As I've said before Stern is now changing the system so that it will be harder for teams to hold on to their Stars, in an effort to stop players from being able to bunch up on teams or for teams from doing what Riley did. This is basically small market against big market. Will it work tho?
Last October, David Stern couldn't get enough."My guess," he said during a preseason media session, "is that the Heat is not going to play to too many empty seats on the road, as people want to see this team. We have had other sort of super teams -- they're called the Celtics, Lakers, Spurs. In different ages, we've had Hall of Famers that come together and teams have gathered them.
"I think that team has generated spectacular interest, and all in all it's been very good for the NBA."
It was as close as you could get to a heartfelt embrace of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, of what the Miami Heat had accomplished, by the NBA commissioner.
Similar sentiment followed as the Heat's Big Three grew Stern's brand throughout the season.
And then, seven months later, when questioned at AmericanAirlines Arena during the NBA Finals, amid impending collective-bargaining talks, about whether the Heat's Big Three could be kept together under a new agreement, Stern said, "We've tried to make it more attractive for players to stay with their current team. That trend will continue if not be enhanced."
Or not.
The owners' latest pitch in the contentious lockout negotiations that have killed the first two weeks of the regular season actually makes it more difficult for teams with multiple stars to keep such cores together, particularly when the contracts expire at the same time.
The new spin accompanying the NBA's push for a harder salary cap?
"That's what caps do," Stern said, "they move players around and distribute players a little more equally."
The very players Stern said during the Final that he would hope would not have to move.
OK, then.
Understand, many of the rules in the previous collective-bargaining agreement actually worked against what the Heat accomplished. The contracts would have to be shorter if James moved on from the Cleveland Cavaliers, Bosh from the Toronto Raptors. The money across the board would have to be reduced for the two to join Wade. And even if the three did somehow come together, there would be no room for a supporting cast.
And then something fascinating happened. Pat Riley was able to toss around enough future draft picks to get Bosh and James maximum six-year deals in sign-and-trade agreements with the Raptors and Cavaliers. James, Bosh and Wade left enough cash on the table to make all three contracts mesh under the salary cap. In fact, the three, particularly Wade, left enough on the table to open the door to Mike Miller and Udonis Haslem, who, if they would have been healthy, would have left the Heat with playoff-level depth.
The point being that if players want to find a way, they can find a way. Under the previous agreement. Under a draconian new one.
Stern acknowledged as much during his NBA TV interview, admitting that the reduction of Bird Rights, the increase of the luxury tax, the hardening of the cap can only do so much to sway player preference.
"There are natural advantages to certain cities," he said. "Some people like lakes, and you can go to cities with lakes. Some people like the ocean and you can go to South Beach. But there is an increasing sense that 'glamorous' cities have an edge and I guess it's always been that way."
For Wade, James and Bosh there will be difficult decisions as early as their 2014 opt-outs, decisions compounded by a CBA that well may be loaded with one-way signs out of South Beach.
But the three made it work before and the hunch is no matter the configuration of any new CBA, none will be announcing intentions of eventually taking their talents to Sacramento, Minnesota or Milwaukee.
IN THE LANE
THREE FOR ALL: The Heat already have their Big Three and New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony doesn't think it's right that David Stern is attempting to prevent his team from cashing in, as well. "I think people fail to realize that teams and organizations have been stacking teams since way back in the day," Anthony said in a GQ interview. "The Lakers had the Showtime era. Boston had six Hall of Famers on one team. You had Detroit, the New York Knicks, and now the Miami Heat. They were stacking their teams back then, it just fell off over the years and now it picked back up. . . . So you can't get mad at Miami for doing what they did."
10/15/2011 4:12 PM