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September 8, 2011
As the days begin to shorten and the weather feels more like fall every day, this should be a time to enjoy the start of football while gearing up for another season of NBA basketball. Well, fans can enjoy football still, but there’s no NBA basketball to be found at this point in time.
As the lockout continues to drag on, it’s only fair for fans to not only feel nervous about the prospects of losing out on an entire season, but also for them to question what exactly is going on with negotiations. After spending much of the summer acting like a couple of cliques of spoiled children in lieu of actually holding meaningful discussions in hopes of finding resolution, the players and owners are finally beginning to feel the urgency and holding real negotiation sessions.
On Wednesday, Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix was on 92.3’s afternoon show The Bull & Fox to give the latest on where things stand between the two parties. He mentioned that while there is some urgency and the negotiation sessions have been trimmed down to essential personnel in an effort to get things moving, the two parties still stand $5-6 billion apart over a 10 year agreement. As Mannix points out, unless one side starts making some serious concessions, it’s hard to imagine this ending any time soon.
One of the things Mannix mentioned, though, that may be of particular interest to Cleveland fans is that Dan Gilbert is one of the owners holding on to a hard line stance. This should come as no surprise, as it has long been reported that Gilbert was going to be one of the owners pushing the hardest for some major changes. The wording of his statement was interesting though. As Mannix told Bull and Fox:
“There is a group of owners, and I’ve heard that it’s Wyc Grousbeck in Boston, Ted Leonsis in Washington, Dan Gilbert in Cleveland, and Robert Sarver in Phoenix, that are entrenched in the position that they want to cut the players’ legs out from under them. That they want to get a deal that essentially guarantees them profits over the next 10 years. And the players at this point have balked at that. So I really think it’s going to have to take a major concession on the part of the players.”
It would be easy to read those remarks and to assume this means that Dan Gilbert is now more concerned with turning a profit than with winning. The reality is a little more complicated, however.
Guaranteeing profits can actually mean a couple different things. It could be a reference to the division of basketball related income (BRI). Heck, it could even be referring to a change in how BRI is calculated. It could mean a change in how the league estimates the salary cap and how the league’s escrow system works. It could mean a more aggressive revenue sharing plan for the owners.
Perhaps the most likely explanation, though, is that these owners are pushing for a hard cap system similar to the NFL’s. It has been widely reported that Gilbert is one of the staunchest supporters of the league switching from it’s current soft cap system to a hard cap one. Cleveland fans who have heralded Gilbert’s willingness to spend money on his team might find this stance a bit surprising.
For his first 5 years in Cleveland, Dan Gilbert proved to this city that he was willing to spend liberally and minimize profits in an effort to maintain a relevant, competitive, winning NBA franchise. But perhaps what happened with LeBron James served as an eye opener to Gilbert. It has been reported that LeBron’s unwillingness to recruit other stars to Cleveland hindered the Cavaliers’ chances of signing impact players to help bring a Championship to Cleveland.
That’s certainly part of the problem, but it’s not the whole story. The Cavaliers were also handcuffed by the salary cap which prevented them from ever really having a lot of space to sign players after the misfortune of spending so much on Larry Hughes, Donyell Marshall, Damon Jones, and Zydrunas Ilgauskas re-signing. But upon even further inspection, there’s a deeper issue at play.
The fact that players were not willing to come to Cleveland unless they knew LeBron was going to be around speaks to a fundamental problem small/midsized markets, particularly in cold weather cities, face in free agency. Would players be as scared to sign in Dallas without knowing Dirk Nowitzki was going to be around? How about Los Angeles without assurances from Blake Griffin? For Gilbert, there had to be a sobering realization that his willingness to spend is irrelevant when most NBA stars have no interest in playing in Cleveland even for a lot of money.
For Dan Gilbert, perhaps a hard cap is best viewed as killing two birds with one stone. It would still give the Cavaliers the same chance to sign and keep stars and put together winning teams while also promoting a system in which the fixed salary ceilings would guarantee owners profits as well. For all the excitement that the soft cap promotes in both free agency and in trade deadline drama, there’s no question that when you look at this list of NBA Champions, the parity level isn’t the same as in the NFL.
It’s hard to argue that the NFL has a system in place that gives small markets the same chance to win as large markets. As much as fans in Cleveland hate to admit it, the Pittsburgh Steelers serve as a prime example of how in a hard cap system a small market can not only field a team that is seemingly perpetually in contention, but also one that superstars are not opposed to playing on. It’s not a perfect apples to apples comparison, but it’s easy to see how this can be an appealing alternative to an owner like Gilbert.
Make no mistake, the fact that a hard cap would cause problems for these new mega-star teams like Miami and New York is certainly also playing a factor in this. If Gilbert can get a system in place that helps smaller market franchises while also sticking it to Miami, that’s probably a nice bonus for the owner. But Gilbert’s infamous letter causes a lot of misperception when it comes to what kind of businessman Gilbert really is. Guys like Gilbert don’t become multi-millionaires operating billion dollar businesses by solely being petty and reactionary. Rather, this is just yet another example of a real life issue where a multitude of factors and motivations serve as the background for a particular stance on an issue.
Just because these owners are pushing for a certain system doesn’t mean that will necessarily be how things end up. However, Mannix ended the interview by stating that due to the width of the chasm between the players and owners, he believes there will not be an NBA season this year. I guess it sounds like Dan Gilbert will be one of the primary reasons, which indicates that this group of owners may have more traction among owners as opposed to just being a rogue group of revolutionaries.
19 Comments
Good. I stand with Dan. Take 2 years off if you have to get a hard cap.
The only thing I really question with a hard cap is what entices a star player to stay with a team? Unless officiating, or something in the gameplay changes, this will still be a star led league. With a hard cap, offering your star more money (like what is currently allowed) will hand-cuff you to get other talent. Although, I guess that can solve the problem, if they think it is a problem, of the NBA being about the stars.
I would do this just so #6 loses one of his prime years.
Plus, if the season is cancelled the Cavs get #1 and #4 all over again, right? right?
I mean, I’d love a hard cap and all, but at what cost? A year of development for Kyrie and Tristan? Plus with so much uncertainty about how the lottery would work, do we really want to lose a season and end up with a pick that is completely unrepresentative of how we (would have) played had there been a season? I don’t think it would be bad for the NBA to take a season off, but just looking at the Cavs, is this really what we want at all?
Plus then I’d have to watch hockey.
Bravo, Mr. Gilbert. The NBA is broken, and this would go a long way to fixing it, at least on the business side. If it means a missed season (or two), then so be it. The NHL has improved since its lockout, and this could be the same type of situation.
Now, if we could do something about “the everybody is bestest friends” feeling among the players (how I miss players who genuinely wanted to beat the best, not ride their coat tails), the blatently biased officiating (“superstar calls” should not just be “accepted” by the masses), and the 1-on-5 mentality/style of play, then I might just love the NBA the way I did 20 years ago. Until then, I’ll just enjoy the products that the NFL, NHL, NCAA, and EPL provide.
Whining and crying over billions of dollars – my heart bleeds for both sides. The NBA not only needs a work stoppage but an extended one. Both sides have lived high off the hog IMO and it’s been long overdue that the piper gets paid. Basketball used to be entertaining to me but no longer. Really the last time it was any fun was when the most hated ex-player was able to be drafted. After that things went south, literally and figuratively.
Btw I don’t cut Gilbert any slack either. He talks a great game but in the end it’s accomplishments that speak the loudest. He hasn’t even come close for me to consider him a great owner. His biggest asset is a willingness to spend money. Because Cleveland is so starved for owners who actually spend Gilbert gets a pass. Gilbert put all his eggs in #23’s basket, defended, covered and all the rest then when he got Julius Caesar’d he cried like a baby.
I’m waiting to see these Taj Mahal’s of gambling. Let me see just how great those turn out too.
we likely get the 2nd best chance at the #1 overall pick and a pick no later than #5 in a stacked draft class if we miss the entire year.
Kyrie and Tristan are, by all accounts, extremely dedicated individuals who will be practicing with the NBA-feeder program (the NCAA). Kyrie will be practicing against Austin Rivers every single day (which should make both better).
Really, the only negatives are that our young team will not be able to learn Byron Scott’s system nor will they play much together. Outside of that, I think the Cavs are one of the best positioned teams to get through this lockout.
Interestingly, a hard cap might make the market an even BIGGER factor in where players go. If I can go to LA or Minnesota, and they’re both offering me the same money… doesn’t the climate in LA push things in their favor?
@ 6. What he said.
I dont care one lick about the NBA missing a season or 4. Even when we had LBJ, the style of game was sort of disappointing. Its all about giving it to one player with a high pick n roll. I will say though that when you caught a great individual’s game, someone who was just unstoppable, it was amazingly entertaining. Very few, if any, sports have moments like that where one man can take down an entire team.
The issue is that with a hard cap, the big markets can’t afford everyone. As the NFL has shown, with a hard cap, market isn’t as much of a factor. Sure, you have guys like Braylon Edwards who crave the social networking of a city like New York, but even then, he was traded there, not signed as a free agent. Most NFL free agents go where there is cap space and where they will have an opportunity to play. The NBA is slightly different because it’s a more individual sport with smaller rosters, but the concept still carries over in principle.
Good point Chris, but to play Devil’s Advocate, that would limit the amount of stars able to join the team. If you’re paying Kobe $25M, Would Gasol take $15M to play in LA or go to another team that can offer him $25.
I’m all for the hard cap & for a lost season. Anything to make the game better, cuz it’s been slipping the last decade.
beat me to it Andrew. Same point, different way of saying it.
@3- I am with you on that.
This article does a great job of looking at some of the real fundamental problems with the current CBA. It just so happens the Cavs and Dan Gilbert are a prime example of some of these issues. It will be very interesting to see how these negotiations play out, though I don’t expect a resolution anytime soon.
so which NBA player is going to break down and cry about their mortgage (ala TO)
I hope Gilbert & the other owners break the player’s union. I would gladly lose a season to ensure this outcome.
It is past ridiculous with teams needing to trade players years in advance (Jazz with Deron Williams) or trading players at a discount (Nuggets with Carmelo) because players are only intrested in playing in the 5 glamour cities.
I stand with Dan! I think it may take an NHL-type loss of an entire season in order to get things going in the right direction. David Stern seems to only care about a few markets and that needs to change. Consider the fact that only 9 different franchises have won a title since 1980 and 6 of those (Lakers, Celtics, Spurs, Pistons, Bulls, and Rockets) have won 29 of those 32 titles.
And, a couple fans seem to not understand that we did not acquire 2 first round picks from the Clippers in the Mo Williams deal. If the season is lost, we only have our own first round pick. They can’t give away LA’s pick just because there isn’t a season. I am sure they would then just do an unweighted lottery or something.
I’d really like to have Sunday dinner with Joe Tait and ask him what he thinks of the all the “business” of the NBA.
He’s seen it all.
And I definitely agree with #3.
Have some info on how Dan runs Quicken Loans, and can say that he is as hardnosed and money-focused as they come. I can see him wanting #6 to miss another chance, but his proclivities are overriding here.