Why Kobe Is Willing To Compromise On The NBA Lockout

       When it comes to the NBA lockout, the level of concern amongst fans is certainly growing as each day passes without a resolution. What is interesting to me is the fact that the general buzz and anxiety about the NBA lockout seems to mirror the feelings of the sports community when the NFL was in a lockout, except for one major difference; the NBA regular season should have already started weeks ago! Of course avid NBA fans are no doubt biting their nails and potentially losing sleep over the possibility that there will be no NBA season at all, and I am sure they are already feeling the effects of coming home on a cool November night and having to find something else to watch on television since the game that they would usually be watching has been cancelled. That being said, there seemed to be more widespread panic happening when July 1st came and went without a new NFL labor agreement even though the NFL regular season always starts in the first week of September. At this point, NBA training camp and pre-season should have been over long ago, so unless the commissioner decides that it would be acceptable to postpone the start and finish of the NBA season (which by the way, I think would be a great idea!), there is no doubt that this NBA season will be shortened at best. Obviously everyone involved with NBA basketball from fans to vendors, to television networks and even sponsors that already spent their money to promote themselves through stadium giveaways would all agree that a shortened season would be better than no season at all. So why is it that the players and owners can't seem to compromise when they know that the entire season is in serious jeopardy? Without extensive knowledge of all the details, it's pretty safe to assume that the owners don't have as much to lose as the players and are thus remaining stubborn in sticking with their last offer, however the owners still have to think about the impact that it may have on their product going forward. If you are a true fan of the game, chances are slim that you would boycott it once it returned even if it took more than a full season to work it out. However, the fact remains that NBA basketball was gaining back popularity rapidly and after coming off one of the most successful seasons in recent memory, they are allowing much of that momentum to dwindle with each passing day.

       The cause of the lockout can really be reduced down to the revenue sharing amongst the players and the owners. The existing deal involved the players getting 57% of basketball revenue with the owners taking 43%. The owners wanted more and even began the bargaining with a proposal that would have netted the owners the majority of the income rather than the players. When it comes to the players side of the bargaining, they do not want to give in to the owners because they would be not only be losing a lot of what they have become accustomed to, but feel that they deserve it and the owner's pockets are being filled with a lot more money compared to the players anyway. About a month ago, NBA commissioner David Stern suggested to the players that he could convince the owners to compromise their original proposal down to a 50/50 split. This is the very definition of a compromise and although the players would still be losing a significant amount of revenue, it's hard to argue that it is so unfair that it would be worth losing a season over it. Granted, I am not one of the players, nor do I know every detail of the negotiations but you would have to believe that there are some players that are willing to accept that compromise. After all, not only do players want to play, but you don't need an advanced degree in finance to know that some money is better than no money. At least one high profile player has already come out and admitted that he thinks that the players should just take the 50/50 split. As the title indicates, that player is Kobe Bryant. Since Bryant already has more money than he can count, it was probably not as difficult for him to come to terms with losing a percentage of the revenue. But I believe that Kobe has a different motivation for wanting to get this season underway as soon as possible; he is 33 years old. By no means is that 'over the hill' for the average human, but for many professional athletes it's getting close to retirement. Kobe has battled some injuries and wear and tear issues in recent years, but he'll probably play for another five or six seasons barring any serious career threatening injuries.

       To Kobe Bryant, each season is an opportunity to win another championship and he fully intends and expects to do so each year. He probably still thinks about the NBA Finals series' that he didn't win with regret. So at his age, he has got to be thinking that the amount of seasons he has left are decreasing, which limits the total amount of championships and MVP trophies he can compile before hanging up his sneakers. In case you haven't noticed, Kobe Bryant is obsessed with winning and his legacy as much as any of the historical athletes that have come before him, so finishing a season as anything but number one is certainly devastating enough to him, but to imagine one less championship on his resume because he didn't even have the opportunity to give it a try must feel that much worse.