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Bob Kravitz: Who's big winner in lockout? Pacers

The NBA season won't begin until Christmas, but already, the Indiana Pacers have won.

So have all the league's small-market, small-revenue teams -- the Hornets and Bobcats, the Kings and the Bucks and several others.

Assuming the new labor deal is confirmed by both sides, not only will we have NBA basketball back on our radar -- and not a moment too soon given the grim fortunes of the local pro and college football teams -- but we will have a reconstituted NBA that gives the little guys a better chance to compete with the L.A.s, New Yorks and Bostons.

The small-market excuse -- we just can't compete when Mark Cuban is paying all that money -- is going to ring more hollow than ever. That's not to say that Pacers owner Herb Simon has been handed a blank check, or that the Lakers' Jerry Buss is applying for food stamps, but the playing field, or court, has been leveled.

Link- http://www.indystar.com/article/2011112 ... d|mostview

It does make sense. But what I don't understand is, now that the lockout is over, i keep reading ridicules trade rumors that make no sense at all. For one, people saying Lakers are trying to get Dwight Howard and Chris Paul.... this team is already $20 million over the cap. Also, Sporting News Sean Deveney says Heat will try very hard to get Nene, for a package of Mike Miller and Haslem. This trade wouldn't even work on my xbox. It'd be a sign-and-trade.

Small market teams have ways of making loads of money even if they win 33 games a year, so, by not losing, they have a chance to get a deal done plus build via the draft, but to me, it still seems the system is very fraud. Especially the sign-and-trade where Lakers and Heat can keep adding dudes with no hesitation.

Your XBox has the new CBA?

A lot of times those trade rumor articles are written by lesser known writers hoping to get noticed.

Indy2thaWindy wrote:A lot of times those trade rumor articles are written by lesser known writers hoping to get noticed.

Sean Deveney is pretty legit and the Lakers was from Hoopsworld, so yeah, they have some legit some not, i forget which guy exactly said it. So you may have a point there. I just think the new CBA is pro-small market team owners, but didn't fix problem for small market teams. But i could be way off, so i don't know. I was just kinda thinking out loud as i was typing.

These two articles explain a lot about old CBA vs. new CBA when it comes to trades and loading teams up with stars.... though i am still not sure how Lakers think they can land Howard and Paul. But that's for another day... lol

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/story/1628 ... melo-route

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/30/sport ... r=2&src=tp

Figured i would post these two as i raised the question, and much of the answer is in this.

I'm with you Grang33r, if the Lakers obtain Dwight and Chris they wouldn't even need Kobe. Regardless, I'm tired of seeing Kobe surrounded by elite all-star performers, sure he can imitate AIRJ in scoring, but when it comes to producing titles he needs a lot of help.

The new rules are suppose to protect teams from losing franchise cornerstones to cherry-picking so-called larger markets.

The NFL is all the proof needed to dispel the notion the NBA seems to adhere to. If they keep enriching certain teams because they believe it is in their best interest to have a viable contender in that market, then why in the hell is there even a league.

If this is still the case, the NBA will have as much integrity as the WWE, as in the outcome is already decided. Ultimately Stern needs to be put out of his misery. If you ask me, he dropped the ball every since Jordan's retirement. From the lockout in 99' to all the bailouts and backhanded deals every since. The league has been in steady decline, and if it wasn't for the Heat, nobody would've cared last year either. In that respect stacking the Heat was a quick fix, but in the long run, the league will still be declining.