David Stern describes it as “the nuclear option.” Billy Hunter said it would take a lengthy lockout for him to consider it, but added they were watching the NFL lockout and decertification battle to see just how feasible it might be.
Turns out, it’s feasible.
A federal judge’s ruled Monday decertifying the NFL players union Monday.
You can bet Stern heard about the ruling he said the kind of thing that would have earned a player a “respect for the game” technical. While Hunter just nodded his head and smiled.
But we are al long way from seeing the same thing in the NBA. But the players just got another card to play at the table.
During the season the, the NBA players union went team-by-team and got players to sign off on decertification of the union. Just in case.
“But before we even get to that there are a whole lot of negotiations to do, and that would only sort a last ditched effort, if it came to that,” Hunter said following a press conference All-Star weekend. “We’re going to do everything to avoid that. We don’t have the expectation nor the desire to decertify the union.
“But if we’re pushed a year-long lockout, that may be one of the options we have to consider.”
We are a long way from the union pulling those out of their back pocket anytime soon. The situations are different, the relationships between the NFL union and NFL owners are different and the NBA union and the owners it deals with.
But that card is now out there on the table, the only question is if the NBA union decides to play it.
Let’s hope they don’t, because if they do it means the lock out is long and about to get a lot uglier.