[no subject]

Bird went down to Charlotte to ingratiate himself with the community
shortly after the Hornets - Charlotte's original franchise - skipped
town for New Orleans. He did everything but have M.L. Carr - another
former player and proposed partner - wave pom-poms. Meanwhile, Bird's
group was negotiating hard to lower the NBA's $300-million price tag,
thinking Bird's name would parlay into leverage.

"From day one, the committee knew Bob Johnson was the guy," the source
familiar with the NBA decision said. "His financial portfolio was just
overwhelmingly impressive. He had everything together. Everything. He
didn't need to negotiate a price."

So, no matter how Bird's group looked to the NBA, the simple fact is,
Johnson looked better.

Bird's 14-member group couldn't get the $300 million asking price as
recently as days ago, according to the official who wished to remain
anonymous. Meanwhile, "Bob was saying, 'Who do you guys want me to sign
the check to?' " the source said.

He will make it out to the NBA. He should make it out to commissioner
David Stern and the Phoenix Suns' owner and committee chairman, Jerry
Colangelo.

Stern, after all, has been on a mission for years to make sure the
league beat every other major sport to landing the first African
American majority owner. And it was Colangelo - like Johnson, a graduate
of the University of Illinois - who befriended Johnson nearly 10 years
ago and championed his cause in the league.

Anyone with knowledge of the NBA knows that Johnson doesn't get in
without Stern and Colangelo.

And anyone with a respect for fairness and ethics should realize that it
was time for this to happen.

Johnson came to the table with credentials instead of his hand out. He
had the financial package to make this happen. And in the final
analysis, when prejudice, unfairness and the ever-so-popular Good Ol'
Boy network could have played a significant role, it didn't.

For years, the NBA's mantra has been "I love this game."

Now, more than ever, I know why!


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Contact staff writer Stephen A. Smith at 215-854-5846 or
ssmith@phillynews.com.