Memphis Grizzlies forward Shane Battier talks NBA lockout
Memphis Grizzlies star Shane Battier sat down for an interview recently and discussed the NBA lockout, terming it the consequence of what he called the ugly side of business.
Battier was not pleased with the current situation but contended that there wasn’t much he could do about it.
The NBA lockout began on July 1st after the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) expired. Talks between the NBA owners and the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) proved fruitless and the sides are now headed for the courts.
Battier has been a patient observer throughout the lockout, and he doesn’t like how things have turned out so far. Talking to the Sports Radio Interviews.com, he said;
“I’ve been a conscientious observer of the process. I really haven’t been too involved with the mediators, but I’ve been talking to different representatives and guys in the know in the inner circle and given my two cents.”
Now the situation is threatening the entire season.
NBA Commissioner David Stern has not only cancelled the entire pre-season, he has also called off games until December 15. The negotiations turned sour more than a week ago when Stern issued an ultimatum to the players, warning them that terms of an offer would only get worse if they did not take the one on the table.
The players held a meeting last Monday, November 14, and decided to reject his offer. They have also decertified the union and sued the NBA owners on antitrust basis.
Battier said in the interview that the players didn’t want to go down this route, nor are they happy with having to do so, but at the end of the day there simply weren’t other options available for them.
“Obviously, it stinks. There’s no way around it. The players feel terrible and it’s a no-win situation. There’s not going to be a winner out of this scenario. Unfortunately it’s the ugly business side of what we do.”
The major point of contention between owners and players was believed to the Basketball Related Income. Players were guaranteed a 57 percent share of the BRI in the last CBA and expressed willingness to bring that down to 54 percent.
Owners though were greedy, and said they would not give players a cent above 50 percent. After months on the negotiation table, players reportedly even agreed to the 50 percent, but then owners made unrealistic demands on the system issues as well.
That proved to be a bridge too far for the players, who decided to make a stand and not have their fair rights taken away by the owners. Now a federal judge will most likely rule on the matter.
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