NBA and NFL owners and players are all talking about a lockout after this season. The owners say the cost of business is getting too high. The players counter by wanting their fair share. I wonder who is crazier.
The NFL has been rattling sabers for some time saying there could be a lockout if the landscape does not change. Landscape being what the players are being paid. They say the players are making too much. This comes from owners who do not have to pay for professional development from college football.
The NFL owner has few guaranteed contracts to deal with. They save those for the Peytons, Bretts and now Donovans of the league, not to mention the first-round drafted players who have yet to break a sweat. The owners, and those accommodating taxpayers, are also on the hook for the lavish stadiums they build to entertain 70,000 of their closest friends.
One problem. A lot of friends are electing to stay home and watch the games on TV. That means not as much in overpriced concession sales and outrageously priced parking.
As for the NBA, they have even mentioned contraction, reducing the number of teams and jobs. Commissioner David Stern said the NBA is losing somewhere in the vicinity of $350 million a year. He would like to see salaries cut by one-third, which would add up to roughly $750-800 million. The players will not take an $800 million haircut and Stern knows that, but I guess he had to start somewhere.
Question. If they are so broke, then why are the Washington Redskins going to pay Donovan McNabb 40 million guaranteed dollars? The Redskins are valued at over $1.5 billion. Why are the Indianapolis Colts looking to extend Peyton Manning to another gazillion dollar deal?
The NBA is no different. The Memphis Grizzlies and Atlanta Hawks have elected to pay out $120 million to two players in Mike Conley Jr. and Al Horford. Between the two, they have been to the playoffs once. Talk about paying on potential? How about letting them be part of something first, like a winning team?
As a fan, it’s hard to feel sorry for either side. They both have an inflated value of themselves, but the owners normally outlast the players. The players come and go. As soon as you fall in love with a player, they normally have to move him because he costs too much because the salary cap says so.
Speaking of the salary cap, how is that working out for ya? The players fought it tooth and nail. Now the owners have it, and yet they still find the cost of doing business too high.
