How will you react if the NBA cancels its season?

[Deberg_1990]

http://aol.sportingnews.com/nba/stor...t-consequences



It doesn’t necessarily matter what NBA commissioner David Stern meant when he said on Wednesday that the upcoming weekend of negotiations between players and the league would determine “whether they can either have a season or not have a season.” Maybe it was a threat, as it sure seemed to be—a grand warning that if they did not accede to a deal, players would miss out on an entire year of salary. But the league is insisting it was not a threat, so maybe it wasn’t.

It’s not really important, though, because we don’t need any pronouncements from Stern to notice that the pages are slipping away on the NBA’s calendar, and with both sides reporting on Wednesday that no progress had been made, at the very least, the beginning of the season is in jeopardy.


The sides will meet again on Friday, and considering it will take about two weeks to iron out the details of a collective bargaining agreement, it’s clear that without significant movement this weekend, the season won’t start on time on Nov. 1. During the 1998 lockout, the league started canceling regular-season games on October 13, and that timeline should hold up this time around.

Canceling the season is still an option, but it’s on the back-burner. There are some who believe that once some games are missed, owners will be willing to axe the whole season, as the NHL did in ’05. But bear in mind, losing an entire season would not just be a hit to the players. It would be a big hit to the owners, too. There is a provision in the league’s television contract that pays the league even in the event of lost games, something that surely increases the owners’ bargaining power in the early stages of a lockout. Owners will still be feeding from their deepest trough, while players miss paychecks.

There is a catch, though—if the entire season is canceled, the owners will have to return the television money, plus interest. The threat of the season being canceled can be arrived at just by looking at the calendar and noting the lack of progress the two sides have made. But there would be no point to a preemptive canceling of the season on Stern’s part.

SI.com’s Sam Amick reports that Stern has laid out a Jan. 7 drop-dead date for cancellation of the season. That was the same deadline in ’99, when a scattered and shortened 50-game season began on February 5—with very negative results. Attendance fell by 2.2 percent, television ratings fell sharply and NBA Finals ratings went from 18.7 to 11.3. That was largely because of the retirement of Michael Jordan and the breakup of the Bulls, but still, it took a long time for the NBA to recover its popularity.

The league last season regained its relevance among fans. Players have a lot at stake in the case of a canceled season. But while owners might be in a better financial position to withstand a long lockout, they saw the NBA finally climb out of its post-Jordan doldrums, and they have a lot at stake here, too.

A canceled season is still a possibility. But we’re a long way from that point.

[vailpass]

Originally Posted by

I think I'm being trolled, but here's the demographic breakdown for New York City which would be the largest urban population in the US.

Leave the thinking to those of us with the genetics to do so. You take your extra leg muscle and to run and jump.

[Pants]

I'm not the biggest fan of the NBA, but I'm growing to like it more and more. I just wish I had a team I could root for.

I watched the playoffs last year and they were absolutely epic form top to bottom. You never get such tense moments in the NFL and it was just nonstop in 2011.

[</post>]

Originally Posted by vailpass

Leave the thinking to those of us with the genetics to do so. You take your extra leg muscle and to run and jump.

You must have "extra leg muscle" envy

[Titty Meat]

It doesn't matter because NBA2k12 is still coming out and that's much more entertaining than watching the NBA.

[vailpass]

Originally Posted by

You must have "extra leg muscle" envy

Nice.

[dirk digler]

Originally Posted by vailpass

I son't contend the NBA is dead, just that the product isn't what it used to be and the rating reflect that. Look at the last ten years and tell me differently.
This has been the most succesful year in NBA history? By what measure?
Tell that to the owners who are losing money.

I know you were probably being sarscatic a little but you were the one that said the NBA is dead. Now if they cancel the entire season you may be right.

The NBA said it was their most successful season ever.

NBA season draws most TV viewers

ESPN.com news services

NEW YORK -- The NBA says its three national TV partners all had their most viewers ever this season, topped by a 42 percent increase for TNT.

ABC was up 38 percent and ESPN had a 28 percent jump, the league said Friday.

Turner Sports also says its 1.6 rating was its highest in 27 years of NBA coverage and that it televised three of the five most-watched NBA regular-season games ever on cable this season.
Despite fears of a labor stoppage after the season, the NBA reported success across many platforms. Arena capacity was 90.3 percent, its seventh straight year of 90 or better, and the 17,306 average was up 1 percent from last year and was its fifth highest.

In some ways, the N.B.A.’s present condition closely resembles that of Major League baseball before its 1994-95 strike. Baseball was still profitable as a whole in advance of the strike, but about one-third of its teams had lost money in 1993, according to Forbes, while just four teams accounted for almost half of all league profits.

[vailpass]

Originally Posted by dirk digler

I know you were probably being sarscatic a little but you were the one that said the NBA is dead. Now if they cancel the entire season you may be right.

The NBA said it was their most successful season ever.

Yeah I was being sarcastic. For me the post-MJ era was the worst bball I've ever seen pro or college. In the last 3-4 years some of the young teams have started to play ball in a way that is fun to watch again i.e. no one-on-five crap, team defense, ball distribution on offense, and the game has become more watchable.
Last year's young teams were great to watch.
Shooting themselves in the dick this year would not be a good idea but they have owners losing money and have to change their business model or contract.

[Bwana]

I don't watch any NBA, so I could give a rats ass.

[58kcfan89]

Originally Posted by HemiEd

See? They lost me a long time ago. Where did Kobe play college ball? Lebron James? Surely Lebron hasn't been in the NBA 7 years, has he?

8, actually.

http://www.basketball-reference.com/...jamesle01.html

[HemiEd]

Originally Posted by 58kcfan89

8, actually.

http://www.basketball-reference.com/...jamesle01.html

Wow, no wonder he is so ugly, he is an old fart.

If you had this thread up here in Chicagoland, it would be just the opposite.

They love their NBA, and could care less about CBB unless their team is having a good year.

Of course they pretty much suck at CBB, and have multiple NBA championships.

[Bugeater]

I wouldn't really notice until maybe sometime in April.

[whoman69]

Frankly not much. Its a ploy and probably a good one if it gets both sides to move. NBA players are the richest of the major sports. They have guarenteeed contracts. Their careers generally are not cut short. In essence, they have the best of all situations for athletes.

[Pants]

Originally Posted by vailpass

Table of NBA Finals average Nielsen ratings since 1976
Net. Year Series Rating
CBS 1976 Boston Celtics 4, Phoenix Suns 2 11.5
CBS 1977 Portland Trail Blazers 4, Philadelphia 76ers 2 12.7
CBS 1978 Washington Bullets 4, Seattle Supersonics 3 9.9
CBS 1979 Seattle Supersonics 4, Washington Bullets 1 7.2
CBS 1980 Los Angeles Lakers 4, Philadelphia 76ers 2 8.0
CBS 1981 Boston Celtics 4, Houston Rockets 2 6.7
CBS 1982 Los Angeles Lakers 4, Philadelphia 76ers 2 13.0
CBS 1983 Philadelphia 76ers 4, Los Angeles Lakers 0 12.3
CBS 1984 Boston Celtics 4, Los Angeles Lakers 3 12.3
CBS 1985 Los Angeles Lakers 4, Boston Celtics 2 13.7
CBS 1986 Boston Celtics 4, Houston Rockets 2 14.1
CBS 1987 Los Angeles Lakers 4, Boston Celtics 2 15.9
CBS 1988 Los Angeles Lakers 4, Detroit Pistons 3 15.4
CBS 1989 Detroit Pistons 4, Los Angeles Lakers 0 15.1
CBS 1990 Detroit Pistons 4, Portland Trail Blazers 1 12.3
NBC 1991 Chicago Bulls 4, Los Angeles Lakers 1 15.8
NBC 1992 Chicago Bulls 4, Portland Trail Blazers 2 14.2
NBC 1993 Chicago Bulls 4, Phoenix Suns 2 17.9
NBC 1994 Houston Rockets 4, New York Knicks 3 12.4
NBC 1995 Houston Rockets 4, Orlando Magic 0 13.9
NBC 1996 Chicago Bulls 4, Seattle Supersonics 2 16.7
NBC 1997 Chicago Bulls 4, Utah Jazz 2 16.8
NBC 1998 Chicago Bulls 4, Utah Jazz 2 18.7
NBC 1999 San Antonio Spurs 4, New York Knicks 1 11.3
NBC 2000 Los Angeles Lakers 4, Indiana Pacers 2 11.6
NBC 2001 Los Angeles Lakers 4, Philadelphia 76ers 1 12.1
NBC 2002 Los Angeles Lakers 4, New Jersey Nets 0 10.2
ABC 2003 San Antonio Spurs 4, New Jersey Nets 2 6.5
ABC 2004 Detroit Pistons 4, Los Angeles Lakers 1 11.5
ABC 2005 San Antonio Spurs 4, Detroit Pistons 3 8.2
ABC 2006 Miami Heat 4, Dallas Mavericks 2 8.5
ABC 2007 San Antonio Spurs 4, Cleveland Cavaliers 0 6.2
ABC 2008 Boston Celtics 4, Los Angeles Lakers 2 9.3
ABC 2009 Los Angeles Lakers 4, Orlando Magic 1 8.4
ABC 2010 Los Angeles Lakers 4, Boston Celtics 3 10.6

The list is missing this year. 2011 Finals had ~17.5.

[vailpass]

Originally Posted by whoman69

Frankly not much. Its a ploy and probably a good one if it gets both sides to move. NBA players are the richest of the major sports. They have guarenteeed contracts. Their careers generally are not cut short. In essence, they have the best of all situations for athletes.

Not for long. Thus the lockout.

[lewdog]

Originally Posted by 'Hamas' Jenkins

College basketball is an absolutely abysmal product with a great tournament.

Abysmal based on what? Is it because the NBA has better players and the product is simply more polished plays because the higher level of talent? To me that doesn't make it exciting.