DS, Good Luck getting the Player's Union to even come to the table

Not really sure what field David Stern is coming out of but if this is going to be his/managment's stance, there won't be a 2011-12 Season, nor one after that.

Hey, here's an idea, how about cut the bottom fishers out of the league? Get us down to 24 lean and mean teams? There'll be plenty to go around and more than enough to pay your bloated worthless salary.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=5711172

dbrown,

Eliminating teams is not on the table because it is unnecessary. If you ignore the oddball or eccentric owners like Sterling and Kahn, you will see that there are very few perennial loser organizations in the NBA.

The players will have to eventually accept that the salaries are too high and will be reduced across the board as they were with the NHL a few years ago.

I know I am in the minority about this in this forum, but I feel David Stern has done a fabulous job as commissioner over the last 26 years.

Players may turn towards overseas leagues to make a living just like the WNBA players do, if Stern is serious about a 1/3rd salary reduction across the board. Also, contraction was mentioned and that is an inevitability since more ploys will be pulled like James, Wade, and Bosh pulled last Summer. Carmello is alreadying employing Spike Lee as his pimp/agent to pave the way for him & LaLa to jet to NYC!-Small market teams may just as well pack it in. Possible excepttions: OKC & Portland!-MD!

Good point tj. See other thread comments on NBA may Implode. Contraction not directly on the table but may be indirectly with a lockout.

Moderators, don't hesitate to combine these threads if you see fit.

Perhaps I'm a little harsh on DS. He is the figurehead for the NBA. He has promoted the international aspects of the league and made it global. For that he deserves credit. The league's success or failure is determined by the quality of the product presented to the public and the subsequent marketing thereto.

Overall, I am pleased with the product and its format. Unfortunately, I sit in no man's land here in Raleigh, NC with no local pro team but the Hurricanes and Charlotte, 3 hours down the road, the closest NBA team.

Each franchise, however, determines its own fate. If you are in a small market, each entreprenuer/owner knows this going in and must be creative enough to make up the advantages the larger markets possess strickly in volume.

Would I like a smaller, more competitive league? Yes I would. It would tighten up the talent pool and make the games and season more interesting and not just 82 game plodding just to get to the playoffs. Do I want it to go back to 1960's levels. No.

DS is doing what he thinks is best to promote the league with his vision. All of us would have done it differently. But we're not the Commish. We just get the freedom to comment on his every move.