Mike Lupica: David Falk Is A Phony And Other Good Bon Mots

[Way Of The Ray <wayray@ix.netcom.com>]

Lupica is a nationally known columnist who often appears on
Imus In The Morning, or as we Stern fans call it:
Anus In The Morning.


MIKE LUPICA: Jordan's agent shows his true colors

Copyright © 1998 Nando.net
Copyright © 1998 Los Angeles Times Syndicate

*For complete sports news, check out The SportServer.

(November 2, 1998 00:26 a.m. EST http://www.nandotimes.com) -- There may be
worse phonies in sports than David Falk, but it is hard to come up with one
today.

Falk was in The New York Times, in a story written by the fine NBA writer
Mike Wise, saying that he, Falk, was behind Michael Jordan's attack of
Wizards owner Abe Pollin during a bargaining session aimed at ending this
NBA lockout. Falk also wants the world to believe that he has had very
little to do with the entire mess until now. This is Falk trying to ride in
like some kind of hero, save the sport and the season and everything.

Rasputin off the bench!

There are no heroes in this messy NBA lockout. As always, there is no way
for the fans to root. The owners want to change a deal they made in 1995,
get a bigger share of a sport that is now worth billions. The players'
union -- now being run by Falk client Jordan even as Falk client Patrick
Ewing still acts as if he is in charge -- wants to preserve a system that
makes a joke out of the salary cap and allows kids in their second year in
the league to have the kind of leverage to demand $100 million contracts.

Falk helped strong-arm this system into place three years ago when he
effectively took over the union by threatening to decertify it. He is
always spoiling for a fight with NBA commissioner David Stern because Falk
thinks he is the most powerful man in the sport, because of his client
list. An agent thinking he is some kind of star.

A clerk who imagines himself dunking the ball to the roar of the crowd.

The wisdom on guys like Falk comes from the writer William Goldman, who
also happens to be a Knicks season-ticket holder and all-around basketball
nut:

Agents don't matter. They never have. They never will.

They just live longer.

You pick any side you want to in a fight over billions that takes your
games away. Once again, big-time sports is a wallet-swinging contest:
Mine's bigger than yours. And an ego-swinging contest, between the richest
players and filthy rich owners.

But know something: There is only one agent in the history of pro
basketball who advanced the sport for noble purposes. It was the late Larry
Fleisher, who represented players and ran the union and -- along with Stern
-- helped create a labor-management structure -- along with Stern -- that
became the foundation of the modern NBA. Compared to Fleisher, Falk is a
cheap hustler, whatever kind of client list he has.

Falk says he can create his own league, be the king of the basketball world
because he still has Jordan, even if Jordan has one year left, tops. Except
there isn't going to be another league. There isn't going to be a player
boycott when this is all over. This is just the agent trying to talk tough,
as though he matters beyond his four percent.

Now Falk gets Jordan to talk tough with Abe Pollin, an owner who was around
pro basketball before it became the hottest game in the world. Before Falk,
before Jordan. As if Pollin is some kind of bad guy here because he wants
to stop losing money. Very nice. Falk liked Abe a lot better when he got
$100 million off him for Juwan Howard.

There aren't many guys who can make you root for a sports owner.

Falk can. At least he is out in the open. It was gutless, even by Falk's
standards, to hide behind his clients forever.




My favorite picture yet from the NBA lockout -- other than the one of Kenny
Anderson posing with one of his eight cars -- was the one the other day of
Patrick Ewing and friends all talking on their cell phones as they came out
of the latest negotiating session.

Who were these guys calling -- each other?

**********



You think Ewing is still excited about this new career of his in politics?



These pro football announcers should spend more time watching the plays
Doug Flutie is making, less time jabbering about how small he is.

But then small minds have always had trouble with the size of Flutie's
game.
<snip>

(c) 1998, New York Daily News. Distributed by Los Angeles Times Syndicate


Copyright © 1998 Nando.net