Opinion

NBA lockout drama unfolding

By Ashley Hall

November 18, 2011

Constant consumption of caffeine, gray hair appearing, stress levels rising, no hope for winter-what do all of these have in common? My mood for this basketball season, wait, there is no basketball season this year. The National Basketball Players Association turned down another proposal by the NBA to end the lockout on Monday, Nov. 13.

This is going to do nothing for my winter mood at all. Basketball is something that I look forward to watching during those long winter months of biter cold.

According to ESPN’s website, the NBA formally notified teams Tuesday that it has canceled games through Dec. 15, erasing a total of 324 games or 26 percent of the season, as the lockout lingers into its 138th day. What am I going to do until then?

These basketball players need to wake up and realize that the deal the NBA was proposing to them was a really fair deal. The terms were 50-50 for players and the association. Some players, like Kobe Bryant, were ready to take the deal. Come on guys, how more fair could you get?
Players such as Carmelo Anthony and Kevin Durant are now filing two antitrust suits against the NBA. May I add that these negotiations have been going on for two years according to Marc Stein, an ESPN NBA Insider. Why start these talks in July when it is so close to the beginning of the new season? I think I was the only one worrying about this aspect in July.

There is no expiration date for the court decision of the antitrust suits filed. As you might recall the NFL settling their lockout with the players in court, was a quick process that lasted for a few weeks. However, Stein thinks that these court proceedings for the NBA could go on for a while.

I don’t know about you, but I watch basketball for the background noise while I do my homework and to feel less stressed. Of course multi-tasking is not achievable but it is nice to at least listen to the basketball game that I have on, whether it is the Boston Celtics or the Miami Heat.

So with the realization now that the court proceedings could last for an extended period of time, Christopher Broussard from ESPN says that basketball could not happen for more than two years. Looks like college basketball will see an increase of profits all across the board.

Ashley Hall is a senior majoring in journalism. She is a huge Boston sports fan; the Celtics are her favorite.