were the potentially destructive forces Fisher was addressing again Monday. And yet these also were the well informed advisers representing Fisher's constituents -- no, teammates -- in a high-stakes bargaining game against billionaires who are hellbent on winning this negotiation in the kind of spectacular fashion that, in Fisher's view, mistakes who is the driving force behind the NBA's success.

          Somewhere beneath all the rhetoric, they are all supposed to be on the same team.

          In its simplest form, Fisher's argument is that Steve Nash and Carmelo Anthony -- not Robert Sarver and James Dolan -- have generated record revenues, TV ratings and fan engagement for the NBA. And yet Sarver and Dolan -- not to mention Dan Gilbert and Peter Holt, labor relations committee members all -- want that pendulum to swing to the owners' side with a series of proposals that seek to shift the lion's share of revenues to them. The league's latest proposal last week, according to two people with knowledge of it, called for an average of 46 percent of basketball-related income (BRI) going to the players, who were guaranteed 57 percent under the previous deal.

          The union's latest proposal, according to a person familiar with it, called for the players to agree to a salary freeze for the 2011-12 season -- no less than the $2.17 billion they earned last season -- and then reduce their share to 54 percent of BRI as a starting point in the rest of a six-year deal. Hunter has previously indicated a willingness to negotiate downward from that percentage, a gesture commissioner David Stern characterized as "on the road" to agreement on the economic terms of the deal.

          By my math, the two sides are about $1.9 billion apart over six years based on their most recent positions -- a divide that seems incalculable to the average fan, but one that is difficult to imagine being enough for either side to walk away from more than twice that by canceling next season entirely. A deal on the economics is within reach -- "there for the taking," as one source put it -- if only the real negotiations would begin.

          Despite an offer that seems irretrievably bad for the players -- 46 percent of revenues with hard-line owners frothing to add a hard cap in the fine print -- this is what Hunter believes happened last week. He believes it was the starting point in negotiations that have dragged on with meeting after meeting signifying nothing for more than two years.

          "This is the beginning," one person familiar with Hunter's take on the state of negotiations said.

          But the beginning of what?

          This is where Fisher's gamesmanship and innate sense of when and how to take over the game come into play. At first, I didn't understand the union's strategy of having Fisher, a basketball player and definitely not a lawyer, do all the talking for the players instead of Hunter, who for 15 years has served as the executive director of the National Basketball Players Association. Now I do.

          About the only thing a pro sports union has in common with work-a-day counterparts -- teachers, plumbers, electricians -- is that the members have to vote on a new CBA or there will not be one. And fair or not, the majority of players looking at a deal that, in any shape or form, will be worse than what they're used to will see Hunter as having more in common with Stern and the owners than with them. True? Not at all. But it's human nature.

          But Fisher? He's a player. He's one of us, his "teammates" will say. And he will be the one to garner support for a new deal, if as expected, there will be one to support before an on-time start to the season goes down the toilet on or about Oct. 14.

          So Fisher has cleverly run a trick play in an attempt to screen off the power brokers who also have more in common with Stern, Hunter and indeed the owners than they do with the players: the agents, the men who have the power to torpedo a deal. They may very well represent the most difficult opponent Fisher has ever faced, but he is the only one in the room capable of being on the same floor with them.

          "We drive this game," Fisher wrote to the players Monday, the point guard who is driving these negotiations for the players and for pro basketball now. "We must share fairly in the continued growth of our business."

          Fair, as Fisher is only beginning to find out, is in the eye of the beholder.


          http://www.cbssports.com/nba/story/1...rs-turn-corner
          sigpic


          "The last time I was intimidated was when I was 6 years old in karate class. I was an orange belt and the instructor ordered me to fight a black belt who was a couple years older and a lot bigger. I was scared s---less. I mean, I was terrified and he kicked my ass. But then I realized he didn’t kick my ass as bad as I thought he was going to and that there was nothing really to be afraid of. That was around the time I realized that intimidation didn’t really exist if you’re in the right frame of mind." - Kobe Bryant

          Comment


          • #20
            Zach Randolph stands by players' union


            With the ink barely dry on a four-year contract extension he signed in April, Grizzlies forward Zach Randolph knows exactly what he stands to lose if the NBA season is lost due to a labor dispute.

            But Randolph insists that collecting on the first year of a deal that pays $66 million guaranteed with $5 million in incentives isn't his main concern regarding the league-imposed lockout.

            Randolph says he's willing to miss the 2011-12 NBA regular season and a big payday rather than accept a bad deal.

            "If that's a sacrifice we have to make (in order) to make it better for the future then, yeah, I'm OK with it," Randolph said in a telephone interview. "I'm definitely prepared financially."

            Randolph, 30, is entering what would be his 11th NBA season. Training camp was supposed to start Oct. 3 but the league postponed camps indefinitely and canceled preseason games through Oct. 15.

            Randolph will not attend the union's regional meeting today in Miami. But he's sticking by players association executive director Billy Hunter.

            "I sent a text to Billy Hunter two weeks ago and told him he has my full support," Randolph said. "I'm definitely supporting the union. And we all should. This is something I've never been through so it's frustrating, but all of the players should stick together."

            Representatives from the NBA and players' association will meet today and possibly Wednesday, according to multiple reports. A deal would need to be reached by mid-October if the NBA is to avoid losing regular-season games.

            Randolph said he has continued to work out in order to be physically ready for the season. One thing he didn't want to talk about was an off-season incident in which his image took a beating. A Portland man last month alleged he was beaten by Randolph's friends during a drug deal gone bad.

            James Ruben Beasley said he was assaulted while attempting to sell marijuana at Randolph's Portland-area home. Beasley was facing a crack-dealing charge at the time of the alleged incident. Beasley was later rearrested by Portland police after reporting the incident at Randolph's home.

            No one has been charged in connection with the alleged beating.

            Randolph wouldn't comment on the Portland incident, saying, "The whole thing was stupid. It's not even worth making a statement about."

            Asked what he planned to do if the regular season doesn't start on time, Randolph said he'll attempt to join whatever team center Marc Gasol plays for.

            "I'm going to wait and see what's going on Nov. 1," Randolph said. "That's when I'll make a decision. And then I'm going to see what Marc is doing. I'd like to go wherever he goes. I'd want to talk to him and stick with my big fella."

            Randolph played in an Indy Pro Am game against the Washington-based Goodman League last Saturday. He'll return to Memphis this week with the hope of working out with his Grizzlies teammates.

            Randolph said he's anxious to see Rudy Gay play after hearing about the high marks Gay earned during the so-called "lockout league" last week in Las Vegas.

            "When Rudy comes back," Randolph said, "we'll be a team to be reckoned with."

            Count Randolph among the many Grizzlies who believe the lockout -- no matter how long it lasts -- won't kill the momentum the team generated with a trip to the Western Conference semifinals last season.

            "We changed the culture around here," Randolph said. "We're going to have our fans."


            http://www.commercialappeal.com/news...-by-his-union/
            sigpic


            "The last time I was intimidated was when I was 6 years old in karate class. I was an orange belt and the instructor ordered me to fight a black belt who was a couple years older and a lot bigger. I was scared s---less. I mean, I was terrified and he kicked my ass. But then I realized he didn’t kick my ass as bad as I thought he was going to and that there was nothing really to be afraid of. That was around the time I realized that intimidation didn’t really exist if you’re in the right frame of mind." - Kobe Bryant

            Comment


            • #21
              Kobe asked for $15 million from Italian club

              Kobe Bryant was offered a hefty $6.7 million from Italian league team Virtus Bologna, which was the highest offer to any NBA player during the lockout. (That number is under some dispute with another report saying it was for $5 million.)

              But it wasn't enough. Not what Kobe was looking for. According to Sportando and Bolognabasket.net, Kobe asked for a cool $15 million, before taxes, which would put it around $7.5 million. Which is obviously too much for the Italian team.

              The original AP report noted that there were extensive negotiations going on.
              Virtus Bologna general manager Massimo Faraoni tells The Associated Press he's been on conference calls between Bryant's agent, Rob Pelinka, Bologna president Claudio Sabatini and main sponsor Canadian Solar, which would provide the cash for such a deal.

              "I think the fact that he's lived in Italy makes this appealing to him," Faraoni said.

              Virtus has given Bryant four different contract options, stretching from the one-year deal to two-month and one-month options, and a per-game deal that would come out to $739,640 per home game.
              As Ben Golliver of CBSSports.com noted, the $6.7 million offer would pay him 26.7 percent of what he was set to make in 2011-12 with the Lakers. Kobe's $25.2 milion next season, tops in the NBA.

              Obviously Kobe's offer would include an NBA out, but climbing up towards the $15 million range is huge. And clearly way out of Virtus Bologna's price range. But right in Kobe's.


              http://eye-on-basketball.blogs.cbssp...48484/32311619
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              Pablo Sandoval: A guy can change anything.. his face, his home, his family, his girlfriend, his religion, his God.
              But there's one thing he can't change... he can't change his passion.

              Comment


              • #22
                Lebron, Wade plan mega charity game


                The Heat players have kept a low profile in the lockout. Chris Bosh argued with Skip Bayless. LeBron James has shown up for a few spontaneous appearances at the summer leagues (and got dunked on by a Taiwanese player). Dwyane Wade in particular has gone underground. But as usual, if there's a trend going on in the NBA, the Heat want to get in on it. The Triad will host a mega charity in south Florida next week, according to ESPN. James, Wade, and Bosh will all play, and the roster is unbelievably stacked, way more so than the other exhibitions that have been going on. From ESPN:
                A number of NBA players are slated to join the Miami trio on the court, including fellow Heat teammate Mario Chalmers, the Oklahoma City Thunders Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, the New York Knicks Carmelo Anthony, Amare Stoudemire, the New Orleans Hornets Chris Paul, the Washington Wizards John Wall, the Atlanta Hawks Jamal Crawford, the Houston Rockets Jonny Flynn, the Los Angeles Clippers Eric Bledsoe, the Dallas Mavericks Caron Butler, the Memphis Grizzlies Rudy Gay, the Boston Celtics Rajon Rondo, the Philadelphia 76ers Lou Williams, the Golden State Warriors Dorell Wright, and the Portland Trail Blazers Wesley Matthews and free agent Eddy Curry.
                via Miami Heats LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh to host The South Florida All-Star Classic - ESPN.

                That's nine All-Stars in the game. That's pretty unbelievable. And yet, that part is probably the least interesting. Here are the cliff notes on the eyebrow-raisers from the report:

                The coaches for this event are actor comedian Kevin Hart and Rick Ross. Read that sentence again and let your mind explode.
                The event features multiple members of both Brand Jordan and Nike, pitted against each other. Wall's appearance, though, singals the event was not put together by Nike, despite the obviousness of such a move.
                Oh, they're playing in south Florida, huh? Where did they find an arena? Oh, at FIU. Well, that makes sense, since it's so close and.... "Oh My Gosh, that's Isiah Thomas' music!"
                Eddy Curry continues to slouch closer and closer to joining the Heat. He's playing alongside the Triad in exhibitions. He's hanging out with them. It's only a matter of time. Did we mentione there's a report he's lost 100 lbs.? That's a person!
                The interesting thing to watch will be who streams the event. SI streamed one of the city exhibitions the other day. The more these are held, the more media partners become interested.



                http://eye-on-basketball.blogs.cbssp...fb_na_txt_0001
                sigpic

                Pablo Sandoval: A guy can change anything.. his face, his home, his family, his girlfriend, his religion, his God.
                But there's one thing he can't change... he can't change his passion.

                Comment


                • #23
                  Fisher: 'Maybe we can put a deal together'


                  NEW YORK -- Negotiators from the NBA and its players' union ended bargaining talks after about two hours Tuesday, retreating to separate meetings at their offices with both sides acknowledging that there was something to think about.

                  Whether it was enough to propel the negotiations toward the possible foundation of a new collective bargaiing agreement, commissioner David Stern said, "We will know more after (Wednesday's) session."

                  Derek Fisher, president of the National Basketball Players Association, said the two sides "talked extensively about ideas and concepts. These are things that if we could get into the range or get into the zone, maybe we can put a deal together."

                  The league and union will reconvene Wednesday morning with one eye on the religious calendar -- Thursday and Friday will be off limits for several key negotiators due to Rosh Hashanah -- and one eye on the basketball calendar. About four weeks remain before the scheduled start of the regular season, or approximately the amount of time that would be needed to finalize details of any deal points agreed upon and crank up free agency and a truncated preseason schedule.

                  Optimism? It's almost impossible to read tea leaves and body language in these talks, but Wednesday seems like a turning point -- one way or another.

                  "Sometimes when you discuss concepts, you want to go back and think about it," Stern said.

                  What is there to think about? That is the $4 billion question. At last check, the two sides appeared to be about $1.9 billion apart on the economics and were getting ready to tread on the hallowed ground of system issues -- the hard salary cap vs. the existing system with a plethora of exceptions and a luxury tax. Sources have told CBSSports.com that both sides have signaled a willingness to negotiate system issues, with one person connected to the talks saying that a deal is "there for the taking."

                  Asked whether Tuesday's session was dedicated to the economic split or the system, Fisher and Stern said they discussed both.

                  "We’re not holding anybody accountable to ideas being thrown out in the room," Fisher said. "It’s really just a process that we’re trying to go through."


                  http://ken-berger.blogs.cbssports.co...38893/32315251
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                  "The last time I was intimidated was when I was 6 years old in karate class. I was an orange belt and the instructor ordered me to fight a black belt who was a couple years older and a lot bigger. I was scared s---less. I mean, I was terrified and he kicked my ass. But then I realized he didn’t kick my ass as bad as I thought he was going to and that there was nothing really to be afraid of. That was around the time I realized that intimidation didn’t really exist if you’re in the right frame of mind." - Kobe Bryant

                  Comment


                  • #24
                    Welcome to Amnesty 2.0 in the NBA


                    Remember when we renamed the NBA's amnesty clause after Allan Houston and giggled as teams paid off some of the league's dumbest contracts to go away? Well, if you enjoyed that experience, you're going to love Amnesty 2.0. According to the Oregonian's John Canzano last week, the owners have already decided to include an amnesty clause in the yet-signed labor agreement. The big difference: Teams can pick one player to waive, then pay off the rest of his contract … only this time, that player's deal won't count against the salary cap (not just the luxury tax).

                    Should an agreement be reached soon — don't hold your breath1 — Amnesty 2.0 would have an even bigger impact than Amnesty 1.0 did. An already truncated free agency would be more entertaining if a team found itself one move away from being suddenly flush with cap space, or if it were debating between cutting someone loose or holding on to his bloated contract as a salary match for a later trade. If there ends up being a hard salary cap, contenders could even be forced to use their amnesties on well-known veterans like Ron Artest, Brandon Roy, Mike Miller and (gulp) Kevin Garnett.

                    At its core, the onetime, get-out-of-debt-free clause helps teams that foolishly overspent for players. You couldn't blame the league's savvier executives (like Oklahoma City's Sam Presti) for bristling if and when it's invoked — especially for some of last summer's more questionable signings, when teams knew a harder cap was coming and acted recklessly anyway. Is it fair to whisk away those mistakes when someone like Presti, who spent wisely and frugally these past few years, gets no benefits whatsoever? That's just one of the confounding things about this lockout: Much of it seems to be about resetting the big picture for teams that couldn't handle operating within that big picture. How is that the players' fault? It's a great question.

                    The last time we went down this amnesty road (2005), teams saved more than $212 million in future luxury tax payments and Houston got a rule named after him. That term was actually a misnomer. Oddly enough — or fittingly given the slew of moves they made over the next few years — the Knicks never used the clause on Houston. In that spirit, we think this year's amnesty clause should be named after Eddy Curry, another player who fits the purging prototype that, alas, the Knicks will never be able to use it on. We'll call it the Curry Cure.2

                    For the record, Abrams couldn't keep Simmons out of this feature — Simmons gave so many notes for Abrams' original column that we decided to fold them into a bigger piece. Fine, it wasn't "we," it was "him." As Simmons explained by e-mail, "The Red Sox are falling apart. The NBA's salary cap is my security blanket. I'd like to spend the next 40 to 80 hours figuring out amnesty guys if that's OK. It's better than getting drunk, then waking up my kids by throwing up in my backyard at 2:30 in the morning."

                    If you say so. Here's how each team should use their "Curry Cure."
                    BOSTON CELTICS

                    Abrams: No one. If the Celtics were convinced that last season's ending meant restructuring the core, then the $21.2 million that Kevin Garnett is on the books for in 2011-12 would be considered. But they're not there yet. Though this may be a provision Danny Ainge wants back in the future if he signs Jeff Green to a long-term contract.

                    Simmons: If the Celtics don't use their Curry Cure on Jermaine O'Neal ($6.2 million in 2012), I am flying to Boston, taking a cab right from the airport to the Celtics offices, then setting those offices on fire.3
                    NEW YORK KNICKS

                    Abrams: No one. They have only four players (Amar'e Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony, Renaldo Balkman's manageable salary, and an option for Toney Douglas) beyond the 2011-12 season. Chauncey Billups ($14.2 million) and Ronny Turiaf ($4.4 million) are done after this year. This rule isn't fair to Donnie Walsh, who spent years purging the Knicks of Curry, Jerome James, and Isiah Thomas' other greatest misses, only to have the Curry Cure show up right when he left.

                    Simmons: The Knicks have 10 players under contract for $62 million right now. That's pushing them over the cap no matter where it ends up. If there's a hard cap, I see them dealing Billups for someone making less money, using the amnesty on Turiaf, then creating enough cap space to sign a third close-to-marquee guy … or, knowing them, it would be Jared Jeffries for $50 million.
                    PHILADELPHIA 76ERS

                    Abrams: Elton Brand's contract jumps out ($35.2 million through 2013), but he quietly steadied them last season and gives them a reliable post presence. Instead, Philadelphia should look to trim the $6.7 million that Andres Nocioni is due in 2011-12.

                    Simmons: I can't believe I'm agreeing with this.
                    NEW JERSEY NETS

                    Abrams: Travis Outlaw. One of last summer's questionable signings (five years, $35 million) that became worse as the season dragged along.

                    Simmons: Here's why we're having a lockout — because teams are so effing stupid that they actually need to waive guys they just signed a year ago. There should be bonus amnesty points for being total morons. The Nets should get to wipe twice the amount of Outlaw's contract off their cap, like how disabled people get to park in disabled-person spaces.
                    TORONTO RAPTORS

                    Abrams: Linas Kleiza. It would be tempting for the Raptors to use the clause on Jose Calderon, whose contract guarantees him $20.3 million over the next two years. Kleiza's contract (signed last summer) is equally awful and pays him $13.8 million through 2013-14.

                    Simmons: Disagree. I'd rather chop Calderon's $20.3 million. I'm pretty sure paying eight figures a year for a backup point guard isn't getting you anywhere with a harder cap. Although really, they should see if they can use the clause on Bryan Colangelo — that's the worst single Raptors contract, right?
                    CHICAGO BULLS

                    Abrams: No one. Chicago is well put together with no fat to trim — unless Bulls fans are still mad at Carlos Boozer for his playoff performance.

                    Simmons: I'm still mad at Boozer and I'm not even a Bulls fan. The safe move would be using the Curry Cure on Ronnie Brewer ($9 million over the next two years), then replacing him with Rip Hamilton (after Detroit waives him). But with Derrick Rose's free agency coming up and Boozer's $60.6 million over the next four years saddling their cap, I think they'll regret not pressing the RESET button and using their Curry Cure on John Lackey. Er, Boozer. Sorry. I got my salary-cap albatrosses mixed up.
                    INDIANA PACERS

                    Abrams: James Posey. No, his career did not end with the championship in Boston (it only seems that way). Great chance for Indiana to clear its only extraneous contract (Posey's $7.6 million).

                    Simmons: Agree, it's Posey. But you know how a player comes back to his old team for one day and "retires" with them, like when Nomar Garciaparra "retired" as a Red Sox? It's too bad T.J. Ford can't come back to Indiana for one day so the Pacers could use their amnesty on him. That's really how the T.J. Ford era should have ended in Indiana. I feel cheated.
                    MILWAUKEE BUCKS

                    Abrams: Drew Gooden. Played only 35 games last season, and will be 34 years old by the time his contract expires in 2015.

                    Simmons: Disagree. No way John Hammond is writing off Gooden and his $26.3 million remaining salary yet; that's one of those sabermetric moves that Hammond makes in a desperate attempt to win John Hollinger's affection. Remember, Hammond still has a 200-to-1 chance to be the lead character in the Moneyball sequel someday. He can't quit on Gooden yet. I predict Beno Udrih ($14.3 million through 2013) will get Curry Cured.
                    DETROIT PISTONS

                    Abrams: Richard Hamilton ($25 million over the next two years). A sad but necessary and overdue parting. Detroit could also look at trimming off the longer-termed contracts of Ben Gordon ($37.2 million through 2014) and Charlie Villanueva ($24.2 through 2014), but Hamilton makes the most sense for the Pistons: Their championship team dissipated long ago, and Hamilton has soured on the organization.

                    Simmons: I don't feel sad. By the way, congratulations to Joe Dumars for tying Isiah Thomas' "three legitimate amnesty clause candidates" record from 2005.
                    CLEVELAND CAVALIERS

                    Abrams: Baron Davis. A no-brainer. How sweet would this work for Cleveland if the amnesty clause takes place? They traded Mo Williams and Jamario Moon for Davis and a first-round draft pick. That pick evolved into the no. 1 overall pick in Kyrie Irving. Now they may also have the chance to dump Davis and get the $30.7 million he is owed over the next two years off the books? It's not LeBron, but Cleveland comes up rosy in this scenario.

                    Simmons: The next time my dog takes a dump, I'm mailing it to Neil Olshey with the return address, "YOUR BARON DAVIS TRADE."
                    MIAMI HEAT

                    Abrams: No one really jumps out. Mike Miller is signed through 2014-15, though, and, if inclined, the Heat could use the clause to swap him out for another veteran player like Shane Battier.

                    Simmons: I think the Heat should be inclined if there's a hard cap. They have a 2½-year window to win a title and just learned the hard way that you need eight or nine players to do so. For what they're paying Miller ($24 million through 2014), they could sign multiple I-already-made-money-I-just-want-to-play-for-a-title veterans like Kenyon Martin, Chuck Hayes, Michael Redd, Grant Hill, Andrei Kirilenko, Delonte West, Josh Howard, Mike Dunleavy … or they could just splurge on a better small forward (like Battier). Actually, what am I saying? Stay the course, Miami! You should definitely keep Mike Miller!
                    ORLANDO MAGIC

                    Abrams: Pick one — Gilbert Arenas ($62.4 million through 2014) or Hedo Turkoglu ($34.5 million through 2014). Both have underperformed (and then some), but Otis Smith has a longstanding relationship with Arenas that dates back to their days together in Oakland. My take: They need to shed Arenas to give Dwight Howard extra help.

                    Simmons: Agreed — has to be Arenas. Although it's a shame Hedo is going to escape Amnesty 2.0's wrath; few deserve the indignity more than him. Lemme throw this idea at you: What if the Magic amnesty'd Arenas, then traded Hedo and J.J. Redick to Atlanta for Joe Johnson? That's the best possible teammate out there for Dwight Howard; meanwhile, Atlanta could use the clause on Hedo (wiping $11.1 million off their 2012 cap) and turn Johnson ($107.3 million remaining through 2016) into Redick ($12.9 million through 2013) while dropping their 2012 cap from $66.56 to $55.3 million. I'm a genius. How am I not running a team, Abrams?
                    ATLANTA HAWKS

                    Abrams: Joe Johnson should happen … but it won't. Even if the Hawks erased his contract off their salary cap (as well as that $24.9 million final season in 2016 when he will be 34 years old), he is still owed that money and might as well play for it. Instead, Atlanta can wiggle free from Marvin Williams' contract ($24.9 million through 2014).

                    Simmons: Agreed. You have to admire the Hawks: They compounded one of the worst NBA mistakes of this century (drafting Williams over Chris Paul) by giving Williams an indefensibly dumb contract extension just in case their fans didn't feel bad enough about it. I still like my Hedo/Redick-for-Johnson scenario more for them.
                    CHARLOTTE BOBCATS

                    Abrams: DeSagana Diop. Diop is owed $6.9 million in 2011-12, with a player option for $7.4 million the following season, only he's played 84 games total the past three years. Michael Jordan is an advocate for reining in player salaries and won't miss the opportunity to trim his payroll if given the chance.

                    Simmons: We should use the amnesty clause on Charlotte.
                    WASHINGTON WIZARDS

                    Abrams: Rashard Lewis. Lewis is a gauge for how you view the lockout. Right or wrong, he is the poster player for the league's doomed economic model — a decent and grossly overpaid player. "Talk to the owner. He gave me the deal," Lewis recently told the Washington Post's Michael Lee. "When it comes to contracts, the players aren't sitting there negotiating that contract. I'm sitting at home and my agent calls me, saying, 'I got a max on the table.' I'm not going to sit there and say, 'Naw, that's too much. Go out there and negotiate $20 or $30 [million] less.'" This time, the Wizards have their fingers crossed they will have the opportunity to make the correct call and shed themselves of the $43.8 million owed to Lewis over these next two seasons.

                    Simmons: Rashard Lewis went first in my Amnesty Clause Lockout Auction last week. Someone paid $80 for him. Don't sleep on next year's Wizards, by the way — if they can shed Lewis, they'll have $23.6 million committed in 2011-12 salaries. They could potentially sign a free-agent center (Nene? Tyson Chandler? Marc Gasol?) and/or trade for one or two expensive starters to help out teams that need cap space (Rudy Gay? Chris Kaman? Billups? Emeka Okafor? Boozer?). An example: What would Chicago say if Washington offered it Andray Blatche ($29.8 million through 2014-2015) and Blatche's parole officer ($40k) for Boozer (twice the price)? It'd say yes, right?
                    OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER

                    Abrams: No one. If they need to save money, they could free themselves of Thabo Sefolasha's contract ($11.6 million through 2014) and hand the two-guard spot completely over to James Harden.

                    Simmons: Sam Presti is a better man than me. I'd be holding press conferences and saying things like, "Really? Otis Smith overpays Rashard Lewis by $50 million, then makes it worse by trading him for Arenas … and we're throwing him a freaking life jacket? Really? REALLY?????? You know who I'm using my amnesty on? ROYAL IVEY! HE MAKES 10 F*CKING DOLLARS AN HOUR! YOU GUYS SUCK! F*CK YOU!!!!!!!!!!"
                    DENVER NUGGETS

                    Abrams: Al Harrington. Yet another nonsensical signing from last summer, Harrington would make $27.7 million over the next four years to be Denver's overpaid, underperforming, poor man's Carmelo replacement if it wasn't for the Curry Cure. The only way he stays is if Denver simply needs him because all their other free agents (Kenyon Martin, Wilson Chandler, and J.R. Smith) are off playing in China.

                    Simmons: Agree on Harrington. By the way, if the Georgetown hoops team couldn't start World War III in China, I'm pretty sure K-Mart and J.R. could do it.
                    PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS

                    Abrams: Brandon Roy. A tough, economical decision for a player who meant so much to Portland's organization over the past few years. Roy can still contribute as a bench guy, but it is hard picturing him as a franchise player given his many recent injuries or that his hefty contract ($68.7 million remaining) lasts until 2014-15.

                    Simmons: You're right, it's gonna be Roy. This made me sad for about 10 seconds — until I realized that he'll almost definitely sign with Phoenix and get rejuvenated by their miracle-working training staff … followed by Portland fans rioting for three solid weeks.
                    UTAH JAZZ

                    Abrams: Mehmet Okur, who suffered through an injury-plagued 2010-11 and would save the Jazz $10.9 million in 2011-12 by being Curry Cured.

                    Simmons: Agreed. Could more things be falling Utah's way? It fleeced New Jersey with the Deron Williams trade, won a top-three lottery pick and shed Andrei Kirilenko's onerous salary, now it's dumping Memo's last year … oh, wait, we're not going to have an NBA season. I keep forgetting.
                    MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES

                    Abrams: Darko Milicic. How could this list be compiled and not include Darko? He still has three years and $15.7 million left on his inadvisable contract.

                    Simmons: KAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !! I can't believe I'm disagreeing with you here … but I think they'll use their amnesty on Martell Webster (two years, $11 million remaining) and chop their total number of small forwards down from 19 to 18.
                    L.A. LAKERS

                    Abrams: Luke Walton. It's too bad they can't use the clause on a two-for-one deal to extract both Metta World Peace and Ron Artest. Even though Artest's Lakers career probably peaked during his first playoff run with the team, they still probably need an invested Artest to regain their title hopes. Walton does not really contribute on the court anymore and is due $11.5 million over the next two seasons.

                    Simmons: Respectfully disagree. Artest looked washed up last season; he's owed more money ($21.8 million through 2014) than Walton; his wife is starring on Basketball Wives; and … wait, I'm forgetting something … hold on … oh, yeah, he just changed his name to Metta World Peace!!! Really, they're not cutting the cord with Metta? Besides, he already paid off that contract with that soul-crushing 3 in the last minute of Game 7 of the 2010 Finals that never should have gone in under any circumstances and somehow did. I can still see it when I close my eyes every night. (Abrams is a Lakers fan, he's cackling right now. I hate everybody.)
                    PHOENIX SUNS

                    Abrams: Josh Childress. The Suns screwed up last summer by letting Amar'e Stoudemire go, then spending most of what the Knicks gave him by overpaying Childress, Hakim Warrick and Channing Frye. Childress is their top amnesty candidate because he never cracked Alvin Gentry's rotation and has a contract that guarantees him $27 million through 2015.

                    Simmons: Agree on Childress. Too bad the Suns can't use their amnesty on their owner.
                    GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS

                    Abrams: David Lee. Toss-up between him and Andris Biedrins ($27 million through 2014), but Lee makes more money for more years ($68.7 million through 2016).

                    Simmons: Are you crazy??? If the Warriors use their amnesty on Lee over that cap-hogging stiff Biedrins, I will walk from Los Angeles to San Francisco while wearing a Lakers no. 32 jersey that says "ABRAMS" on the back.
                    L.A. CLIPPERS

                    Abrams: Chris Kaman. He's one of the league's few quality centers when healthy and could have made a nice pairing with Blake Griffin, only he gets injured too often and hasn't lived up to his generous contract (one year remaining at $12.7 million). The Clippers can turn the position over and help afford restricted free agent DeAndre Jordan with this move.

                    Simmons: If the Clips want to dump Kaman, couldn't they trade him pretty easily? You're telling me Indiana, Washington, or Sacramento (all way under the cap) wouldn't give up a second-rounder to take a one-year flyer on him? The Clips are far enough under the cap ($45 million committed to 10 players) that they can use their amnesty on Ryan Gomes ($8 million over the next two years), trade Kaman, then either sign Jordan or make a monster play for Marc Gasol. I'm sure they will do absolutely nothing. The spirit of the amnesty clause — admitting that something is a sunk cost, then getting out of that sunk cost to give yourself a competitive advantage — goes against everything Donald Sterling is about. He'd rather just sink.
                    SACRAMENTO KINGS

                    Abrams: Francisco Garcia. Knocks off Garcia's $18.3 million over the next three years and creates more minutes for Jimmer.

                    Simmons: Jimmer Time! If the Kings shed Garcia, it knocks their 2011-12 payroll to $23 million and gives them room for one marquee free agent and a couple of "Moneyball" signings.4 No NBA franchise has a wilder swing from "best-case scenario" to "worst-case scenario" than the Kings. Their best-case scenario: a new stadium, a free-agent prize (Marc Gasol, who could make DeMarcus Cousins his new Z-Bo), a couple of savvy short-risk signings (let's say Patty Mills and Mike Dunleavy Jr.) and a minority billionaire owner who could make sure everyone's checks cleared. Their worst-case scenario: no stadium, prolonged labor dispute … contraction. And yes, the odds for both scenarios are pretty much the same.
                    SAN ANTONIO SPURS

                    Abrams: So long, Richard Jefferson. He's set to make $9.3 million, $10.1 million, and $11 million over the next three years.

                    Simmons: And even after they dump him, they're still at $66.2 million for 14 guys next year. If there's a hard cap, or even a semi-flaccid cap, they're still screwed unless they can turn Tony Parker ($50 million through 2015) into a significantly cheaper point guard (like Ricky Rubio or Kyle Lowry). I think it's fascinating that (a) Spurs owner Peter Holt has the most juice of any owner in this lockout, (b) the owners are pushing for a hard cap, and (c) no 2011-12 team would be more screwed over by a hard cap than the Spurs.
                    DALLAS MAVERICKS

                    Abrams: Would you want to pay Brendan Haywood $45.4 million through 2016? Me neither. Ian Mahinmi can supply what Haywood did — for about $7 million less a year.

                    Simmons: Good call. Only one way this doesn't happen: If Dallas can't re-sign Tyson Chandler. Do you realize that one of us has suggested a combined total of THIRTEEN amnesty guys who were signed or extended in the summer of 2010? Jermaine O'Neal, Linas Kleiza, Carlos Boozer, Travis Outlaw, Josh Childress, David Lee, Mike Miller, Ryan Gomes, Darko Milicic, Richard Jefferson, Drew Gooden, Al Harrington and Brendan Haywood. The owners' complaining about player salaries being too high is like the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills complaining about being in the public eye. It makes no sense. I'm starting to get bitter again, Abrams.
                    NEW ORLEANS HORNETS

                    Abrams: Trevor Ariza. Freeing themselves of Emeka Okafor's contract ($40.5 million through 2014) makes sense, but the Hornets need an inside presence (especially if David West is lost whenever free agency commences). Ariza has $21.8 million remaining through 2013-14, and you can replace swingmen pretty easily.

                    Simmons: I can't believe I'm saying this … but I think Okafor is fairly paid. Isn't $12 million a year market value for a starting center who defends the rim and grabs 10 boards a game? Anyway, I liked watching last year's Hornets team — I'd rather see them bring their core guys back; use their amnesty on David Andersen (our most random amnesty guy: He's owed $2.7 million this season); use the extra cap room (they'd be at $43.4 million post-Andersen) to either to re-sign West, splurge for a rebounder (Kris Humphries?) or target two cheaper veterans (Andrei Kirilenko and Kenyon Martin?); then tell Chris Paul, "Re-sign with us, let's make a run at the title here. We're close. We could be this year's Dallas."

                    (Important note: I don't have a Plan B if Paul shakes his head and responds, "Um, we don't have an owner.")
                    MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES

                    Abrams: They won't use their amnesty on Rudy Gay (owed $68.7 million through 2014-15) because they could trade him so easily, but remember, the Grizzlies succeeded in the playoffs without Gay by relying on a sturdy foundation of Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol. They would be hard-pressed to retain both — under the old economic model and probably the incoming one, as well. Couldn't you see Memphis trading Gay in a two-for-one for a cheaper replacement plus a potential amnesty guy, then using the extra cap space to re-sign Gasol?

                    Simmons: Thanks for setting up the Picasso of the Trade Machine here, Abrams. America appreciates it. And you're right, swapping Gay ($15 million cap figure in 2011-12) for Monta Ellis ($11 million) and amnesty guy Charlie Bell ($4.1 million for 2011-12) would create additional Gasol space. So would trading Gay for amnesty guy Posey ($7.6 million) and potential blue-chipper Paul George ($2.4 million this year, $2.6 million next year). TM Picasso approves both of these trades. Plus, it would save Memphis the indignity of using its Curry Cure on Mike Conley's $32 million extension that hasn't even kicked in yet.
                    HOUSTON ROCKETS

                    Abrams: Hasheem Thabeet. On the books for exactly $5,127,720 next season.

                    Simmons: And you wonder why we're having a lockout.


                    http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/...amnesty-20-nba
                    sigpic


                    "The last time I was intimidated was when I was 6 years old in karate class. I was an orange belt and the instructor ordered me to fight a black belt who was a couple years older and a lot bigger. I was scared s---less. I mean, I was terrified and he kicked my ass. But then I realized he didn’t kick my ass as bad as I thought he was going to and that there was nothing really to be afraid of. That was around the time I realized that intimidation didn’t really exist if you’re in the right frame of mind." - Kobe Bryant

                    Comment


                    • #25
                      NBA owners budge on hard cap demand



                      NEW YORK – For the first time in two years of labor talks, NBA owners made a modest push from their rigid stance on implementing a hard salary cap, league sources told Yahoo! Sports.

                      The owners proposed at Tuesday’s negotiating session an idea similar to the current system that allows teams to pay a luxury tax for going over the cap. Only, now there would be ultra-punitive measures against higher-spending teams. The current system has teams pay a dollar-for-dollar tax for exceeding the cap.


                      Players Association executive director Billy Hunter has called the hard cap a “blood issue” for the union, and insisted the players would never agree to it.


                      The owners’ proposal on Tuesday “would still have the affects of a hard cap,” one source with knowledge of the talks said.

                      The owners didn’t budge on a desire to change the basketball-related income percentage (BRI) to a split that takes the players from 57 percent to the mid 40s, sources said. The players had offered to drop from a 57-43 split to 54-46 at a meeting last week in New York.


                      The two sides met for a little less than two hours on Tuesday on Manhattan’s East Side, and planned to meet again on Wednesday morning. The Players Association’s economist, Kevin Murphy, didn’t attend Tuesday’s meeting, but was traveling to New York to take part in Wednesday’s session. While the owners’ proposal was a slight upgrade, it is unlikely to move union leadership.


                      The owners and union both strongly suggested that Wednesday’s meeting would tell the direction of the talks. After the NBA canceled the first two weeks of training camp and preseason games last week, sources said league officials would likely suspend the last two weeks of October games by the end of this week if the two sides hadn’t made significant progress in negotiations. The NBA’s regular season starts on Nov. 1, and it’s almost certain games will soon start to be canceled without the framework of a new labor agreement.



                      http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slu...meeting_092711
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                      "The last time I was intimidated was when I was 6 years old in karate class. I was an orange belt and the instructor ordered me to fight a black belt who was a couple years older and a lot bigger. I was scared s---less. I mean, I was terrified and he kicked my ass. But then I realized he didn’t kick my ass as bad as I thought he was going to and that there was nothing really to be afraid of. That was around the time I realized that intimidation didn’t really exist if you’re in the right frame of mind." - Kobe Bryant

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                      • #26
                        Sources: Owners drop insistence on hard cap



                        NEW YORK -- Owners have indicated a willingness to drop their insistence on a hard team salary cap in exchange for adjustments to the luxury tax system and key spending exceptions, two people with knowledge of the negotiations told CBSSports.com Tuesday night.

                        The offer by league negotiators came Tuesday in a brief, two-hour bargaining session that set the stage for what one source described as "an important day" on Wednesday.

                        "It's put up or shut up time," said the person, who is connected to the talks but spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the negotiations.

                        The flexibility in the owners' longstanding insistence on a hard team-by-team cap, first reported by Yahoo Sports, comes with significant strings attached. Among the many concepts league negotiators proposed Tuesday were a more punitive luxury tax and adjustments to two key spending exceptions that teams had under previous agreements: the Larry Bird exception and the mid-level exception. Both would have been eliminated under the owners' original proposal from two years ago, with many of those dramatic systemic changes living on in subsequent proposals until Tuesday.

                        There is a feeling among two people who have been briefed on the talks that the owners will come forward Wednesday with an enhanced version of the concepts proposed Tuesday. According to the sources, among the additions could be a proposed 50-50 revenue split, which to this point the league has not reached in terms of the players' average share over the life of a new CBA in its previous proposals.

                        As for the system changes the owners proposed Tuesday in exchange for relaxing their stance on the hard team salary cap, one of the people briefed on the talks said union officials regarded them as "alarming."

                        Billy Hunter, executive director of the National Basketball Players Association, has often referred to a hard team salary cap as a "blood issue." Union president Derek Fisher scoffed at the owners' June proposal of a "flex cap" with a spending midpoint and a range as being, for all intents and purposes, a hard cap. Paramount in the players' opposition to a hard team cap is that the NBA already has a spending cap in the aggregate; under the previous CBA, the players were limited to 57 percent of basketball-related income (BRI), with an escrow system in place to guarantee they'd get no more and no less.

                        Even if the owners improved their economic proposal to 50-50 on Wednesday -- up from the 46 percent average share sources said they offered last week -- it seems unlikely that union officials would accept that without significant pushback on the system adjustments that are tied to it. And it is even less likely that Hunter and Fisher, under pressure from powerful agents pushing to dissolve the union through decertification or a disclaimer of interest, would be able to garner support for such a deal in the face of such opposition.

                        "We already have a hard salary cap," one person connected to the talks told CBSSports.com Tuesday night. "That train left the station in the last collective bargaining. If you accept that as an important victory point, then we've been bamboozled."

                        Whether viewed as a meaningful concession or not, the revelation from the owners Tuesday set the stage for an absolutely critical day of negotiating on Wednesday. With more preseason games on the chopping block next week and with an on-time start to the regular season unlikely if there's no deal, this is the moment of truth these negotiations began inching toward last week when league negotiators made a specific proposal on the BRI split for the first time since they offered a flat $2 billion-a-year over the first eight years of a 10-year deal back in June.

                        Though a person with knowledge of the talks said the union deemed the owners' 46 percent offer "unacceptable," Hunter and Fisher believed it was the starting point in the real negotiations to save the season.

                        In another wrinkle that could be key to the talks, the NBPA's unfair labor practices charge against the league has been transferred from the National Labor Relations Board's regional office in New York to the general counsel in Washington, D.C., a person with knowledge of the situation told CBSSports.com. The case file includes the regional director's recommendation about whether a complaint should be issued against the NBA, but the file is sealed, the person said.

                        After what is expected to be an exhaustive review of the case by the NLRB's Washington-based legal staff, a decision will be rendered on whether a complaint should be filed. Though Hunter is feeling pressure from agents who are pushing for the union to decertify -- a tactic that the NFLPA used, to little effect, in its bargaining talks with the NFL -- a person with knowledge of his thinking said Hunter is determined to keep the union together until the NLRB rules. A favorable ruling for the NBPA could result in a federal injunction lifting the lockout, thus shifting significant leverage to the players.

                        The NBA subsequently filed its own unfair labor practices charge against the NBPA, and it is possible that the NLRB may not rule on either case in time for the two sides to negotiate a settlement that would save the season.

                        Amid the divided opinions on decertification, Fisher sent a second letter to union members this week in which he again urged unity and tried to reassure players that he and Hunter would not sell them out just to get a deal. Fisher reiterated the union's resistance to a hard team salary cap and promised to fight for players to share fairly in the league's revenue growth -- which is expected to continue rising at a 4 percent-a-year clip, plus the possibility of massive gains in the NBA's broadcast rights deals when they expire after the 2015-16 season.

                        "We’ve been clear from Day 1 of this process that we cannot sign off on a deal that attempts in any way to include a hard salary cap for our teams. That has not changed,” Fisher said in the letter. “Unless you, the group we represent, tell us otherwise, we are prepared to hold the line for as long as it takes to preserve the system we’ve worked so hard to build.”

                        After Tuesday's meeting, Fisher emerged in a far more upbeat mood than he and commissioner David Stern had exhibited following last week's meeting. The two sides broke off talks about three hours shy of a typical session and said they needed to retreat to their own offices for private meetings before reconvening on Wednesday.

                        "We’ve talked extensively about ideas and concepts," Fisher said. "These are things that, if we could get into the range or get into the zone, maybe we can put a deal together."

                        Time, and new ideas, are running short.

                        http://ken-berger.blogs.cbssports.co...=rss_blogs_NBA
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                        "The last time I was intimidated was when I was 6 years old in karate class. I was an orange belt and the instructor ordered me to fight a black belt who was a couple years older and a lot bigger. I was scared s---less. I mean, I was terrified and he kicked my ass. But then I realized he didn’t kick my ass as bad as I thought he was going to and that there was nothing really to be afraid of. That was around the time I realized that intimidation didn’t really exist if you’re in the right frame of mind." - Kobe Bryant

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                        • #27
                          Exclusive: Owners proposing 4 luxury tax levels


                          NEW YORK — As noted in this earlier post, a few details of what was in the owners’ latest proposal to the players’ union have come to light.

                          Here is another one: SheridanHoops.com has learned that the owners have proposed four different levels of the luxury tax, with the tax increasing from a dollar-for-dollar levy on teams slightly above the luxury tax threshold (which was $70.307 million last season, when the Lakers, Magic and Mavericks were reportedly the only tax-paying teams), up to a 4-to-1 tax for teams that go more than $10-15 million over the threshold.

                          There are also separate triggers for a 2-to-1 tax and a 3-to-1 tax.

                          Negotiations are resuming this morning in New York, and David Stern has called it a “key day” as the sides are not expected to meet Thursday or Friday because of the Jewish holiday Rosh Hashanah.

                          But from what I can gather through my discussions with sources is this: Don’t expect any significant breakthroughs today, as the 11th hour has not yet arrived. That’ll come roughly a week from now, when a deal must be cut in order to save the scheduled Nov. 1 start of the regular season.
                          sigpic


                          "The last time I was intimidated was when I was 6 years old in karate class. I was an orange belt and the instructor ordered me to fight a black belt who was a couple years older and a lot bigger. I was scared s---less. I mean, I was terrified and he kicked my ass. But then I realized he didn’t kick my ass as bad as I thought he was going to and that there was nothing really to be afraid of. That was around the time I realized that intimidation didn’t really exist if you’re in the right frame of mind." - Kobe Bryant

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                          • #28
                            LeBron in full football pads at old high school


                            With this lockout thing threatening the NBA season, most players are considering options overseas or just relaxing and waiting.

                            LeBron? He's going back to his old high school to practice. Not basketball though. Football. In full pads.

                            He tweeted yesterday, "Just got done practicing with the St.V Varsity football team, full pads and all.. Felt great being back on the field. Should I?"

                            Fox 8 in Cleveland was there and got a few details:
                            Members of the state's third ranked Division III team were shocked when two-time NBA MVP LeBron James showed up for practice wearing full pads and took part in the late afternoon session.

                            "I not gonna lie, it was pretty cool to see him out there," said starting quarterback Kevin Besser.

                            James borrowed the equipment and jersey of #13 Clayton Uecker, who did not practice today due to injury. Uecker is also the tallest player on the SVSM roster at 6'5".
                            LeBron was off limits for tackling though. Despite having on full pads, he might as well had a red jersey on. "Our defensive backs were allowed to jam him at the line of scrimmage," said running back Sae'Von Fitzgerald. "But he took no contact after that. Coach [Dan Borman] said we shouldn't tackle him."

                            I think that was a good idea Coach. You don't want to be the high schooler that busted the knee of LeBron James. But then again, in Cleveland I suppose you might be a hero. It's a good thing there wasn't some crazy third-string Cavs fan that wanted to shot a shot at him.

                            Question is, how'd he do?

                            "He caught everything, he didn't drop a pass," Besser said. "I probably threw six or seven passes his way and he went up and got everything."

                            If you remember, LeBron played football for St. Vincent-St. Mary's in high school and at 6-8, probably could have been a Division I receiver or tight end had he wanted. Heck, he still could be a pretty incredible tight end or wide receiver if he wanted.


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                            Pablo Sandoval: A guy can change anything.. his face, his home, his family, his girlfriend, his religion, his God.
                            But there's one thing he can't change... he can't change his passion.

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                            • #29

                              A shortened NBA season would be perfect for ready-to-win Heat


                              Dwyane Wade got a little frosty with NBA commissioner David Stern the other day when players and owners met to discuss possible solutions to the lockout now threatening to cut into the regular-season schedule.

                              The Heat superstar said he felt disrespected by Stern during the meeting, and reportedly told him, "Don't point your finger at me! I'm not a child."

                              Stern almost certainly was shocked by the rejoinder itself, and probably moreso by the man speaking it. Wade, though he absolutely is more dangerous on the court when he plays angry, doesn't seem the sort to escalate a confrontation in the manner he apparently did with Stern.

                              But it's possible Wade had an ulterior motive.

                              Maybe he was delivering a veiled message on behalf of the Heat.

                              Perhaps he was informing Stern that he and LeBron James and Chris Bosh don't care if the NBA regular season is shortened, because it might be the best thing that could happen to them and the Heat.

                              The regular season is a forced march. It's a compulsory exercise before the important (see: playoffs) stuff.

                              That's especially true for the league's highest-profile teams, and Miami is at the top of that heap.

                              Nobody will care what Miami's record is during the next regular season unless it's abominably bad, which it won't be, or astonishingly good, which it won't be, either.

                              Heck, the Heat won't care.

                              They didn't care while going 58-24 last season in the formative year of the Wade-James-Bosh core, and proof came when Miami shrugged upon failing to win the top-seeded position in the Eastern Conference.

                              The Heat, playing from a home-court disadvantage in the Eastern Conference championship series, eventually beat top-seeded Chicago for the crown, but then -- playing with a home-court advantage in the NBA Finals series -- lost to Dallas. They closed out the Bulls on the road, and were closed out by the Mavericks at home.

                              So, really, why wouldn't or shouldn't the Heat be fine with, say, a 50-game regular season that would reduce physical stress? And, please, don't suggest that a more modest schedule somehow would diminish a champion's accomplishment. Since when does regular-season performance validate what happens in the NBA tournament?

                              It's true that the Heat could use whatever break they can get from the hate.

                              They are the team fans outside the Miami precinct love to see ... and despise. The venom likely won't be as pronounced next time around, but the Heat undoubtedly still would welcome fewer trips into hostile environments even though they'll have a better awareness of how reviled they are.

                              Nor should Miami require as much time learning how to play most effectively as a team as it did last season when the blending of the Wade-James tandem, in particular, seemed a constant work in progress. Seven players who were in the streamlined rotation at the end of last season -- Wade, James, Bosh, Udonis Haslem, Mike Miller, Mario Chalmers and Joel Anthony -- figure to be in it from the start, if competition resumes.

                              The Heat's tight circle will tighten ever more deeply. And quickly.

                              There probably won't be a need -- or the preseason time -- for the team to pen itself into Eglin Air Force Base in the Florida Panhandle as it did last year on a mission of self-discovery. The experiences of the 2010-11 season ought to serve the Heat well enough in that regard.

                              Now, losing the entire 2011-12 season to a lockout would damage the Heat severely, because it is so primed for excellence in the present. A whole year taken away from the Wade-James-Bosh bloc would increase already-obvious frustrations stemming from the Year One failure and rob Miami of an opportunity to make immediate amends.

                              But an abbreviated regular-season schedule?

                              One in which the weight and intensity level of the games are heightened, but the grind of a longer season is lessened?

                              The Heat happily would sign up for that arrangement, which might have been a hint dropped by Wade to the commissioner.


                              http://www.cbssports.com/nba/story/1...eadytowin-heat
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                              Pablo Sandoval: A guy can change anything.. his face, his home, his family, his girlfriend, his religion, his God.
                              But there's one thing he can't change... he can't change his passion.

                              Comment


                              • #30
                                Lockout update: Remember this quote


                                NEW YORK — “It demonstrates the potential for more movement on our part.”

                                Those words came out of the mouth of NBA deputy commissioner Adam Silver on Tuesday after the owners offered the players a 50-50 split of revenues. So although some are writing that the players will never get an offer like that again, I’ll take the word of Silver over the word of a fellow blogissist.

                                There is a fair chance there will be contact between the league office and the players association today, if not for a brief sitdown (the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur begins at sundown, shortening the workday), then to set the table for a final round of negotiations to bring an end to the lockout before Monday — the date commissioner David Stern has set as the deadline to save the scheduled Nov. 1 start of the regular season.

                                To properly appreciate how eager Stern is to get a deal done, consider this: When he knocked on the door where the players were caucusing Tuesday and upped his offer from 47 percent to 50 percent, he moved further in the space of one minute than he had over the course of the entire summer. I still maintain that if Stern had made the 50-50 offer before the sides separated to caucus, the deal would have been done by now. Moving from 46 to 47 percent, as he did, was a slap in the face to the players (especially with a hothead like Kevin Garnett in the room) and left them predisposed to react angrily toward whatever words were the next to come out of Stern’s mouth. It was a tactical error on the commissioner’s part.

                                SheridanHoops.com has learned that the players’ most recent offer requested a 52.4 percent share of revenues in the first year of a six-year deal, rising gradually to 54 percent by Year 6 and averaging out at 53 percent.

                                So the sides are not 2 or 3 percentage points apart, they are 2.4 percentage points apart — at least in terms of Year One, or to use Ken Berger’s math, they are $80 million apart in a business that took in $4.2 billion in revnues last year. That is a bridgeable gap – especially when taking Silver’s aforementioned quote into account.

                                So I’ll say it again: The deal will get done, and no regular season games will be lost. That has been my prediction all along, and I ain’t budging. I’ll leave the budging to the guys in the negotiating room.


                                Sheridan
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                                "The last time I was intimidated was when I was 6 years old in karate class. I was an orange belt and the instructor ordered me to fight a black belt who was a couple years older and a lot bigger. I was scared s---less. I mean, I was terrified and he kicked my ass. But then I realized he didn’t kick my ass as bad as I thought he was going to and that there was nothing really to be afraid of. That was around the time I realized that intimidation didn’t really exist if you’re in the right frame of mind." - Kobe Bryant

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