Basketball fans are looking forward to the start of the NBA season on Christmas Day. Fans should expect to see the Chicago Bulls take on the Los Angeles Lakers, the Celtics at the Knicks and Miami at Dallas on the biggest holiday of the year.
On November 26, the lockout came somewhat to an end with the teams’ owners and the players reaching an agreement on a new contract for the season, though not a final decision.
As the conflict draws to a close, most players could only express relief. Dwayne Wade, of the Miami Heat, said in a statement: “All I feel right now is, ‘finally.'” Other stars felt the same way. “Lockout over. About time,” Los Angeles Clipper Eric Gordon said.
Many of the problems involved in the lockout have been solved, though some are still in debate. Issues of drug testing for players, luxury taxes and ticket prices are still being considered. The major concern was how millions of dollars would be handled. NBA players are frustrated by the team owners having so much power over how the money is spent, especially concerning who gets the most of what is made in revenue from games, team apparel and so on. The owners feel the same way about the players.
Some players are even in the process of suing the NBA, claiming that the organization caused them to lose millions of dollars in their salarie. Essentially, these players have rejected the contracts drawn up during the lockout and have sought larger sums of money in lawsuits against the entire organization. Big names in basketball such as Kevin Durant, Carmelo Anthony and Derrick Williams are in the process of bringing their cases to California and Minnesota courts, claiming that the lockout was unlawful. The National Basketball Association has hired their own attorneys to solve the question of whether they legally had the power to create the lockout in the first place.
Although the contracts that have been drawn up are not yet complete, the end of the lockout is a relief not only to fans, but also to the millions of workers who run the stadiums where basketball games were supposed to be taking place.
Sources:
www.startribune.com
www.latimes.comy
www.washingtonpost.com
sportsillustrated.cnn.com
espn.go.com