So sick of this

[perks-a-beast]

I'm fed up. Whenever there seems to get hope it just gets crushed by something like this:

http://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap/216515/NBA_Alarmed_At_False_Information_On_Its_Revised_Offer

I really hope this isn't true because it could be the nail in the coffin for the 2012 season. I'm &*#$%ing sick of this. Whenever i go online to check news and find something positive, i'll look an hour later and find something negative that totally contradicts it! It's maddening! This whole 72 game season sounded so promising. All i want is the NBA, i don't even care if the Celtics go 0-72 i just want to see games!

I don't care for the NFL or the NHL, during the summer and fall i just follow the NBA to see who ends up where, who's improving, ect. But so far the biggest NBA news of the off season is that Kris Humphries got divorced from somone famous. For christs sake!

This is a sad, sad time for the worlds greatest sport.

[Roy H.]

I absolutely think there's a lot of misinformation being spread.  For instance, that nonsense about the D-League, which was never part of the league's revised offer:  that was obviously planted with Bucher, in order to scare players.

[PosImpos]

You should probably just go ahead and accept that there won't be a season.  The latest offer from the owners is the players' last chance . . . and it sounds pretty clear that they will not accept it.  Their egos and their agents are too big in their minds right now, blocking them from "seeing the light" -- the truth that this is the best deal they're ever going to get.

[greenpride32]

I'm starting to sense it's actually the agents that are holding up the entire process, not the players or owners.  If you recall a month ago it was the agents who were already suggesting decertification.  And that was long before the series of 2 or 3 long bargaining sessions.  After those hours of talks and despite the fact the side are closer, the agents are still pushing for it.  Even Hunter publicly made comments about constantly receiving calls (pressue) from agents and Stern just rhetorically asked you're listening to agents?

Two of the main system issues that have been focal points are the luxury tax and MLE.  Do you really think the players care so much about these issue they're willing to lose the season for it?  Of course not, it's just the agents trying to squeeze out a few more contracts per season to feed their own pockets.

 

[PosImpos]

I'm starting to sense it's actually the agents that are holding up the entire process, not the players or owners.  If you recall a month ago it was the agents who were already suggesting decertification.  And that was long before the series of 2 or 3 long bargaining sessions.  After those hours of talks and despite the fact the side are closer, the agents are still pushing for it.  Even Hunter publicly made comments about constantly receiving calls (pressue) from agents and Stern just rhetorically asked you're listening to agents?

Two of the main system issues that have been focal points are the luxury tax and MLE.  Do you really think the players care so much about these issue they're willing to lose the season for it?  Of course not, it's just the agents trying to squeeze out a few more contracts per season to feed their own pockets.

 

Unfortunately the players think they can trust their agents more than they can trust the owners.

[Celtics4ever]

I don't even see the point of having an agent with the graduated pay scale.  I would hire a lawyer for contract checking and live without one.  I realize it helps with off the court business.  But doesn't the NBA have a pay scale of sorts now.

[Chris]

You should probably just go ahead and accept that there won't be a season.  The latest offer from the owners is the players' last chance . . . and it sounds pretty clear that they will not accept it.  Their egos and their agents are too big in their minds right now, blocking them from "seeing the light" -- the truth that this is the best deal they're ever going to get.

I don't think it is clear at all.  First of all, the only guys we have really been hearing from are the guys who have been the "hard-line" players all along.  There is a good chance the majority of the players are not on the same page as guys like Durant.

The other thing is that what we have heard so far has been the players responses based on all of this misinformation.  On Monday, Hunter and Fisher will present the actual proposal to the player reps, so that they will be well informed before they vote on anything.  

[Chris]

I don't even see the point of having an agent with the graduated pay scale.  I would hire a lawyer for contract checking and live without one.  I realize it helps with off the court business.  But doesn't the NBA have a pay scale of sorts now.

Eh, yes and no.  Agents are not necessary for rookie deals, and max contracts, but they can help with everything in between. 

The other benefit of agents is to become a barrier between the players and the owners in negotiations.  They prevent hard feelings between the two sides, who will need to be working together, by being the bad guys. 

Now, don't get me wrong, I would love a league without agents, but they do play an important role for many players.

[Q_FBE]

Ultimately this war is being fought by the "Have not" owner faction versus the player agents. Do you really believe that Mark Cuban, Jerry Buss, Wyc Grousebeck, the Miami Owner, and James Dolan want to miss this season? No.

Player agents are the ones getting their cheese moved by lower negotiating commissions that come with reduced salaries.

The "have not" owners want the playing field leveled so they have a chance at more wins. More wins = more box office and merchandising revenue along with a more lucrative TV contract.

The consequence of this may well be a lost season and major structural changes for the NBA such as contraction.

Players may have to swallow the bitter pill.

[JSD]

Please tell me there will be basketball soon.

[Kiorrik]

I'm sick of coming back from nearly 6 hours of 4on4 basketball (I rocked the court though, so that was good) and finding the forum overtaken by some kind of spam bot. Seriously, I had to delete 11 topics. Or rather, we merge them into one big annoying deleted thread first because mods can still see the topics they deleted, and we don't want to see that list on the right full of deleted spam-links.

Anyway, everyone at the court was talking about the lockout, and how it's something that we can't go without.

Sigh.

I want to watch basketball

[Celtics4ever]

Thanks to your hard work I never even seen the spam bot!

Appreciate it , thanks.

[WBrownTrophy]

I'm sick of coming back from nearly 6 hours of 4on4 basketball (I rocked the court though, so that was good) and finding the forum overtaken by some kind of spam bot. Seriously, I had to delete 11 topics. Or rather, we merge them into one big annoying deleted thread first because mods can still see the topics they deleted, and we don't want to see that list on the right full of deleted spam-links.

Anyway, everyone at the court was talking about the lockout, and how it's something that we can't go without.

Sigh.

I want to watch basketball

We can't even get much lockout talk at all on the sports radio stations either...this is literally the only place I can go to engage in NBA talk.

Both Boston radio stations have expressed how they don't care if the NBA comes back this year, some hosts even preferring that there is no season...whether they know it or not, there are actual passionate basketball fans and we are suffering! 

[StartOrien]

I'm sick of coming back from nearly 6 hours of 4on4 basketball (I rocked the court though, so that was good) and finding the forum overtaken by some kind of spam bot. Seriously, I had to delete 11 topics. Or rather, we merge them into one big annoying deleted thread first because mods can still see the topics they deleted, and we don't want to see that list on the right full of deleted spam-links.

Anyway, everyone at the court was talking about the lockout, and how it's something that we can't go without.

Sigh.

I want to watch basketball

We can't even get much lockout talk at all on the sports radio stations either...this is literally the only place I can go to engage in NBA talk.

Both Boston radio stations have expressed how they don't care if the NBA comes back this year, some hosts even preferring that there is no season...whether they know it or not, there are actual passionate basketball fans and we are suffering! 

I think your average basketball die-hard is pretty far removed from both EEI and The Sports Hub's target demo's.

[Chris]

I'm sick of coming back from nearly 6 hours of 4on4 basketball (I rocked the court though, so that was good) and finding the forum overtaken by some kind of spam bot. Seriously, I had to delete 11 topics. Or rather, we merge them into one big annoying deleted thread first because mods can still see the topics they deleted, and we don't want to see that list on the right full of deleted spam-links.

Anyway, everyone at the court was talking about the lockout, and how it's something that we can't go without.

Sigh.

I want to watch basketball

We can't even get much lockout talk at all on the sports radio stations either...this is literally the only place I can go to engage in NBA talk.

Both Boston radio stations have expressed how they don't care if the NBA comes back this year, some hosts even preferring that there is no season...whether they know it or not, there are actual passionate basketball fans and we are suffering! 

I think your average basketball die-hard is pretty far removed from both EEI and The Sports Hub's target demo's.

I am not sure that is true. 

As for the lockout, I am SOOOO happy they are not trying to talk about it on the radio.  Sports talk radio guys have trouble understanding very simple concepts, so they would be completely lost on something like this.