Out of Hibernation: The Closer weighs in on the NBA Lockout of 2011

I just want to start this of by saying that I've been quiet for a while now, and those who visit the site knows that The Closer has been in hibernation and hasn't said much since the lockout began, but I am tired of the fucking,  fake ass, bandwagon fans coming out and talking shit about the players of the NBA.  Please excuse my French but I had a big headed ass dude come up to me and ask "What do you think about the lockout?"  He then said "those players are so greedy and I wish I made a percentage of what they make. I wouldn’t complain about anything."  This usually isn't a big deal for me but the problem is this is a continuing issue with people and I came out of hibernation just to say that I am sick, I repeat I AM SICK OF THIS SHIT!  

During the conversation he spoke about how we the workers have no when it comes to the salaries that we earn from our employers and for the most part he is right. we don’t but this is the deal; as an employee of a large retail company, I can't go up to my boss and ask for a raise that will entitle me and all the other employees in the company to get half of the revenue that is earned.  I understand that will never happen, they might fire me or tell me to fuck off but the key difference between me as an employee and NBA players is very simple; If I take all the merchandise out of the retail store aka the product and I open doors for business once customers walk in and realize that the store is empty they will walk out and go down the street to our competition and shop there and we will very soon go out of business.  The key word in the prior sentence is product.  When you look at the NBA players they are that same product, that is who people pay top dollar to see.  So this answers the question of why the players have the right to ask for 50% or more because they are the product and they're the main event in the business of basketball, without the players there is no NBA and I'm not spending my money to go see David Stern's bitchass or the owners, I go to watch Kobe, Dwyane Wade and Allen Iverson, ye I said it, Allen Iverson and god dammit and he is still one of my favorite players and someone needs to call him.......your welcome Allen!  Anyways to get back to my rant, David Stern and his goons are trying to play this david versus Goliath game and we all know in that event who won (the little man) which is the NBA players not the little evil elf by the name of David Stern.  

I see Stern all the time on television using his resources "the media" to make the players look bad and they are playing the game of convincing the audience that the players are the bad guys in this fight.  The owners in the NBA are nothing more than business men that want to turn a profit and some of them don’t HAVE RESPECT FOR THE GAME, THEY'RE JUST SOME RICH DORK that had enough money to invest into a team.  To a point I understand their pain, I am a business major that has worked a  few years in banking and I know how investors think but all smart investors know when you invest it is a win or lose situation.  If you are in a low budget city with a consistent losing team, what you think the out come would be? Loser.  You will be a losing owner just like your bad losing team and with any business to grow and prosper you have to invest in the company meaning the cheap owners out there needs to invest in their team /investment to make it more profitable.  I'm not a Mark Cuban fan by any means but he spent the money and invested in the Dallas Mavericks and it finally paid off for him not just financially but with the ultimate prize the NBA championship and they'll have all year to brag about and perhaps two.  The same thing happen with the Miami Heat in 2006 and the Lakers and Celtics for many years.  To all the business owners out there this is a very easy formula to calculate, when you invest and put the time and hard work in you company and it still doesn't succeed, what do smart business men do?  

More than often the owners shut their businesses down and move on to next best thing, they don’t try to take their employees pay check because doing that will not make their business run any better.  At that point if one has a bad low budget city, then one would need to shut that factory down and move into a city that's more live, more prosperous, a city that is hungry and ready for one's business and what that business has to offer.  That is how successful businesses succeed and if these NBA owners or David Stern were smart, that’s what they would choose to do.  Another thing I would like to throw out there is that I know some players have gotten used to an extravagant life and perhaps haven't saved much money.  This has a created a situation where some of them maybe growing desperate and would be willing accept a bad deal just to have income again.  To all of the players in that situation, you can't be selfish and only look out for yourselves.  You have to understand that these negotiations are for the next 10 years and if you don’t get a fair deal out of this in the end you'll lose.  Please keep in mind that Billy Hunter is trying to get the best deal that he can for you and there's no I in team.  

My advice to all the NBA owners that don’t have a real interest in their team and whom only wants to walk around smoking Cuban cigars dressed in cheap leisure suits all the while sporting receding hairlines upstairs in their office's.......sell the fucking team!  To the NBA players, I ask that you keep hope alive and Billy Hunter does care about you and is trying his best to make the most practical deal for you.  Finally to all the fake fans out there that don’t know what the hell is going on, your opinion doesn't count and please try to do what has been very hard for you to do now and that is shut the fuck up.