NBA players, not the league, have all the power in the lockout.
The NFL lockout will end before any games are missed (be it preseason or otherwise). Talks seem to be wrapping up and nobody wants to miss out on the money that is at stake.
In the NFL lockout, the owners hold power over the players. No NFL means no money for the players. Everyone wants the lockout to end, but the players hold little leverage. The NFL may benefit from having stars like Peyton Manning and Ray Lewis, but it doesn't need them to succeed.
Conversely, the ball is in the players' court in the NBA lockout. Stars like Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade and Dwight Howard have the power to single-handedly pack an arena. Stars are far and away the biggest marketing tools for the NBA.
While the NBA needs its stars, the players don't need the league. Deron Williams' agent says the New Jersey Nets point guard will supposedly go to Turkey if the lockout continues, and surely he will make a boatload of cash balling abroad.
Basketball overseas is a huge market. Teams are willing to shell out a ton of cash to get players to go play over there.
There has b ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NBA
Article written by Kyle Vassalo
NBA Lockout 2011: Unlike NFL, NBA Needs Its Stars More Than Stars Need the NBA
July 9th, 2011 by Kyle Vassalo Leave a reply »
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