Yet another lockout update...when will this end

(AP)

If you've been paying attention to the NBA lockout for the past few months, you've probably realized that there's a painful pattern developing between the union and owners.

They schedule a meeting.

They meet.

They discuss all the topics, realize that they can't agree on anything, exchange barbs through the media, and don't schedule another meeting for weeks at a time.

It's a maddeningly slow and grueling process for the fans, and as more games get cancelled,  people will undoubtedly turn their attention elsewhere.

Meanwhile, Chris Sheridan wrote an article detailing the current status of the issues. It's a good, detailed read and it'll give you a sense of where things stand at the moment.

As of right now, no more meetings have been scheduled (shocking), and even though there have been rumors of a secret 82 game schedule in the works, it's becoming increasingly unlikley. In fact, it's believed that tomorrow will bring about the next round of cancellations, presumably an additional two weeks.

Hopefully they can get back to the bargaining table soon, and for the love of God, just bring us basketball again.

Something tells me this NBA world tour will not satisfy fans for long.

NBA cancels first two weeks of season

(Clark)

NBA Commissioner David Stern has announced the  cancellation of the first two weeks of the regular season. Despite reported progress with the mid-level exception, Stern says the sides are still "very, very far apart on virtually all issues". He also said that there is no chance for an 82 game season.

This is not good for the players. They claim that they can survive losing games, but I think that the deal that they will ultimately agree to will be much worse than if they'd just accepted the owner's offer of a 50/50 BRI split. By losing games, the players will be losing more money than they could have imagined.

All the fans want is basketball. The popularity of the league was at an all time high in June, and people were excited to see the how things were going to unfold this year. It's all in jeopardy now, and we've already lost a significant portion of games.

A January start to the season is looking more and more likely.

More updates on the way...

Big Z retires

(Elsa/Getty Images North America)
Big Z was a fan favorite in Cleveland

                 

Zydrunas Ilgauskus retired today, making him the third center to announce so this summer, after Shaquille O'Neal and Yao Ming. All three of these guys were quality centers who possessed a knack for scoring, but they did all share one unfortunate trait: they were painfully slow.

Their retirement signifies a new age of centers in the NBA. Up and coming guys like DeAndre Jordan, Joakim Noah, JaVale McGee, Serge Ibaka, and Greg Monroe possess the speed and quickness that will define the center position for years to come.

Training Camp postponed indefinitely, 43 preseason games lost

The NBA announced on Friday that training camp has been indefinitely postponed and that all preseason games through October 15th have been cancelled. This comes on the heels of an unproductive meeting between the leaders of the NBA and NBAPA.

This really isn't a shock, considering how far apart both sides are on a deal. It's just one step closer to a reality that all basketball fans are going to have to face: there most likely will not be a full NBA season.

Stay tuned for more updates.

Training camp, preseason games in jeopardy

(Wilfredo Lee/ AP)
I wonder where the Heat will hold training camp this year...

            At this point, it's basically a done deal. Based on the current pace of talks, training camp will be missed, as will preseason games. This is seriously starting to look scary. There are guys signing overseas that won't be coming back, whether we have a season or not. China is accepting free agents who are willing to play the entire year overseas, and J.R. Smith and Wilson Chandler have already signed. If games start to be missed, I have a feeling that a lot more players will pursue employment in China, one of the biggest basketball markets in the world. If that happens, what will NBA rosters look like once play resumes? I bet the D-league has a record year for call-ups.
         
            There is a meeting scheduled for today between some of the staff members from each side, and league officials would then attend a follow up meeting on Thursday. Honestly, I know this is getting extremely old to anyone who follows basketball, but it's quite interesting to see how the league operates behind the scenes. Never have I been so interested in revenue sharing and the mid-level exception.

             The NBA needs to figure out how it's going to share revenue among it's teams. Players are going to want to know how that affects them before they can agree to a new CBA. However, owners are going to want to know what kind of money they are working with before agreeing on how to split revenue, so really, I can see why the negotiations are at a standstill. The good news is that it's rumored that the players have agreed to come down from their previous 57% of basketball related income to a number closer to 53%. 

           
             If you have an hour that you really want to dedicate to this issue (which I seriously doubt you do) then check out this Bill Simmons interview with NBA Commissioner David Stern.

             Go Eagles.

Ron Artest > Metta World Peace

Metta World Peace has arrived.

After only his first dance, Ron-Ron was eliminated from Dancing With The Stars. Not too much of a shock there. These Lakers do have a penchant for being eliminated early, after all...

By the way, his face at the beginning of this clip is priceless.

Fruits of their labor

And so, it begins.

After 45 days, the NBA lockout has officially started to affect my day-to-day happiness (as pathetic as that sounds). I crave free agent signings, and yet, there are none. I long for any non-lockout news, but alas, my yearnings go unquenched.

The NBAPA President Billy Hunter is saying that the upcoming NBA season could be lost. Commissioner David Stern feels otherwise. All in all, both of these guys are just blowing smoke, and no one really knows what's going to happen.

Both sides are so far apart that it will surely take some time to come to an agreement. The owners want to completely change the system. They claim that they are losing $300 million dollars a year and they want to reduce player salaries and implement a hard salary cap. The players, of course, are opposed to those changes, but have expressed their willingness to compromise. After the players received the owners first proposal, they submitted a counter proposal (which the owners promptly scoffed at). Since the lockout began, there has only been one meeting between the two sides, and naturally, nothing was accomplished. Now the NBA has filed two counts of unfair labor practice towards the NBAPA, claiming that they are threatening to decertify their union and file an antitrust lawsuit, just like the NFLPA did.

Many players are now seeking employment overseas. Deron Williams has already signed a deal in Turkey, and many lower tier players have agreed to deals as well. This appears to be a move by the players to show their independence from the NBA, but it remains to be seen whether there will be enough of an exodus to put any pressure on the owners. I'm not sure if the risk of injury is worth it. If even a few players were to suffer significant injuries while overseas, the bargaining sessions would get ugly real quick.

And then there's the potential impact that the lockout could have on next summer's Olympics. This is the summer in which the countries hold their qualifying tournaments. Normally, the NBA would insure it's player's contracts during international competition. However, due to the lockout, the NBA can no longer provide that insurance. I mean, if they won't even display images of players on their team's websites, then I doubt they'd be willing to cover their insurance.

So that's pretty much where things stand at the moment. I guess I'll just have to get by on fantasy football and labor updates for the foreseeable future.

Can't wait...