By Chris Sheridan NEW YORK — Billy Hunter is scheduled to get on an airplane Sunday and fly to Los Angeles to give a briefing to several players on the state of the NBA lockout. David Stern and Adam Silver are observing the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur on Saturday, when sunset comes at 6:27 p.m. EDT local time and both men can break their fast, have a bite to eat and pick up the telephone — if they so choose. Right now, the owners
Audio: John Thompson says brief camps would only hurt NBA rookies
By Chris Sheridan So let’s say they settle the lockout Monday night/Tuesday morning. If it is the latter, that is October 11. The sides have been saying it will take two weeks to put the agreement into writing, but let’s put a little pressure on Mr. Rube and Mr. Klempner (the attorneys from each side entrusted wth the heavy lifting) and postulate that they can get it done (and have it ratified in a player vote) in 10 days. That takes us through
Gibson Column: On Kobe, Kirilenko and Parker in Europe
By Nick Gibson of EuroleagueAdventures.com Tony Parker hired himself for minimum wage, Andrei Kirilenko pointed a gun at Viktor Khryapa and Kobe Bryant got a step closer to Virtus Bologna, even though it may be only temporarily. Three players—three All-Stars—that have played their entire (American) pro careers in one uniform are ready to wear new colors in exchange for money while the lockout sorts itself out. It’s been a busy week. But busy means great for European basketball, right? Not absolutely. While the continent would never pass up
More on NBA Lockout: Talking amnesty on Orlando radio
By Chris Sheridan I went on the radio with longtime colleague Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel this morning to talk about the NBA lockout. We touched on how his local team , the Magic, would benefit the most (along with Portland) from the amnesty provision that will reportedly be part of the eventual NBA collective bargaining agreement. Click here to listen to the interview, which aired on the Open Mike show on 740-The Game radio in Orlando. (Gremlin alert: Will not play on
Will the season start on time, Nov. 1?
By Chris Sheridan Those of you who have been reading this site regularly know my answer — yes. But everybody has an opinion, and I encourage you to vote in the poll on the top right side of this page. After you vote, you will see the percentage results for “yes” and “no.”
Bernucca column: Top 20 free agents
By Chris Bernucca We all remember last year’s free agency extravapalooza – LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh heating up South Beach, Amar’e Stoudemire making the Knicks relevant, Dirk Nowitzki and Paul Pierce making career commitments to their teams and Joe Johnson landing the biggest contract of them all. Next year could be a quality sequel, with a star-studded cast that includes Dwight Howard, Chris Paul, Deron Williams, Ray Allen, Jason Terry, possibly Jameer Nelson and Gerald Wallace, and oldies but goodies Kevin Garnett, Tim Duncan and Steve
Podcast: More on lockout
This is probably the longest podcast I have ever done. Thanks to Jacob Noble of TheProBasketballTalk.com for having me on. We recorded it right before the meetings broke yesterday. Jump to the 21:00 mark for when I join the show.
Sedano show podcast: Another optimist found?
By Chris Sheridan Jorge Sedano of 790-The Ticket had me on as a guest this morning on Miami radio, and we found ourselves agreeing on a couple of things. Like how the players’ ultimate share, 52, 51 or 50 percent of designated revenues, will produce different ratification possibilities. Sedano also does not see today as doomsday or the true 11th hour. As noted yesterday, only David Stern holds the secret stopwatch. Click here to listen to the interview.