NBA Season Grows Closer to Cancellation: Maybe It's Time to Panic?

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The NFL actually understood the urgent nature of what a work stoppage would do to the long-term health of the league. Yes they may have waited a bit too long and that shortened training camp. The lack of mini-camps may very well be contributing to the flurry of injuries the NFL is experiencing right now. At least the league got it together in time for the games to take place though. 

Back in early August, I penned a column detailing the five players who stood to lose the most if the season were to be cancelled. http://bleacherreport.com/articles/796353-lebron-james-is-the-big-loser-if-the-nba-if-the-nba-is-cancelled. Those still stand but let's be real here. Everyone loses if this season goes down. 

While the NBA did have a great year for ratings last season, they're not the NFL. Not even close. The past decade—really the entire post-Jordan era has seen a decline in fan interest. Perhaps some of that is just unavoidable since Jordan was arguably the most transcendent athlete since the peak of Mohammed Ali's reign over boxing.

Then again, that 1999 work stoppage sure didn't help matters. Neither did the ugly brawl between the Detroit Pistons and Indiana Pacers in November of 2004. 

Then there's the little matter of the heirs to Jordan's throne. The three biggest names on the NBA's stage since Jordan left have been Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O'Neal and Lebron James. Shaq and Kobe both have had their ups and downs. Lebron too has experienced peaks and valleys in his career. 

Last season was both a peak and a valley for Lebron, who made a huge free agent splash in Miami, got off to a shaky start, seemingly righted the ship and then crashed with a resounding "thud" when the pressures of the NBA finals arrived in the form of a determined and talented Dallas Mavericks team. 

Someone needs to right the NBA ship right now. The NBA is no longer approaching the cancellation of a portion or possibly the entire season.  They're on the edge, with one foot off and slightly wobbly as well about to fall into a pit of labor strife that could cripple the league for years to come.  

It's time for the owners some of whom make tons of money off their franchises to entertain sharing some of it with those that don't turn huge profits. It's also time to remind those owners that are losing money on their teams that while not turning a profit isn't ideal these are not men on the verge of homelessness. 

Glen Taylor the owner of the Timberwolves and one of the owners most likely to be pushing for the dramatic salary cuts and hard cap that is keeping the two sides apart does not use the Timberwolves as his primary income source. Taylor has a net worth of $1.8 billion according to Forbes Magazine http://www.forbes.com/profile/glen-taylor/ He got that wealth from his multinational corporation that specializes in printing and electronics. 

As difficult as it may be for most people to find empathy with NBA players such as Rashard Lewis who made more than 20 million dollars last season while averaging 11.4 points per game it's even more difficult for most people to feel the financial pain of someone that can own an NBA franchise he claims to be losing money on and still be worth $1.8 billion! 

The onus is on the owners everyone. This is not a player strike, it's a lockout. The NBA Season may be cancelled and if it is it's important for those who care about the league and love the sport to recognize who's to blame. Push the panic button if you like the NBA because the owners are on the verge of doing some real severe damage to it.

Ben Shapiro writes for TheFanManifesto. He can be followed on twitter at https://twitter.com/#!/Shappernyc