Lakers, Players Should Be Prepared for a Fight After David Stern's Power Move

You've all heard the news: the agreed-upon three-team trade sending Chris Paul to the Los Angeles Lakers has been vetoed, killed, cancelled, nixed, stopped and overruled by NBA overlord David Stern.

An absolute bombshell that rocked the foundations of these three teams and well beyond.

His rationale? The ever-opaque "basketball reasons."

Translation: Owners complained, Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert wrote another letter, Mavericks owner Mark Cuban objected and David Stern caved to grant the wishes of a group of owners. 

In bowing to select owners' demands, merely hours after the new labor agreement was ratified, Stern's created a monster. 

Yes, David Stern put the Hornets in the worst position possible, sealing their fate by preventing any other trade from being accepted for their star player, only to see him walk at the end of the season for nothing in return.

Yes, David Stern put the Lakers in a worse situation, engineering team chemistry to an epic all-time low with a key piece to the roster, Lamar Odom, not planning on showing up for training camp and the team's No. 2 guy, Pau Gasol, told he is not in their future plans.

Yes, David Stern put the league in an awful situation, creating a PR nightmare that proves any "fair dealing" in the labor negotiations this summer was merely a hoax as one man can sidestep any rule, any operating framework under the guise of "basketball reasons" if the owners push for it.

Stern's resignation, as many have called for, probably won't happen over this. If anything, we've learned that Stern will hold onto any and all power, and he's not afraid to use it.

But by playing favorites among the owners and impinging on players' rights, Stern is alienating the real engine behind the NBA's growth: big-market teams and superstar players.

He's killed the goose with the golden egg.

Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak is reportedly "angry and mystified," and for good reason. Stern didn't have the decency to provide the Lakers with any explanation of how/why this trade was nullified. An arrogant, unabashed "No" was all the Lakers got from the league office.

The Lakers and Chris Paul will not take this lying down, with Paul apparently lawyering up to file a lawsuit against Stern and the league.

The Lakers, too, should also be lawyering up and should force this matter to be settled through arbitration rather than through the complaints of a sub-set of owners.

Stern's in for a real fight—a crying shame considering everything we as basketball fans have been through this summer.

Lakers training camp just got a heck of a lot more interesting today, and not the kind new Lakers head coach Mike Brown was expecting in his first day on the job.