Here we go again, sports fans. Just when it seems like NFL players and owners are making progress toward ending the NFL Lockout, it looks almost certain that an NBA Lockout is about to begin. NBA players and owners apparently broke off negotiations today, and the two sides expect a lockout to commence at midnight.
The current Collective Bargaining Agreement expires at midnight, and without a deal the league turns into a big, locked out pumpkin.
"I hope it doesn't come down to that," National Basketball Players Association head Billy Hunter told reporters. "Obviously, the clock is now running with regard to whether or not there will or will be a loss of games, and so I'm hoping that over the next month or so that there will be sort of a softening on their side and maybe we have to soften our position as well."
The lockout will be the third in NBA history.
"We didn’t see any options," Stern said at a news conference this afternoon. "I’m not scared. I’m resigned to the potential damage it can cause to our league."
In all honesty I am probably like most other fans -- so annoyed and consumed by the NFL Lockout I have not really studied the issues dividing NBA owners and players. As always, it's about the money.
Bloomberg says that despite generating $4.3 billion in revenues, the league says it is losing $300 million per year. The players, of course, say that is management's fault -- and not their problem.
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