Re: What's gonna happen?

["Jim Meninno" <jim_meninno@hotmail.com>]

I've given some thought to this recently, and I don't think it will 
happen, for three reasons.

First, there is nothing that can happen in an NBA labor dispute that is 
anywhere near as emotional to American sports fans as cancelling the 
World Series was.  I think the entire season could be lost and still not 
have as serious an impact on the fan base.  

Second, I think people were fed up with the game of baseball when the 
strike occured.  It is a much slower paced game than the other 2 1/2 
major sports in this country. People were already complaining about 3 
hour games.  Basketball also has a younger, less traditional fan base 
which should be more forgiving when the games resume.

Third, in the baseball strike you had a powerful player's union 
basically beating up a pathetic league leadership.  I think the NBA 
dispute is seen as more of a fair fight between the two sides.  The 
issues might not be any more noble, but at least Stern and Co. seem like 
worthy adversaries.  Further, I think that, because this action is a 
lockout rather than a strike, the fan doesn't feel like they are being 
used as ammunition by the players (at least I don't).  

Jim

PS I think people have also become hardened to this sort of thing since 
the baseball strike and they take it more in stride.  Just look at all 
the articles being written that say nobody even cares about the lockout.  
It's as if the players and the league wanted to prove to each other that 
they were willing to go through with cancelling games to get what they 
want.  I think the whole thing is being taken less seriously than in the 
past by the owners, players and the fans.  It has become an expected 
occurence in running a major sports league.

>Date: Mon, 26 Oct 1998 15:10:59 -0500
>From: "Richard J. Andres III" <randres1@purdue.edu>
>To: celtics@igtc.com
>Subject: What's gonna happen?
>
>I was just wondering if anyone thinks the NBA will lose as many viewers
>as Baseball did when they had their lockout?  Why? or why not?
>


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