David Stern

[StartOrien]

Do the balls out in public.   There is no reason to have them behind closed doors.  Of course, the team with a new arena might not get the draw then but it would be in the open.   I am a big fan of transparency.

Again, though, it's a tedious, boring process that lacks any drama, and is confusing for viewers at home.  Plus, due to combinations that are eliminated depending upon who gets the #1 pick, the drawings for the 2nd and 3rd pick might have to be repeated several times.

The only reason they'd have the ball drawing in public would be to quiet down a very small number of conspiracy theorists.  That's not worth the television dollars they'd lose by going to a less television friendly selection process.

Do you honestly think the NBA has bought off both the auditors and the team execs who witness the lottery?  We had people in the room for the Durant / Oden lottery; what incentive would the Celts' employees have to cover up a rigged lottery?

This might exist already, so forgive my ignorance: But wouldn't it make sense to put a video of the process on NBA.com?

Obviously, it'd have to be after the lottery was revealed, but you could have video proof and more evidence of how truly boring the process is.

[Chris]

If Penn State can cover up their shady dealings, I seriously doubt that the NBA can't have their own conspiracies (closed room or public) regarding the draft lottery.

Nothing surprises me anymore.

The problem is, it is very hard to have a conspiracy, when the conspiracy is actually to hurt 95% of the people in the room, experiencing it, while, 5% benefit from it.  Especially when those 95% are generally incredibly successful (and cutthroat) business-men, who refuse to even share revenues with each other.  I don't think they are going to take well to conspiracies that take money out of their pockets.

[The Walker Wiggle]

I don't blame Stern at all, I think hes doing a good job representing the owners...

This guy is a great businessman.

I don't see it, even if you believe his only role is to deliver the best possible deal to a minority of unhappy owners, versus delivering an agreement, and a 2011-2012 season that capitalizes on last year's record television ratings and revenue.

Negotiations broke down with zero money at stake. Both sides had made proposals in which players would make precisely the same amount over the life of the deal. Instead we got a nasty fight and litigation over system issues that Stern insists the NBA needs, despite meager evidence that a harder cap will improve competitive balance.

I think Stern will eventually regret not accepting the union's last counter-offer.

[Finkelskyhook]

If Penn State can cover up their shady dealings, I seriously doubt that the NBA can't have their own conspiracies (closed room or public) regarding the draft lottery.

Nothing surprises me anymore.

The problem is, it is very hard to have a conspiracy, when the conspiracy is actually to hurt 95% of the people in the room, experiencing it, while, 5% benefit from it.  Especially when those 95% are generally incredibly successful (and cutthroat) business-men, who refuse to even share revenues with each other.  I don't think they are going to take well to conspiracies that take money out of their pockets.

When we and a few other teams overtly shamelessly tanked the season in 06-07....The overt tankers just happened to fall in the worst possible draft position they could.  I don't remember who calculated it...But somebody ran the numbers and said the odds were about 250000 to one that the teams could fall that way. 

[Roy H.]

If Penn State can cover up their shady dealings, I seriously doubt that the NBA can't have their own conspiracies (closed room or public) regarding the draft lottery.

Nothing surprises me anymore.

The problem is, it is very hard to have a conspiracy, when the conspiracy is actually to hurt 95% of the people in the room, experiencing it, while, 5% benefit from it.  Especially when those 95% are generally incredibly successful (and cutthroat) business-men, who refuse to even share revenues with each other.  I don't think they are going to take well to conspiracies that take money out of their pockets.

When we and a few other teams overtly shamelessly tanked the season in 06-07....The overt tankers just happened to fall in the worst possible draft position they could.  I don't remember who calculated it...But somebody ran the numbers and said the odds were about 250000 to one that the teams could fall that way.  

The odds might have been that high of the exact combo we got (Portland - Seattle - Atlanta), but the odds of Memphis, Boston, and Milwaukee falling outside the top 3 picks were 4.1%.  That's about 1:25 odds; unlikely, but certainly not unheard of.

[CelticsFanNC]

  I don't much like Stern either.  He always carries himself like he has nothing to prove to anyone even when questions arise.  Like he never owes anybody an explanation for anything.  That  kind of comes across to me as someone with something to hide.  That's the way he dealt with the officials scandal.

  Could he rig the draft lottery?  I don't know if you could do that without the US Congress being all over it.  

  The game officiating I'll admit is a bit fishy at times.  We all know the stars get the calls and the rookies get the shaft.  Is that fair?  Again I don't know.  Paul Pierce is a superstar.  LBJ is a superstar.  Head to head it seems to me that LBJ can plow over Pierce time and again and Pierce rarely gets the call.  Against 90% of the NBA Pierce gets the call.  Who decides the different levels of superstars when they go head to head?  It seems to me the guy the NBA spend more of it's money promoting tends to get those calls.  Is that Stern or is it human nature on the Ref's part?  Does it matter though?  LBJ still doesn't have an NBA title in spite of all of the questionable calls that go his way.

  I absolutely believe NBA refs officiate the score rather then the game and in some way Stern at very least turns a blind eye to it.  Does it decide games sometimes, probably but not often.  Does it decide championships?  No.  Players and coaches decide championships.

  I think in playoff series the team who goes down is more likely to get the calls the next game to extend the series' and make more money for the NBA.  Is that really bad for fans?

  Officiating NBA basketball is tough.  No doubt about it.  I also do find it interesting that ESPN/ABC seem to have chosen to not show replays of close or phantom calls.  

  I do think Sterns days could be numbered.  Even Pete Rozelle, THE GUY who made the NFL what it is today eventually had to step away.  I'd say another NBA officials scandal might spell the end of David Stern.  If this strike goes on long enough maybe this will be his end.

  We can only hope.

[BASS_THUMPER]

lol

yall still trippin over the "bent corner"

[LB3533]

I am not buying that the league is 100% on the up and up.

With historical evidence of the Knicks winning Ewing, Jordan's forced retirement the first time, the Donagy scandal, the '06 and '10 NBA Finals...I really find it hard to believe there isn't a shadow of a doubt.

[Celtics4ever]

Sometimes the WWE seems as plausible as the NBA,  I can't quit watching though no matter how mad I get.

[Finkelskyhook]

Sometimes the WWE seems as plausible as the NBA

That's because a lot of the time it appears that they're using the same officials.

[Eja117]

I was watching Larry Bird's top 50 moments on the NBA network last night and in one of them was a far younger David Stern and it just occured to me.....the man is like a dictator. He gets into power and just doesn't leave. He is the sports world's Gadhaffi or something. He's just been there forever like Putin. I mean get out already. Seriously.

[StartOrien]

I was watching Larry Bird's top 50 moments on the NBA network last night and in one of them was a far younger David Stern and it just occured to me.....the man is like a dictator. He gets into power and just doesn't leave. He is the sports world's Gadhaffi or something. He's just been there forever like Putin. I mean get out already. Seriously.

Except the thing he ruled over has become increasingly profitable throughout the years as players contracts an ad revenue continue to boom.

[Eja117]

I was watching Larry Bird's top 50 moments on the NBA network last night and in one of them was a far younger David Stern and it just occured to me.....the man is like a dictator. He gets into power and just doesn't leave. He is the sports world's Gadhaffi or something. He's just been there forever like Putin. I mean get out already. Seriously.

Except the thing he ruled over has become increasingly profitable throughout the years as players contracts an ad revenue continue to boom.

Well there's a piece of truth I didn't want to hear. Hit me in the gut

[fairweatherfan]

If Penn State can cover up their shady dealings, I seriously doubt that the NBA can't have their own conspiracies (closed room or public) regarding the draft lottery.

Nothing surprises me anymore.

The problem is, it is very hard to have a conspiracy, when the conspiracy is actually to hurt 95% of the people in the room, experiencing it, while, 5% benefit from it.  Especially when those 95% are generally incredibly successful (and cutthroat) business-men, who refuse to even share revenues with each other.  I don't think they are going to take well to conspiracies that take money out of their pockets.

When we and a few other teams overtly shamelessly tanked the season in 06-07....The overt tankers just happened to fall in the worst possible draft position they could.  I don't remember who calculated it...But somebody ran the numbers and said the odds were about 250000 to one that the teams could fall that way. 

The odds might have been that high of the exact combo we got (Portland - Seattle - Atlanta), but the odds of Memphis, Boston, and Milwaukee falling outside the top 3 picks were 4.1%.  That's about 1:25 odds; unlikely, but certainly not unheard of.

Problem is, with the lottery every outcome is "unlikely" - there's so many possible outcomes that any given combination is improbable.  It's like drawing one card out of a deck - no matter what you pull the odds were 51-1 against it.

I read a statistical analysis of the 2007 lottery by a Wisconsin statistician that focused on the Bucks - their modal (most likely) outcome was the #5 pick; ours was the #4.  We wound up 5-6 instead, which was the second-most likely outcome for each team.  It wasn't a shocking outcome and it isn't at all evidence of shadiness, though it fits nicely with pre-existing beliefs of shadiness.

[LB3533]

I was watching Larry Bird's top 50 moments on the NBA network last night and in one of them was a far younger David Stern and it just occured to me.....the man is like a dictator. He gets into power and just doesn't leave. He is the sports world's Gadhaffi or something. He's just been there forever like Putin. I mean get out already. Seriously.

Except the thing he ruled over has become increasingly profitable throughout the years as players contracts an ad revenue continue to boom.

Funny how teams are crying poor!