The recent Hall of Fame inductee says the owners are at fault for the lockout but that the players need to give a little bit.
Maybe the NBA owners and players should give Hall-of-Famer Dennis Rodman a crack at mediating their labor dispute.
Rodman believes the three-month old lockout is the fault of the owners, but he thinks the players ought to back off their demands to help end the labor discord, according to an Associated Press report. But Rodman didn’t get into specifically what demands the players back down on.
“It’s not the players’ fault, it’s the owners’ fault and I think (the players) should give a little bit,” he said Thursday. “And that way, things will move on.”
Rodman’s perspective is interesting because he was playing during the last lockout, which resulted in the 1998-99 season being reduced to 50 games. The players came up with a 57 percent cut of the league revenue and a salary cap they could live with during that dispute.
It seems Rodman doesn’t believe this collection of players has the resolve to stay out as long as it takes; some are speculating that the entire 2011-12 season could be lost. NBA commissioner David Stern has already canceled the entire preseason and the first two weeks of the regular season.
“Most players don’t give a damn about the game,” Rodman said. “They want the money and all of a sudden they want unity. I’m not taking the owners’ side. I think the players should look at themselves.”
Contact Terrance Harris at terrancefharris@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @Terranceharris
(Photo: Jim Rogash/Getty Images)
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