Let's Play

Pic from ESPN.com, found here.

One of my favorite pastimes is following basketball. No, not college mind you, but pro ball. Though I live in and love the bluegrass state of Kentucky where fans "bleed blue" for their famed UK Wildcats, my enjoyment of the game comes from the National Basketball Association (NBA).

I developed a love for playing basketball as a kid in upstate New York, and began following NBA basketball for fun in probably my high school years. I love the grace, the power, the finesse, the explosiveness, the intensity, the suspense, and the stories of the game.

The popular sports teams where I grew up were out of Buffalo - the Bills (football, of course) and the Sabres (hockey). The nearest pro basketball team was out of state in Cleveland, OH, about 4 hours or so away. Pro basketball didn't have a great following in our area, but then again, it doesn't have the following nationwide that football has either. It's more of a niche market - some impassioned fans, but also many casual or occasional observers, where by contrast, as I heard one analyst say, people shape their lives around the football season here in the U.S.

I guess you could call me one of those "niche" followers then. Either way, there's not much to follow these days. The NBA is currently on lockout, basically meaning that the owners have locked out the players until both the owners and the players come to a more fair collective bargaining agreement, at least from the owners perspective. While the season is on lockout, the owners and players are both losing money, but the fans of course lose as well. The true NBA fans are caught waiting for the season to begin with their breath held.

Recently, the commissioner of the league, David Stern, is reported to issue an ultimatum so to speak, saying that if the current proposal isn't accepted by the players union, the next offer wouldn't be as favorable, with an acceptance deadline of this Wednesday.

It doesn't look promising for an acceptance from the union at this point. I understand that they are trying to do their best to get a fair agreement for their sake and the players coming after them. Some, I'm sure, feel like the offer from the owners is wrong and offensive, and so they are fighting for a fair deal themselves.

I am not in the middle of this fight, so I am not sure which deal is fair or right or if one proposal favors one side over another. But for the sake of the fans I hope that they resolve the disagreements quickly. I hope they can find common ground in the middle of their differences, strike a deal, and move forward soon.

I know it's more likely that not that my voice is not heard in this battle, but if there was any way it could be heard, my thought would be "let's play." And I believe that would be the voice of the majority of fans out there.