LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony and Kevin Durant Send Message with Exhibition

Back when time was young, summer ball—no, not random Ron Artest sightings in the Vegas Summer League—was an integral part of NBA player culture. Pro-am leagues offered them a chance to cut loose and show off their creative sides. At the same time, in the 1960s and early 1970s, All-Stars often found themselves matched up against players who could, or should, have been in their position. Scouting was primitive, opportunities far more scarce and the league itself had far fewer spots. Street cred, as it were, was a double-edged sword.

It’s been a while since summer run meant much of anything. Some pros still make celebrity cameos at the Rucker, and in D.C., Gilbert Arenas and Kevin Durant made the Goodman League part of their offseason itinerary. Los Angeles’ Drew League and Houston’s Fonde Rec Center were also favorite haunts for NBA players. Mostly, though, it was a diluted version of the olden days. Kobe Bryant or Vince Carter wowed fans in an intimate environment, helping burnish their brand; guys looking for a relatively competitive game knew where to find one.

This year, things are different. It started with Kevin Durant hooping it up around the country while, presumably, most NBA players were sweating over the lockout and considering options overseas. (Note: Durant himself is guilty of the latter.) Maybe it was nothing new, but the scale—and the symbolism—of it were unmistakable. Kevin Durant has reminded us that he's first and foremost an athlete who mesmerizes us. The millionaire stuff is secondary. Same thing when Kobe showed up at the Drew League and hung 45 on James Harden. While labor talks stall, basketball isn’t going anywhere. In fact, it may never have seemed more personal. Let’s not forget, though, that Kobe Bryant has been as vocal as anyone about the current labor situation.

Tuesday’s Melo League-Goodman showdown in Baltimore may have succeeded in upping the stakes, or at least gesturing in that direction. Durant was billed as leading young guns John Wall, Brandon Jennings, Ty Lawson, Jeff Green and DeMarcus Cousins into battle against B-More's Melo League. The Carmelo Anthony-sponsored Melo League has regularly attracted NBA talent, but for this game, they pulled out all the stops, promising uber-stars LeBron James, Chris Paul, Anthony, Eric Bledsoe, local products Josh Selby, Gary Neal and Donte Greene...and the first appearance in decades of Eddy Curry. Naturally, there were some no-shows, most notably Wall, Jennings, Cousins, Greene and human interest story Curry. But the A-listers showed up, and that's why this game mattered

Tuesday’s lineup transcended summer fun or naked egoism. As with anything involving LeBron James, we have to guess there's something more sinister at play. At this point, it's a reflex; fairly or not, his Drew League appearance seemed like a PR move to keep up with Durant. The Baltimore game wasn't televised, and all proceeds from the tickets went to charity (sound familiar?). Yet the sheer assemblage of talent suggests that this game is, in some sense, an experiment. Rumors of a China barnstorming tour have persisted, but never materialized, and the exhibition in the Philippines, which Durant was a part of, had all the trappings of a one-off. Tuesday's contest had the biggest names, no corporate involvement and the most hype behind it. Michael Lee’s Twitter feed served as ad hoc broadcasting, with fans hanging on his every update (Trey Kerby’s meme-tastic “#fakegoodmantweets” provided the comic relief). His descriptions made it sound like we were missing the greatest basketball game ever, and in this hoops-starved context, it might as well have been.

Durant and James going to head-to-head, with KD going for 59 and James getting the win, was almost overkill. This was what we’ve been missing, but better; it was a fantasy come true. Lee's morning-after post for The Washington Post detailed the mix of star power, competitive spirit and unbridled showmanship that made the game such an event.

All of a sudden the players—without any direct corporate involvement—have the beginning of a self-determined model on their hands. Comparisons to the bungled 1999 "charity" game during the last lockout might as well be Stone Age relics. We've already seen the likes of LeBron try and change the league's power dynamic, thinking like a businessman instead of well-paid employees. And don't forget, the options for revenue now are far more sophisticated than physical tickets or pay-per-view. Thank you, Internet.

Granted, it's a long way from one single game that no one sees or profits from to anything that could take the place of the NBA. And as Howard Beck noted on Tuesday, players have done a good job of appearing neither needy and desperate, nor spoiled and indifferent. Playing basketball in any business-minded fashion might be the worst thing they can do.

At the same time, as Durant has proven, fans really do miss the NBA. The brand was on a massive upswing; this lockout simply could not have come at a worse time for the league. The players, though, have demand, and leeway, to work with. The more games like this we see, whether or not anyone really attempts to collect bank off of them, the more it reinforces the idea that players are a force to be reckoned with—the same kind of thinking that built the Miami Heat and which was supposed to be one of the dominant themes of the labor talks.

The Finals changed that. But James, Anthony and Paul coming together can never, in our post-Decision universe, ever be just some dudes hitting the court for fun. If the players can create demand and something like an infrastructure—no matter how limited—without the owners, it makes a statement. It might backfire. After all, LeBron and Wade were dismissed by some as "uppity." However, with so many fans already longing for NBA basketball and the league itself unable to even deliver second-rounders vying for roster spots, a player-driven tournament would be the ultimate goodwill gesture. Not to mention one hell of a bargaining chip.

Correction: An earlier version of this article stated John Wall, Brandon Jennings, DeMarcus Cousins, Donte Greene and Eddy Curry were in attendance. It has been revised to explain that they did not attend as planned.