He didn’t raise his voice or slam his fist. He didn’t resort to theatrics during a 30-minute press briefing on Monday. NBA commissioner David Stern didn’t once look annoyed. But his message to the players’ union on Monday couldn’t have been clearer: Get ready to makes some concessions, because what’s going on now simply isn’t going to go on much longer.
In between tagging Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert and slapping around Maverick Carter (more on that below), Stern addressed the looming labor issues that threaten to wipe out parts or all of the 2011-12 season. And to say there are issues would be putting it lightly; the two sides have already swapped proposals and, in the words of one NBA source, “are miles apart.”
“Basically where we are at is that we would like fundamental changes,” said Stern, “and the players would very much like the present system to continue.”
That can’t happen, Stern said. Not with his teams losing $370 million last season and a national economy in the toilet. No, fixing the NBA’s problems will require a massive overhaul. The owners’ proposal calls for first-round picks to have their salaries cut by about one-third, would reduce the minimum salary by as much as 20 percent, and would guarantee contracts for only half their value. The total value of a maximum salary would drop significantly, as would the number of years for which players could sign. The players would also see a reduction in their share of the basketball-related income, of which they currently receive 57 percent.
“Part of the problem with the existing system is it’s based largely on revenue, not net revenue,” said deputy commissioner Adam Silver. “Although our actual revenue numbers were better than what we projected, it came at a large cost. Our teams did a spectacular job in a down economy of increasing ticket sales, but that came at the cost of additional promotions, additional marketing, additional staff. They largely made up for a reduction in season ticket sales by selling more individual tickets.”
The players union, predictably, wants no part of the owner’s proposal. They rejected it over the All-Star break, with union chief Billy Hunter calling Stern’s projected losses ‘baloney.’
“I think, as I understand their answer,” said Stern, “is that, ‘We agree with your numbers, we just would eliminate some of them from the final calculation.'”
The Washington Post reported that part of the union’s defense was that the total amount paid to players has risen only about 10 percent over the last four years, or about 2.5 percent a year, from about $1.85 billion to $2.04 billion. They will point to a salary cap ($58 million for 2010-11) that came in $2 million higher than expected and $8 million higher than the doomsday scenario the NBA floated last summer. And they will point to the tens of millions NBA owners have been doling out the likes of Amir Johnson, Drew Gooden and Hakim Warrick.
Stern will listen and smile, but he will not bend nor will he break. An NBA filled with teams swimming in red ink isn’t one he wants to oversee and he will do everything in his power to change that.
“Our owners spend within the system,” Stern said. “They’re encouraged, praised, and otherwise driven to improve their teams. Of course, they have the capacity. It winds up driving them to unprofitability. They want to change that system so when they get driven to it, whatever they do, there won’t be losses. That’s all.”
But that’s not all. The union, which has been battered and beaten by Stern at nearly every opportunity over the years, is digging in its heels. It’s why many around the league are bracing for a lockout.
“I’m expecting one,” said a Western Conference executive.
“It’s going to happen,” texted an Eastern Conference exec.
Armageddon is coming to the NBA. At this point, it doesn’t appear to be a question of ‘if.’ It’s of how long it will last.
