And Just Like That - It's Over

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Thank you, NFL, for coming to an agreement. We appreciate it more than you know!

2 Down - 64 to Go

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Shortened season. Tons of talent now in the west. No time to get in shape.

Task 1: Revenge against Memphis. CHECK!

Manu had a broken arm. They were peaking at the right time. Chalk it up to a farce. There was never any question about this game, and Manu & a rejuvenated Timmy said so. Introducing Kawhi Leonard.

Task 2: The new "instant-contenders" Clippers. CHECK!

Experts say this team is an instant contender to win the west. They sure didn't look like it! OK, I'll give them a half-season to get it together. Way to go, Manu, DeJuan, and James!

I'm not worried at all. Bring on the Rockets!

UPDATE:


Ooops! Ok, ok, no one's gonna win 'em all. Just didn't shoot well early, that's about the easiest thing to fix.. We make 3 or 4 more of those 10 threes we missed in the 1st half, and the halftime lead is 6 or 9 rather than 18. Then Pop doesn't yank Timmy, and so on.. might've been completely different.

Big NBA FA Deals? Not So Fast..

by SI.com's Sam Amick


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A visual comes to mind as it relates to the most unique of NBA free-agency periods that has unofficially begun. Picture a pool surrounded by the league's general managers and owners, all of them turning left and right to see what the other is doing while peering down at the water with a shared look of trepidation.

This is a pool party, after all, so someone will have to jump. But with big men Nene, Tyson Chandler and Marc Gasol waiting for them in the deep end and the talent level of free agents so shallow compared to last year's class led by LeBron James, no one is in the mood for a cannonball just yet.

"I think what you're seeing is that nobody considers anyone in this free-agent market to be a clear-cut, franchise guy that we have to do everything within our power to get," said one agent with a client near the top of the mediocre mix. "No one wants to be the first to give that stupid, crazy contract and have that article saying what a sham the lockout was."

As a result, the third day of talks between agents and teams came and went without any major news of a big-name player leaning hard in the direction of a particular team. While oral or signed agreements are not allowed until Dec. 9, after the tentative collective bargaining agreement is ratified, a mutual understanding of some sort is still possible. But the pace has been even slower than expected.

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Poor Kids..

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Can We Please Just Have some Basketball?

Well we, the fans, just want to watch basketball. The players rejected the NBA's latest ultimatum proposal. But I think I speak for the millions of fans when I say, "we just want to watch NBA basketball!"

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NBA Fans

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A New Slogan

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NBA Lockout Infographic

Click to enlarge!

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NBA Lockout Risk: Public Ridicule

Nothing else worked. Maybe the owners and players will react to the scorn of the fans. -- Michael Wilbon, ESPN.com

The bond market indicator that has predicted every recession since 1970 is forecasting a 60 percent chance of the economy having another contraction within the next 12 months. Moody's Analytics says there's a 40 percent chance the U.S. will tumble back into the depths of a recession within the next six months. The unemployment rate, some analysts say, is likely to remain above 6 percent until 2015. The hourly pay of people who are employed can't keep pace with inflation. The most recent drop in household income is the largest in several decades and, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, has caused a "significant reduction in the American standard of living."

So with that as the economic backdrop, the NBA has decided to sit it out for a while because the owners and players can't agree on how to split up $4.3 billion. It's difficult to imagine that folks who live in constant fear of losing their jobs, of not being able to make their mortgage payments or pay their kids' tuition or do anything with their money beyond what is absolutely necessary have the stomach for this self-indulgent behavior. The country is in no mood for the NBA's stupid dispute; and if the lockout lasts past Christmas and into the time when people expect to see professional basketball, which is quite possible, the bet here is the owners and players are going to face a level of disdain that could embarrass the two sides into a settlement and haunt the league for years.

Right now, it's clear that what anybody, even their patrons, thinks of them is of next to zero concern for both sides. Each side is right, don't you know? Each wants to win. There are owners who would rather miss most of the season than settle now. There are players, millionaires, who are convinced they have some mysterious leverage that will dissuade owners who are billionaires. For now, neither is budging. Two weeks of games have already been canceled and very likely another month of games, at least, will be kicked.

So what pressure, in addition to loss of money, is going to move one side or the other off its position?

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Ten Intriguing Storylines Now That Football Is Back

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First of all, take 3 seconds, and in the name of NFL Football, : Click Here!

Now that the lockout is over and training camps are set to begin, we can officially talk about some of the questions that all fans are asking. Here’s a look at some of the top storylines heading into the 2011 NFL season:

Will the Packers suffer a Super Bowl hangover?
The Packers are built to have an extended run as title contenders. The team has one of the deepest and most talented rosters in the league. Their surplus of talent allowed them to overcome losing 15 players to injured reserve on their way toward winning Super Bowl XLV. The return of those players is one of the reasons the Packers are poised to make another run.

The spate of injuries allowed several young players - James Starks, Sam Shields and Desmond Bishop - to get on the field, and their surprising emergence only fortifies the Packers' roster. The team will benefit from the return of Jermichael Finley, Morgan Burnett, Ryan Grant, and Nick Barnett. If Mike McCarthy can keep his team motivated to handle the challenges of taking everyone's best shot, then there is no reason the Packers shouldn't repeat as world champions. -- Bucky Brooks


Are the Jets contenders or poseurs?
The Jets are legitimate contenders under Rex Ryan. They have advanced to the AFC title game in each of his first two seasons. Led by a hard-hitting defense that matches Ryan's swagger and bravado, the Jets bludgeon opponents with an intensity and toughness that forces them to wilt under pressure. They took a step back statistically, but their dominance returned in big games, especially in the playoffs.

Offensively, the Jets also have the pieces in place. Their running game has ranked among the best in the league, and they have a potent passing game led by an emerging big-game performer in Mark Sanchez. He has shown flashes of being clutch in the postseason, and that will eventually translate into championship success. Ryan is full of bravado and bluster and has assembled a team that has the ability to back up his bodacious claims. -- Bucky Brooks

Ready to be an icon and entertain?
Invoking the name Cam Newton gets a reaction, often strong. I've yet to talk with anyone who is neutral about the Panthers rookie QB and top-overall pick. So how will he do as a rookie?

All rookie QBs in this lockout-affected offseason will struggle. Without minicamps and OTAs and the ability to get coached on a daily basis, it would seem that it's folly to expect any rookie QB (and that includes Jake Locker, Christian Ponder, Blaine Gabbert, and Andy Dalton) to have the type of debut experienced by the likes of Matt Ryan, Sam Bradford, Mark Sanchez, Matthew Stafford, and Josh Freeman. But I do remember that Vince Young had a stellar debut, and he did it using his arm and his legs. Expect Newton to try to follow a similar blueprint, and look for any successes that he has to occur in the second half of the season. -- Charles Davis

Romo: Super Bowl or bust?
Several teams could do worse than Tony Romo at quarterback. Like the Cowboys.

Jon Kitna stepped in admirably after Romo’s collarbone injury, but Romo is the guy - at least in the immediate future - to get Dallas to the Super Bowl. But the grace period is over. His stats are better than adequate. Now it’s time to take the big step. Romo has all the toys he needs, and the line is being re-tooled. The defense that crumpled last season remains a question, but new coordinator Rob Ryan could provide some answers.

Romo’s leadership has come into question, which isn't good on a team that needs a leader. DeMarcus Ware said Romo has stepped up as more of a leader this offseason. We’ll see if that carries over. This might not be a do-or-die season for Romo, but time is running out. -- Steve Wyche

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Encouraging News From Green Bay

Though the labor deal still isn’t done and no one knows for sure when and if it will be, the defending world champions are making it known that players should be ready to show up at the team facility on Saturday for a meeting.

Per a source with knowledge of the situation, the Packers are telling players that the doors will open on Friday, and that the team wants the players in town in order to get started on preparations for training camp and the preseason.

This presumes that the remaining issues between the NFL and the NFLPA* will be resolved in time for the players and the owners to separately approve the new agreement. The fact that the Packers are getting the word out shows how widespread that presumption currently is.

Of course, teams aren’t supposed to be talking to players during the lockout. For many teams, however, that ship sailed a long, long time ago.

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Looking Ahead

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Field Of Dreams 2: NFL Lockout

Thanks Cam!

Lockouts - NBA vs. NFL: A Primer On The Similarities And Differences

by Joel Thorman, SB Nation's NFL Editor & Tom Ziller, SB Nation's NBA editor

The NBA lockout began last week as David Stern decided Roger Goodell shouldn't have all of the fun. The NFL lockout has gone on since March. How are the stoppages similar and different?

Jul 5, 2011 - The NBA decided last week to stop letting the NFL have all of the fun and instituted a lockout to shut down the league until a new collective bargaining agreement can be reached. Given that these are two multi-billion dollar leagues with fairly similar set-ups, there are some comparisons to be made in the NBA lockout and NFL lockout. But there are just as many differences.

What's the lockout about?

NBA: The NBA lockout is focused almost completely on cutting player salary to help struggling teams -- the league claims 22 lost money last year -- make a profit. A line you hear often from the league is that while players are collectively guaranteed more than $2 billion in salary every season, team owners are never guaranteed a profit, and in many cases, are guaranteed losses because of extraordinary expenses.

NFL: The NFL lockout is focused on a number of issues, the biggest being how to split the over-$9 billion figure in annual revenue. The owners feel they need a larger slice of the pie, since they're taking the larger financial risk, while the players have called for the current system to stay in place. NFL teams aren't claiming poverty, like some in the NBA, but they do want a bigger cut of the pie in order to grow the game.

What are the major issues?

NBA: The NBA's biggest two issues are the revenue split and the hardness of the salary cap. Currently, players receive 57 percent of basketball-related income, which was about $2.1 billion for the 2010-11 season. This is taken from gross receipts and includes gate, TV revenue, merchandise and more. The NBA has a soft salary cap around $60 million; through cap exceptions and the ability to re-sign their own players in excess of the cap, teams easily surpass the soft cap, and it's rare that more than two or three teams end the season under the cap. The NBA is trying to turn that soft cap into a hard or harder cap to shrink overall salary levels and expenses at the team level, and is trying to shrink the revenue split to something closer to 50-50. The players have been willing to go down to 54 percent without a hard cap. The hard cap is seen as unacceptable by the players' union.

NFL: The biggest issue, by far, is how to split the money. The players were previously receiving a little over 50 percent of all the revenue, and recent reports say they have given in to the tune of a 48 percent slice of the pie. It's believed that, once the money issue is figured out, the rest of the deal will fall into place relatively smoothly. Another major issue is the rookie wage scale because the owners feel that the players at the top of the draft are receiving a disproportionate amount of money. The players have been receptive to changing the model in which the rookies are paid by funneling some of that money to established veterans. One more major issue is retired players and increasing the amount of money they're given. The owners have reportedly been open to the idea of giving more money to the retired players and this issue has not become one of the most divisive on the table.

Continue to the entire article..

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Calling Foul On NBA’s Claims Of Financial Distress

by Nate Silver, The New York Times

At midnight on Thursday, the N.B.A. locked out its players in what could be the start of a long labor dispute. Some observers, like ESPN’s Michael Wilbon, believe the entire 2011-12 season could be threatened.

Such a move would not be without precedent: the N.H.L. canceled its 2004-5 season. But the

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N.B.A.’s current financial condition is different than the N.H.L.’s in one important respect. Whereas there was almost no doubt that the N.H.L. was in fact losing money in advance of its lockout — player salaries had mushroomed by more than 400 percent from 1994 to 2004, according to independent estimates — the N.B.A.’s claims of financial hardship should be viewed more skeptically.

Instead, independent estimates of the N.B.A. financial condition reflect a league that has grown at a somewhat tepid rate compared to other sports, and which has an uneven distribution of revenues between teams — but which is fundamentally a healthy and profitable business. In addition, it is not clear that growth in player salaries, which has been modest compared to other sports and which is strictly pegged to league revenue, is responsible for the league’s difficulties.

The table below reflects the N.B.A.’s financial condition from its 1989-90 through 2009-10 seasons, as according to estimates prepared by Forbes and Financial World magazines. (All figures are adjusted for inflation. Some data was not published by Forbes in some years and is therefore left blank.)



The first column is league’s gate receipts or ticket revenues; the Forbes data suggest this is one area of legitimate concern. Adjusted for inflation, ticket revenues are down 6 percent compared to five years ago, although they are up 22 percent compared to the 1999-2000 season.

Other revenues, like licensing and media rights, have increased at a healthier clip, because the N.B.A. is locked into long and lucrative television contracts. They have grown by 11 percent over five years, adjusted for inflation, or by 30 percent over 10 years.

The league’s primary expense is player salaries. Continue on to the rest of this incredibly informative article..

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The Best Explanation

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