http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/column...arc&id=2010341
he game plan called for a live chat with NBA commissioner David Stern.
The league's marketing efforts get easier when guys such as Carmelo Anthony first become stars in college.
Fears of unsafe driving conditions in the Northeast on Friday forced the postponement of Stern's all-day visit to ESPN's Bristol campus -- and led us to this fallback plan.
Your humble correspondent combed through the 1,400-plus chat questions sent in for the commissioner this week and picked out the Elite Eight. That is, the eight topics ESPN.com users wanted to ask Stern about most ... with the answers coming instead from Stein based on interviews with various league and team insiders.
We'll get Le Commish here to answer these himself as soon as possible, along with the question posed by many users, on behalf of my colleague Bill Simmons: Will you grow back the mustache to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the 1985 NBA draft?
In the interim, here are the answers to your most FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions):
Q: Can we avoid a lockout for next season, or is the basketball world ignoring what has happened in hockey?
A: The latest buzz from both sides is remarkably upbeat.
Turns out it's a misconception to think it's unlikely we'd see an agreement hammered out before the season ends because folks are too consumed by the season for serious bargaining. It sounded plausible, but then ESPN.com learned that a scheduled negotiation session Friday would be the second meeting this week for the owners' negotiating reps and their union counterparts. So they're talking -- regularly.
Which can only be a good thing with three-plus months to go before the current deal expires. It's clear that neither party wants a lockout for even one day in July, knowing how negatively fans react to the mere mention of the word. The NBA's owners and players are thus drawing strong motivation to agree from the NHL's fate, but the biggest source of optimism is that neither side is seeking major alterations to the current system. Unlike in summer 1998, when the sides were so far apart philosophically that the lockout eventually stretched into January, no one is proposing a total redo.
As a result, as long as the talks continue, there's a real chance another half-decade of labor peace can be secured by the NBA Finals tip-off. Mercifully.
Q: Are the rumors true about an age limit coming in soon?
A: Contrary to popular belief, the union hasn't agreed to this yet.
The feeling remains, though, that the players will eventually give in here because it's the most palatable concession they can make in negotiations -- since it wouldn't affect anyone currently playing in the league and likely would create a few extra jobs for veterans.
Stern, for example, wants a more stringent luxury tax than the one currently in effect, penalizing owners who exceed a certain payroll threshold by at least $2 for every dollar over the threshold. The owners, meanwhile, want the maximum length of guaranteed contracts to be shortened from the current six or seven years to three or four. Those are changes the union resists with considerably more conviction than age restrictions.
And let's be honest. For all the amazing preps-to-pros success stories the NBA has reveled in -- Kevin Garnett, Kobe Bryant, Jermaine O'Neal, Tracy McGrady and LeBron James for starters -- no one can say an age restriction wouldn't be a massive boost to the sagging-in-quality college game. Which would thereby result in more prepared prospects matriculating to the big leagues, while also providing the two years of pre-NBA player marketing Stern's business used to benefit from.
Q: How long do we have to wait before we see the NBA adopt a baseball-style, affiliated minor-league system?
A: This is another subject where some long-standing premonitions are being dispelled. Because there has never been a baseball-style minor league affiliated with the NBA, and because the threat of being sent down to the minors would be such a blow to the egos of basketball players who've never had to face that prospect, it seemed likely the union would never agree to the minor-league concept.
Take a kid like Darko Milicic, who has already suffered plenty under Larry Brown, having been banished to a very public residency on the Pistons' bench while James and Dwyane Wade and Carmelo Anthony play lead roles for their teams. Do we really want to see Darko dispatched to Roanoke or Huntsville now? What would that do to his confidence?
Sources on both sides, however, indicate that this is another concession the owners are likely to secure from the union, thanks to a couple of key provisions. The NBA wants to expand the NBDL to 15 teams, with two NBA clubs sharing each minor-league club -- but with the crucial caveat that no player with more than three seasons of service time could be sent down. Veterans, in other words, would be protected from minor-league assignments.
The other key? First-round draftees such as Darko, if sent down, would still earn their NBA salaries. Combined with the age restrictions, it all sounds promising. Youngsters would have a place to earn minutes and learn the game instead of relying solely on practice time that never comes close to replicating game conditions.
Q: What does the NBA think of baseball's steroid controversy?
A: Stern is said to want a more stringent substance-abuse policy than the program in place, but not because of a steroid threat. Steroid use is already banned by the NBA, and the consensus view is that it's not an issue in hoop circles. Of far greater concern to Stern is marijuana use, and reaching terms with the union on tougher (and more frequent) testing figures to be one of the stickier subjects in collective bargaining.
Q: Why can't the league make All-Star Saturday as exciting as it used to be?
A: Our news here is not encouraging. By all accounts, the league was thrilled with All-Star Saturday, even though the only thrilling stuff (in our view) came from Josh Smith (and the one Amare Stoudemire dunk set up by that header from Steve Nash). So don't expect any significant changes to the format.
If the NBA needs Josh Smith to save All-Star Weekend, something is amiss.
Of course, that won't stop some of us from continuing to throw out suggestions such as a seven-figure, winner-take-all purse for the dunk contest (to lure back the big names) or trick-shot competitions where players shoot with their off hand or don't shoot closer than from halfcourt. Most of all, the NBA should follow the lead of hockey (only in this case, obviously) and have an All-Star Saturday where the real All-Stars are participating. All-Star Saturday should feature more of Sunday's All-Stars to make it meaningful, like the hockey version. So many times, we've heard Shaquille O'Neal say he has skills his coaches never let us see. Why isn't he in that Whatever It's Called skills competition, showing us his handles? Why not Shaq vs. Yao Ming in some sort of foot race with the ball ... and little guys such as Allen Iverson and Nash shooting hook shots?
Or, why not adopt the suggestion of the Houston Chronicle's Jonathan Feigen, who has been calling for three-on-three games Friday and Saturday, with teams representing the players' hometowns? If the game's biggest names are involved, it's a lot easier to build anticipation and get excited about what we're seeing.
The good news? There has already been discussion in collective-bargaining sessions about players who commit to All-Star Weekend losing the right to decline the league's invitations to the dunk contest, 3-point contest, etc. League officials, though, aren't convinced that's something worth pushing for. They're not sure the league is entitled to, say, force LeBron to dunk if he doesn't want to. So we'll have to wait and see how far that movement goes.
Q: How can the league allow Boston to re-sign Gary Payton so soon after trading him to Atlanta?
A: Bet on this rule being changed before next season. Since our story last week that the Celtics won't be facing any sanctions for dealing Payton to Atlanta for Antoine Walker then re-signing Payton after the Hawks waived him, sources say there have been a few protests from other teams.
The Celtics have denied claims that they prearranged Payton's return, and they really can't be punished because the current rules allow for this scenario. Dallas, remember, did the same thing by sending Alan Henderson to Milwaukee in the Keith Van Horn trade, then persuading the Bucks to waive Henderson so the Mavericks could re-sign him. Yet you can expect the loophole to be closed during the current labor negotiations. One potential fix is forbidding teams from waiving players they acquire in a trade until the following season.
Q: Will we ever see an NBA franchise in Las Vegas?
A: The collapse of the latest arena proposal in Sacramento -- combined with the Chris Webber trade and Joe and Gavin Maloof's business interests on the Strip -- have made this a timely topic again. Panicky subjects of Kings Nation undoubtedly fear that the Maloof Brothers are planning to move the franchise to Vegas if Stern allows it.
It seems doubtful the Maloofs are planning a Vegas move, but you can count on this: The NBA will have a Vegas franchise someday. Stern remains staunchly against putting NBA basketball in a state that allows gambling on NBA games, and word is he's not going to budge from that position. A growing majority of owners, however, want to see a Vegas franchise because the market has so much potential. We've already seen Stern relent and allow summer-league play in Sin City. A similar situation is in place in the WNBA, remember, with the Connecticut Sun playing at the Mohegan Sun casino.
Stern has no interest in further U.S. expansion, but eventually the owners will persuade him to let an ailing franchise relocate there.
Q: Will Ron Artest be reinstated for the playoffs?
A: This is by far the question we received the most. Pacers People are desperate to see their quirky stopper reinstated, and they're praying that Artest's recent meeting with Stern at the league offices in New York is a sign that a reinstatement is forthcoming. But it's not, based on everything we keep hearing.
We await Stern's further pronouncements on this one as much as anyone, but as Stern has said often lately, he prefers to maintain a "never say never" stance publicly simply because that's his general philosophy on life. And as reported in this cyberspace last week, it's believed that Stern applies the "never say never" clause in this specific case because of his fondness for Pacers owners Herb and Mel Simon. In a bow to the Simons, Stern doesn't want to make Indiana's punishment seem even harsher than it already is by publicly crushing reinstatement hopes. Yet you can rest assured that it would be a major surprise if Stern reversed course and allowed Artest to return for the playoffs. No one we have encountered expects it.
he game plan called for a live chat with NBA commissioner David Stern.
The league's marketing efforts get easier when guys such as Carmelo Anthony first become stars in college.
Fears of unsafe driving conditions in the Northeast on Friday forced the postponement of Stern's all-day visit to ESPN's Bristol campus -- and led us to this fallback plan.
Your humble correspondent combed through the 1,400-plus chat questions sent in for the commissioner this week and picked out the Elite Eight. That is, the eight topics ESPN.com users wanted to ask Stern about most ... with the answers coming instead from Stein based on interviews with various league and team insiders.
We'll get Le Commish here to answer these himself as soon as possible, along with the question posed by many users, on behalf of my colleague Bill Simmons: Will you grow back the mustache to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the 1985 NBA draft?
In the interim, here are the answers to your most FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions):
Q: Can we avoid a lockout for next season, or is the basketball world ignoring what has happened in hockey?
A: The latest buzz from both sides is remarkably upbeat.
Turns out it's a misconception to think it's unlikely we'd see an agreement hammered out before the season ends because folks are too consumed by the season for serious bargaining. It sounded plausible, but then ESPN.com learned that a scheduled negotiation session Friday would be the second meeting this week for the owners' negotiating reps and their union counterparts. So they're talking -- regularly.
Which can only be a good thing with three-plus months to go before the current deal expires. It's clear that neither party wants a lockout for even one day in July, knowing how negatively fans react to the mere mention of the word. The NBA's owners and players are thus drawing strong motivation to agree from the NHL's fate, but the biggest source of optimism is that neither side is seeking major alterations to the current system. Unlike in summer 1998, when the sides were so far apart philosophically that the lockout eventually stretched into January, no one is proposing a total redo.
As a result, as long as the talks continue, there's a real chance another half-decade of labor peace can be secured by the NBA Finals tip-off. Mercifully.
Q: Are the rumors true about an age limit coming in soon?
A: Contrary to popular belief, the union hasn't agreed to this yet.
The feeling remains, though, that the players will eventually give in here because it's the most palatable concession they can make in negotiations -- since it wouldn't affect anyone currently playing in the league and likely would create a few extra jobs for veterans.
Stern, for example, wants a more stringent luxury tax than the one currently in effect, penalizing owners who exceed a certain payroll threshold by at least $2 for every dollar over the threshold. The owners, meanwhile, want the maximum length of guaranteed contracts to be shortened from the current six or seven years to three or four. Those are changes the union resists with considerably more conviction than age restrictions.
And let's be honest. For all the amazing preps-to-pros success stories the NBA has reveled in -- Kevin Garnett, Kobe Bryant, Jermaine O'Neal, Tracy McGrady and LeBron James for starters -- no one can say an age restriction wouldn't be a massive boost to the sagging-in-quality college game. Which would thereby result in more prepared prospects matriculating to the big leagues, while also providing the two years of pre-NBA player marketing Stern's business used to benefit from.
Q: How long do we have to wait before we see the NBA adopt a baseball-style, affiliated minor-league system?
A: This is another subject where some long-standing premonitions are being dispelled. Because there has never been a baseball-style minor league affiliated with the NBA, and because the threat of being sent down to the minors would be such a blow to the egos of basketball players who've never had to face that prospect, it seemed likely the union would never agree to the minor-league concept.
Take a kid like Darko Milicic, who has already suffered plenty under Larry Brown, having been banished to a very public residency on the Pistons' bench while James and Dwyane Wade and Carmelo Anthony play lead roles for their teams. Do we really want to see Darko dispatched to Roanoke or Huntsville now? What would that do to his confidence?
Sources on both sides, however, indicate that this is another concession the owners are likely to secure from the union, thanks to a couple of key provisions. The NBA wants to expand the NBDL to 15 teams, with two NBA clubs sharing each minor-league club -- but with the crucial caveat that no player with more than three seasons of service time could be sent down. Veterans, in other words, would be protected from minor-league assignments.
The other key? First-round draftees such as Darko, if sent down, would still earn their NBA salaries. Combined with the age restrictions, it all sounds promising. Youngsters would have a place to earn minutes and learn the game instead of relying solely on practice time that never comes close to replicating game conditions.
Q: What does the NBA think of baseball's steroid controversy?
A: Stern is said to want a more stringent substance-abuse policy than the program in place, but not because of a steroid threat. Steroid use is already banned by the NBA, and the consensus view is that it's not an issue in hoop circles. Of far greater concern to Stern is marijuana use, and reaching terms with the union on tougher (and more frequent) testing figures to be one of the stickier subjects in collective bargaining.
Q: Why can't the league make All-Star Saturday as exciting as it used to be?
A: Our news here is not encouraging. By all accounts, the league was thrilled with All-Star Saturday, even though the only thrilling stuff (in our view) came from Josh Smith (and the one Amare Stoudemire dunk set up by that header from Steve Nash). So don't expect any significant changes to the format.
If the NBA needs Josh Smith to save All-Star Weekend, something is amiss.
Of course, that won't stop some of us from continuing to throw out suggestions such as a seven-figure, winner-take-all purse for the dunk contest (to lure back the big names) or trick-shot competitions where players shoot with their off hand or don't shoot closer than from halfcourt. Most of all, the NBA should follow the lead of hockey (only in this case, obviously) and have an All-Star Saturday where the real All-Stars are participating. All-Star Saturday should feature more of Sunday's All-Stars to make it meaningful, like the hockey version. So many times, we've heard Shaquille O'Neal say he has skills his coaches never let us see. Why isn't he in that Whatever It's Called skills competition, showing us his handles? Why not Shaq vs. Yao Ming in some sort of foot race with the ball ... and little guys such as Allen Iverson and Nash shooting hook shots?
Or, why not adopt the suggestion of the Houston Chronicle's Jonathan Feigen, who has been calling for three-on-three games Friday and Saturday, with teams representing the players' hometowns? If the game's biggest names are involved, it's a lot easier to build anticipation and get excited about what we're seeing.
The good news? There has already been discussion in collective-bargaining sessions about players who commit to All-Star Weekend losing the right to decline the league's invitations to the dunk contest, 3-point contest, etc. League officials, though, aren't convinced that's something worth pushing for. They're not sure the league is entitled to, say, force LeBron to dunk if he doesn't want to. So we'll have to wait and see how far that movement goes.
Q: How can the league allow Boston to re-sign Gary Payton so soon after trading him to Atlanta?
A: Bet on this rule being changed before next season. Since our story last week that the Celtics won't be facing any sanctions for dealing Payton to Atlanta for Antoine Walker then re-signing Payton after the Hawks waived him, sources say there have been a few protests from other teams.
The Celtics have denied claims that they prearranged Payton's return, and they really can't be punished because the current rules allow for this scenario. Dallas, remember, did the same thing by sending Alan Henderson to Milwaukee in the Keith Van Horn trade, then persuading the Bucks to waive Henderson so the Mavericks could re-sign him. Yet you can expect the loophole to be closed during the current labor negotiations. One potential fix is forbidding teams from waiving players they acquire in a trade until the following season.
Q: Will we ever see an NBA franchise in Las Vegas?
A: The collapse of the latest arena proposal in Sacramento -- combined with the Chris Webber trade and Joe and Gavin Maloof's business interests on the Strip -- have made this a timely topic again. Panicky subjects of Kings Nation undoubtedly fear that the Maloof Brothers are planning to move the franchise to Vegas if Stern allows it.
It seems doubtful the Maloofs are planning a Vegas move, but you can count on this: The NBA will have a Vegas franchise someday. Stern remains staunchly against putting NBA basketball in a state that allows gambling on NBA games, and word is he's not going to budge from that position. A growing majority of owners, however, want to see a Vegas franchise because the market has so much potential. We've already seen Stern relent and allow summer-league play in Sin City. A similar situation is in place in the WNBA, remember, with the Connecticut Sun playing at the Mohegan Sun casino.
Stern has no interest in further U.S. expansion, but eventually the owners will persuade him to let an ailing franchise relocate there.
Q: Will Ron Artest be reinstated for the playoffs?
A: This is by far the question we received the most. Pacers People are desperate to see their quirky stopper reinstated, and they're praying that Artest's recent meeting with Stern at the league offices in New York is a sign that a reinstatement is forthcoming. But it's not, based on everything we keep hearing.
We await Stern's further pronouncements on this one as much as anyone, but as Stern has said often lately, he prefers to maintain a "never say never" stance publicly simply because that's his general philosophy on life. And as reported in this cyberspace last week, it's believed that Stern applies the "never say never" clause in this specific case because of his fondness for Pacers owners Herb and Mel Simon. In a bow to the Simons, Stern doesn't want to make Indiana's punishment seem even harsher than it already is by publicly crushing reinstatement hopes. Yet you can rest assured that it would be a major surprise if Stern reversed course and allowed Artest to return for the playoffs. No one we have encountered expects it.
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