NBA Steps Out of the Flame, Into the Fire

The new CBA was ratified on Thursday, avoiding a season-long lockout, but NBA Commissioner David Stern pulled a Plaxico Burress and shot himself in the leg.

Except unlike Stevie Johnson, Stern will get much worse than a 15-yard penalty.

With point guard Chris Paul set to hit free agency at the end of this season, the New Orleans Hornets were looking to trade Paul so the finically unstable, bottom-tier team would get some compensation for him.

The past few weeks various publications were publishing that he was being shopped by the Hornets and would likely be traded.

When the news became official that the Lakers had agreed in principal to acquire Paul in a three-team trade involving the Hornets, the NBA went into DEFCON 1.

Except the nuclear threat wasn’t from outside sources, it was coming from inside the very office they were trying to protect.

The problem radiates from many levels.

First, one of the best teams in the league was getting one of the best guards in the league in Paul while taking him from one of the worst teams in the league. The motif of the CBA negotiations was to bring competitive balance to the league.

The Paul trade also left the Lakers in position to make a potential trade for Orlando Magic superstar center Dwight Howard, creating another Miami Heat situation with three superstars on one team.

Second, the NBA PR arm not only turned the ball over, they committed an and-1 on the other side of the court.

No, they said, it wasn’t the owners that wanted to deny the trade; they did it because of “basketball reasons.”

Seriously, that was their reason.

“Basketball reasons.”

That will become the NBA’s second-biggest joke to all the “I am taking my talents to (insert place here)” jokes.

Oh, and get this. The league owns the Hornets.

Yes, the 28 other teams that weren’t able to trade for Paul are part owners of the Hornets.

While the intention behind the revoking of the trade by the league offices was true—the entire reason behind the lockout was to regain parity, and this trade is the exact opposite—the way it was done was wrong.

The league shouldn’t own the Hornets, they should sell the team for whatever partly sum they can get or just fold the team, and the precedence this sets is tremendous.

And Stern shouldn’t be allowed to decide if a team that is owned by owners who essentially employ him can or cannot make a trade.

Now the Hornets can no longer trade Paul, because now Stern has now dictated where one of the leagues stars can go and when Paul signs with another team at the end of the season the Hornets will be left with nothing.

For the other players involved in the potential deal, get over it, your current team wasn’t trading you because they didn’t like you or want you to play; they wanted to get a superior player.

Just when Stern thinks he is in the clear, he starts another fire right before the season starts.

Four Important NFL matchups

Buffalo Bills @ San Diego Chargers: Both the Bills and Bolts had a strong start to the season, but then had a huge decline in recent weeks. The difference is the Chargers play in a weak division and still have a chance to get into the playoffs. The Chargers offensive line needs to keep Philip Rivers upright in the pocket and the defense need to get a takeaway to get the win and keep their playoff hopes alive.

Chicago Bears @ Denver Broncos: The Bears are trying to regroup after losing quarterback Jay Cutler to a season-ending injury, the Broncos continue to win because of he-who-must-not-be-named. The Bears need to see if they can win without Cutler and running back Matt Forte, while the Broncos need to get a lead before late in the fourth quarter. Thanks to all of the Bears injures, the Broncos will once again find a way to win and continue their improbable comeback.

Oakland Raiders @ Green Bay Packers: The revived Raiders are in the playoff picture, but face a Packers team that has already secured a playoff spot and is trying to go undefeated. Like the other 13 teams before the Raiders, their defense will have a tough time stopping the best offense in the league.

New York Giants @ Dallas Cowboys: One of the more interesting games, because the Giants have surrendered their division lead after a four-game losing streak. The Giants need the win to stay in the playoff picture and the Cowboys need to wash the taste out of their mouth following the Arizona loss on Thanksgiving. Look for Tony Romo to increase the Cowboys lead over the sliding Giants.

Observations from the week that was Dec 2-7

Saw the trailer for the movie “New Years Eve.” Why aren’t more people pissed they just grabbed a bunch of popular actors to make an average movie with a surefire cast to bring in the big bucks. We were all mad when the Wade-James-Bosh trio teamed up in Miami, this cast list is much more egregious that the Heat paring.

I read “The Hunger Games” by Suzanne Collins in a day. The last book I read in a day was the last Harry Potter book—highly recommend it.

Raider linebacker Rolando McClain had an interesting picture taken of him as he was being detained by police on misdemeanor gun and assault charges. Naturally, people then Photoshopped that image into many other scenes.

After Albert Pujols signed a 10-year, $260 million contract with the Los Angeles Angels, somebody put a security guard by his statue in St. Louis.

College athletes don’t get paid … they just get swag (stuff we all get).

Back to Pujols, the Angels will pay him about $25 million a year. Or half of the Padres entire roster.

Good thing there was no excessive celebrating during .

For the record

Chargers 30 Bills 17