马刺1998-99赛季实录（780+篇）

[这也将成为过去]

1998-10-29, By Johnny Ludden

NBA 11 月份赛程全数取消 - 又两周比赛泡汤

称之为“停摆后遗症第 635-638 号”。在 NBA 年度理事会会议结束后，联盟总裁大卫·斯特恩(David Stern) 宣布再取消两周比赛，这意味着球员又损失了 1 亿美元的薪水，迈克尔·乔丹(Michael Jordan) 告别巡回赛 II 的圣安东尼奥站也被取消，而且还影响了北美自由贸易协定。

联盟老板们拒绝重新采用“NBA 动作：精彩绝伦(NBA Action: It’s FANtastic)”作为他们的营销口号。

但随着整个 11 月赛程（包括 15 场马刺队比赛）被取消，斯特恩也首次承认，联盟和球员之间已经形成了协议框架，取消的比赛可以“重新安排”。

“我既不乐观也不悲观，”斯特恩在理事会会议后的新闻发布会上说。“我认为我们必须进行对话。”

联盟和球员工会似乎至少正在进行对话。在老板会议后，斯特恩和 NBA 劳资关系委员会与大约 100 名球员进行了问答环节，其中包括马刺队主席彼得·霍尔特(Peter Holt) 和中锋大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson)。联盟官员和工会计划在周三晚上继续谈判，并承诺本周继续谈判。

“我认为现在有一种更强的迫切感来达成协议，”罗宾逊说。“我认为老板们都真心希望达成协议。”

然而，在达成协议之前，马刺队的赛季现在只有 67 场比赛，并且还在不断减少。斯特恩和副总裁拉塞尔·格拉尼克(Russ Granik) 也表示，球迷可以假设，每过去一周没有达成协议，赛季就会再少一场比赛。

“拉塞尔和我不想像土拨鼠出洞一样召开新闻发布会，”斯特恩说。“现在每个人都明白规则，我们希望在这里宣布达成协议。我们不想以后再出来说，‘现在达成协议为时已晚，并且坚持希望常规赛能够进行是毫无意义的。’”

斯特恩告诉联盟老板，他不想设定整个赛季全部取消的最后期限。

“我们希望随时准备着展现创意，我们不想做出任何威胁，”斯特恩说。“我们正在努力达成协议。”

除了错过芝加哥公牛队唯一一场常规赛圣安东尼奥站的比赛之外，马刺队 12 月 12 日在墨西哥城与洛杉矶快船队的比赛也在周三被取消。

联盟表示，将在 1999 年 12 月在墨西哥举行一场比赛，但尚未决定哪支球队将在那里比赛。

“我们向所有期待 NBA 墨西哥 98 的球迷和合作伙伴道歉，但停摆给我们留下的时间不足以妥善规划这项活动，”格拉尼克说。

马刺队周三总共损失了 8 场比赛，包括另外 4 场主场比赛：印第安纳步行者(11 月 19 日)；芝加哥公牛(11 月 21 日)；西雅图超音速(11 月 25 日)；和新泽西篮网(11 月 27 日)。如果乔丹决定推迟退役计划，并且芝加哥比赛没有补赛，马刺队将错过 NBA 最受欢迎的球队。当然，除非在总决赛相遇。

自从乔丹从棒球休假回来后，公牛队在过去的三个赛季中都吸引了圣安东尼奥阿拉莫巨蛋最多的观众。芝加哥公牛队上次访问圣安东尼奥是在 3 月 14 日，创下了马刺队队史最高主场观众人数纪录，为 37,492 人。

虽然阿拉莫巨蛋因取消了 4 场季前赛和 7 场常规赛而损失了约 37 万美元，但阿宾顿乐观地认为，达成协议后可以收回部分资金。阿拉莫巨蛋的预订安排很可能能够容纳 NBA 在 5 月或 6 月进行的任何重新安排。

根据重新安排的比赛，如果有的话，马刺队可能会从最新的取消浪潮中获益。周三取消的 7 场 11 月份比赛都是对阵季后赛球队的。在 15 场被取消的比赛中，他们将面对 12 个对手，而马刺队在上赛季对阵这些对手的战绩是 20 胜 20 负。

“从某种意义上说，今天的消息还不错，”阿宾顿说。“我们都在看到一些进展。看到他们是一周一周地取消比赛，而不是一次性全部取消，最终可能意味着拯救一些比赛。”

联盟老板和球员仍然需要在联盟收入分配给球员的比例上达成妥协，但双方似乎更接近达成协议框架，这将结束为期四个月的僵局。

在新协议的前两年，将使用奢侈税。如果奢侈税未能减少联盟总收入用于球员薪水的比例，那么协议接下来的两年将要求球员将他们收入的 10% 存入托管账户。

“我想说，我认为我们已经克服了不给事情命名，不以阻碍我们进展的方式对事物进行标记的观念障碍，”斯特恩说。“我认为这是我们的进步。但在关于这笔交易核心内容的艰难谈判方面，我认为我们还没有进展。”

点击查看原文：NBA picks November clean - Another two weeks of games lost

NBA picks November clean - Another two weeks of games lost

Call it Lockout Repercussions Nos. 635-638. After the NBA’s annual Board of Governors meeting Wednesday, Commissioner David Stern canceled two more weeks of the season, erased another $100 million in players’ salaries, nixed a possible Alamodome stop on the Michael Jordan Farewell Tour II and impacted NAFTA relations.

League owners, however, declined to readopt “NBA Action: It’s FANtastic,” as their marketing slogan.

But with all of the November schedule - including 15 Spurs games - now wiped out, Stern also admitted for the first time that the framework of an agreement between owners and players exists and said canceled games could be “recaptured.”

“I feel neither optimism or pessimism,” Stern said at an afternoon news conference following the Board of Governors meeting. “I just think that we’ve got to talk.”

The league and players’ association appear to at least be doing that. After the owners’ meeting, Stern and the NBA’s labor relations committee held a question-and-answer session for about 100 players that included both Spurs chairman Peter Holt and center David Robinson. League officials and the union were scheduled to resume negotiations Wednesday night and vowed to continue talks throughout the week.

“I would say there seems to be more of a sense of urgency of getting (an agreement),” Robinson said. “I think the owners share a genuine desire to see this done.”

Until an agreement is reached, however, the Spurs’ season is now 67 games and dwindling. Stern and deputy commissioner Russ Granik also said fans can assume that with each week that passes without an agreement, another week of the season will be lost.

“Russ and I don’t want to have press conferences sort of like groundhog sightings,” Stern said. “Everyone now understands how it works, and we’d like to appear here to announce a settlement. And we’d like not to appear somewhere down the road to say, ‘It’s too late to reach a settlement, and it doesn’t pay to hold out the hope that there will be a regular season to be played.’”

Stern told the league’s owners he did not want to set a deadline for when the entire season would be lost.

“We want to stand ready to be imaginative, and we don’t want to be making any threats,” Stern said. “What we are trying to do is to make a deal.”

In addition to losing the only regular-season Alamodome appearance by the Chicago Bulls, the Spurs also had their Dec. 12 game against the Los Angeles Clippers in Mexico City canceled Wednesday.

The league said it will stage a game in Mexico in December 1999, but has not decided what teams will play there.

“We apologize to all of our fans and partners who were looking forward to NBA Mexico '98, but the lockout just does not leave us with the time we need to plan the event properly,” Granik said.

The Spurs lost a total of eight games Wednesday, including four more home dates: Indiana (Nov. 19); Chicago (Nov. 21); Seattle (Nov. 25); and New Jersey (Nov. 27). If Jordan decides to postpone his retirement plans and the Chicago date is not made up, the Spurs would miss the NBA’s top gate attraction. Barring, of course, a meeting in the Finals.

Since Jordan returned from his baseball sabbatical, the Bulls have drawn the largest Alamodome crowd in each of the past three seasons. Chicago’s last visit to San Antonio set the Spurs’ all-time home attendance record of 37,492 fans on March 14.

Though the Alamodome has lost an estimated $370,000 from the cancellation of four preseason and seven regular-season games, Abington is optimistic some of the money can be recovered once an agreement is reached. The Alamodome’s booking schedule likely would be able to accommodate any rescheduling by the NBA in May or June.

Depending on what games, if any, are rescheduled, the Spurs may have received a break with the latest wave of cancellations. All seven of the November games erased Wednesday were against playoff teams. Of the 12 opponents they would have faced in the 15 canceled games, the Spurs were an even 20-20 last season.

“In a way, today’s news was kind of good,” Abington said. “We’re all kind of seeing a little bit of progress. To see that they’re canceling games on a week-by- week basis instead of all at once ultimately might mean saving some of those games.”

The owners and players still need to compromise on the percentage of the league’s revenues that will go to salaries, but the two sides appear to be closer to nailing down the framework of an agreement that would end the four-month standoff.

For the first two years of the new deal, a luxury tax would be used. If that failed to reduce the amount of the league’s total income devoted to salaries, the next two years of the deal would require players to put 10 percent of their income into an escrow fund.

“I will say I think we have overcome the conceptual hurdle of not calling things names, labeling them in ways that impede our progress,” Stern said. "And for that, I think there is that much of an advance. But in terms of the hard negotiations with the guts of this deal, I would say we are no place yet.

By Johnny Ludden, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1998-10-29, By Buck Harvey

公共汽车颠簸了？看看新老板是谁

大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson) 周三又损失了一百万美元，但这是值得的。除了本月剩下的薪水外，他取消了11月下旬去盐湖城看卡尔·马龙(Karl Malone)的旅行。

问问你自己，你会花多少钱来避免一次恶意肘击？

但罗宾逊也获得了某些东西。他成为了一个官方的、边缘化的、90年代风格的工会领袖。当他不忙着在拉斯维加斯演讲时，就会出现在纽约的讲台上。

一些马刺队球员可能会嘲笑他。他无法领导他们的更衣室，现在却成为体育中心的领军人物？但罗宾逊满足了工会最基本的需求。他为球员们提供了一个合理且友好的代言人，并且他象征着必要的牺牲。

如果他愿意损失这么多钱，那其他球员难道不应该这样做吗？

各方面的损失都在增加。例如，墨西哥城在输掉马刺队与快船队的对决后试图收拾残局。然后是圣安东尼奥，那里传来了公牛队唯一一次的访问被取消的消息。如果没有看到蒂姆·弗洛伊德(Tim Floyd)执教托尼·库科奇(Toni Kukoc)，这赛季还能算是完整的吗？

NBA对此无能为力。大卫·斯特恩(David Stern) 周三首次宣布，联盟将尽其所能重新安排取消的比赛。但在球馆冲突和七天六场比赛的不可能性之间，这些球员必须打到八月才能把一切都搞定。

因此，这个赛季将会随着薪水的消失而逐渐消逝，一周又一周。凯尔特人队的肯尼·安德森(Kenny Anderson) 上周表示，他将不得不卖掉他八辆车中的一辆来维持生计。他倾向于卖掉一辆心爱的梅赛德斯。

球员们能够团结一致度过如此艰难的时期，唯一的办法就是施加全场式的同伴压力。而压力并不总是能激发出理性的辩论。上周，当200名球员在拉斯维加斯会面时，爵士队的约翰·斯托克顿(John Stockton) 和杰夫·霍纳塞克(Jeff Hornacek) 实际上是在说，让我们把这件事办妥。据报道，他们的声音被淹没了。

罗宾逊出现了。他从在阿斯彭的隐居地回来，不仅在休斯顿训练，还在拉斯维加斯像韦恩·牛顿(Wayne Newton) 那样吸引人群。他站了起来，告诉球员们他和母亲一起去孟菲斯民权博物馆的经历。

正如罗宾逊上周告诉《快报》：“我看到了所有那些人为了我今天所拥有的一切而经历的事情。我母亲乘坐了一辆公共汽车，司机告诉她到公共汽车的后面，否则就下车，非常侮辱。我母亲几乎要哭了，说她记得以前经常乘坐这些公共汽车。”

罗宾逊没有提到他是在孟菲斯参加耐克股东大会。如果他想谈论1998年的压迫，他本可以谈谈耐克在亚洲的工厂。

但这又是另一个问题。罗宾逊告诉他的同僚：“如果他们有性格，就必须站出来。”

斯特恩没有用关于大屠杀的轶事来回应。此外，很有可能，NBA老板在私下里会激烈地争论，而不是互相喊叫。这通常是美国企业界在达成细节和策略方面的结论方式。

但这不是美国企业界。这是一个天生笨拙、不神圣的联盟。代表蒂姆·邓肯(Tim Duncan) 和灰熊队的第12名球员，就像代表比尔·盖茨(Bill Gates) 和在商场卖电脑游戏的人一样困难。

在像罗宾逊这样的人站出来坚定地说一些话之前，他们不太可能就任何事情达成一致。同时还要损失几百万美元。

点击查看原文：The bus gets bumpy? Meet the new boss

The bus gets bumpy? Meet the new boss

David Robinson lost another million Wednesday, but it was money well spent. Canceled along with the rest of this month’s paychecks was a late-November road trip to see Karl Malone in Salt Lake City.

Ask yourself. How much would you pay to miss a cheap-shot elbow?

But Robinson has gained something as well. He’s emerged as an official, Edge-Gel, '90s kind of union boss. When he’s not speaking in Vegas, he’s showing up on a podium in New York.

Some Spurs probably laugh at that. He couldn’t lead their locker room, now he leads off SportsCenter? But Robinson fills the most basic union need. He provides a reasonable, pleasant frontman for the players - and he symbolizes the sacrifice necessary.

If he’s willing to lose this much money, then shouldn’t every player?

Losses mount on all fronts. Mexico City, for example, tries to pick up the pieces after losing a Spurs-Clippers showdown. Then there is San Antonio after the news that the Bulls’ lone visit has been canceled. Will it even feel like a season if you don’t see Tim Floyd coaching Toni Kukoc?

The NBA can’t do much about it. David Stern announced Wednesday for the first time that the league will be as creative as it can to reschedule lost games. But between arena conflicts and the improbability of six games in seven nights, these guys would have to play until August to make everything right.

So the season will drip away, week by week, along with the paychecks. Kenny Anderson of the Celtics said last week he will have to sell one of his eight cars just to make ends meet. He’s leaning toward a beloved Mercedes.

The only way the players stay unified through such damage is by applying full-court, peer-group pressure. And the pressure doesn’t always bring out the best in logical debate. Last week, when 200 players met in Vegas, John Stockton and Jeff Hornacek of the Jazz said, in effect, let’s get this thing done. According to reports, they were literally shouted down.

Enter Robinson. He’s come down from his retreat in Aspen to not only work out in Houston, but also work the crowds in Vegas as Wayne Newton does. He stood up and told the players about a trip he and his mother took to the Civil Rights Museum in Memphis.

As Robinson told the Express- News last week: “I saw all those things people went through to provide for the things I have today. My mother went on one of the buses and the driver told her to get to the back of the bus or get off, real insulting. My mother was almost in tears, saying she remembered she used to ride those buses.”

Robinson didn’t mention he was in Memphis for a Nike shareholder’s meeting. If he wanted to address 1998 oppression, he could have talked about Nike factories in Asia.

But that’s another issue. Robinson told his peers that, “If they had the character, they had to stand up now.”

Stern did not respond with an anecdote about the Holocaust. Also, more than likely, NBA owners argue strongly behind closed doors without shouting each other down. That’s usually how corporate America comes to conclusions about details and strategy.

But this isn’t corporate America. This is an inherently, unwieldy, unholy union. Representing both Tim Duncan and the Grizzlies’ 12th man is about as easy as representing Bill Gates and the guy who sells computer games at the mall.

It’s unlikely they can agree on any one thing until some such as Robinson stand up and firmly say a few things. All while losing a few mil.

By Buck Harvey, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1998-11-01, By Glenn Rogers

工人因NBA停摆而受损

当谈到NBA停摆时，人们通常会谈论金钱——194场被取消的比赛（包括15场马刺队比赛）导致了数亿美元的收入损失。

即使是深受喜爱的球星大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson)也损失惨重。由于联盟取消了11月份的比赛，马刺队的全明星中锋损失了近200万美元。

但球员、老板和全国篮球协会的城市并不是唯一的输家。

在圣安东尼奥，停摆给大约90名引座员、电梯操作员、停车场服务员、节目叫卖员以及其他阿拉莫穹顶的兼职员工带来了经济上的困难，这些员工每小时的收入约为6.50美元。

在球赛上层看台开放的夜晚，例如芝加哥公牛队的比赛，阿拉莫穹顶会增加员工，总共约有140名兼职员工。

“我感觉到了经济损失，”引座员埃米利奥·瓦尔德斯(Emilio Valdez)说道，他是一名机械师。“这对每个人都造成了伤害。双方都有责任。我一开始一直密切关注这件事，但现在不怎么关注了。”

NBA球队老板于7月1日投票决定将球员锁定，理由是球员的薪水在上一赛季占篮球收入的57%。

老板和球员于1995年达成协议，如果球员的比例超过51%，则可以重新谈判集体谈判协议。

老板希望对薪水设置上限，最好是为每支球队设置一个硬工资帽。球员更愿意让各个老板根据球队资金的深度来决定薪水。

对于阿拉莫穹顶引座员兼州政府雇员唐娜·巴克利(Donna Barclay)来说，球员和老板的经济影响并不重要。她说，真正受到损失的是球迷和像她这样的工人。

“我非常沮丧，因为他们只考虑自己，没有考虑其他人。我只希望他们能尽快恢复比赛，”巴克利说道，并补充说她想念额外的收入。“这能帮我提前支付账单，”她说。“我可以买一套新衣服，或者出去吃饭。在钱包里有点钱真好。”

另一位引座员理查德·戈麦斯(Richard Gomez)说：“这对我来说是额外的收入，所以停摆对我影响很大。我大约参加了85%的比赛。”

“在我看来，他们赚得越多，就越想要更多。我知道我不能去跟老板说我应该赚更多钱。否则我会丢掉工作。”

替补教师霍普·阿伦多(Hope Arrendondo)自阿拉莫穹顶五年前开放以来，就一直在马刺队的比赛中担任引座员。

“我们确实指望着这些收入，”她说。阿伦多和她丈夫阿曼多(Armando)一起在比赛中工作。“可以买点汽油钱，去外面吃个饭。我还记得我们第一次来这里参加比赛培训的时候。我们都戴着安全帽，因为他们还在建设场馆。”

并非所有兼职员工都因停摆而受到经济损失，尽管他们错过了比赛。

阿拉莫穹顶停车场服务员韦恩·布朗(Wayne Brown)说：“对我来说影响不大。我已经从空军退役了。我还有一些其他的工作，所以我可以调整我的工作时间。但我还是会想念比赛，想念这些活动。”

对一些人来说，停摆的经济影响超出了球馆的范围。

沿着樱桃街，那些通常会在比赛之夜挥舞手臂，吸引寻找停车位的司机的人们正在遭受损失。

“如果你从整体来看这个区域，停摆带来的损失非常大，”埃德温·里维拉(Edwin Rivera)说道。他在这条街上开了一家汽车修理店，并被市政府授权在其场地提供停车服务。其他居民和企业主也把他们的车道和后院作为停车场，每辆车每次比赛收费3到5美元。

“我大约可以停放50辆车，”里维拉说。“我只做这件事大约三年了。我在这里开店18年了，所以我不太依赖额外的收入。”

里维拉说，那些在自家院子里出租停车位的人预计将遭受最大的经济损失。

“我的停车收入损失了大约40%，”阿尔·阿拉尼斯(Al Alaniz)说道，他是阿尔墨西哥餐厅(Al’s Mexican Food and More)的老板。“钱就是钱，所以还是挺好的。”

比赛的取消也导致了该地区一些餐厅和酒吧空出了一些桌子。

“我们确实受到了影响，”河滨中心购物中心的胡桃夹子餐厅(Hooters)经理特蕾莎·米克(Theresa Meek)说。“当马刺队比赛的时候，生意明显增长，尤其是公牛队的比赛。马刺队比赛的时候，这里总是座无虚席。”

由于停摆，小费也会减少。

“当然，停摆对我们有影响，”女服务员格蕾丝·萨利纳斯(Grace Salinas)说。“小费是我收入的重要组成部分。马刺队不比赛的时候，小费就减少了一半。如果他们在我们这里工作，他们就会知道现在的情况了。”

“球员需要和解，然后回到球场上比赛。我们想念他们。”

河滨中心购物中心的托尼罗玛餐厅(Tony Roma’s)也正在为停摆带来的损失做准备。

“停摆对我们造成了非常大的影响，”经理理查德·施瓦特(Richard Schwarte)说。“当我预测未来的销售额时，无论是周、月还是季度的预测，都会受到比赛是否进行的影响。……大部分额外生意都在比赛之前。如果对手是同一赛区的球队，比如犹他爵士队，人们会把比赛当作一个晚上活动。”

施瓦特说，在比赛之夜，他通常会额外雇佣一位厨师、一位招待员以及一到两位服务员——这意味着停摆期间会减少一些工资。

在河滨中心购物中心的冠军体育酒吧(Champions)，在NBA停赛的夜晚，顾客们可以清楚地听到彼此的对话。

“我们依赖这些比赛，”经理弗雷德·杰克逊(Fred Jackson)说。“前几周非常重要，因为有湖人队、爵士队和公牛队的比赛。另外，我们从马刺队的比赛中获得了不错的付费观看和普通电视转播的收益。我们有很多电视机，人们会来这里观看比赛。”

“区别是什么？以前是座位率达到四分之三或者全部满座，现在只有原来的一半。”

联盟老板和球员之间的僵局也打断了NBA相关商品的流通。

“我们没有任何新商品，一切都暂停了，”冠军体育酒吧经理海梅·里奥哈斯(Jaime Riojas)说。“店里的所有商品都是去年留下的。现在正在打折。”

“通常情况下，一旦赛季开始，河滨中心购物中心的客流量在比赛日会大幅增加。我们会在商场里看到球员。球迷们知道他们来到城里了，所以会来到这里。比赛日周六的客流量大约是平时的两倍。”

NBA球员协会和联盟高管现在似乎正在认真地谈判，看起来最终会达成协议。

对于圣安东尼奥的一些居民来说，他们能否拥有额外的圣诞购物资金取决于12月2日球馆里是否会亮起灯光。这是马刺队目前计划进行比赛的日期，对手是达拉斯小牛队。

点击查看原文：Workers hurt by NBA fray

Workers hurt by NBA fray

When talk turns to the NBA lockout, it’s usually about the money - hundreds of millions in lost revenue from 194 canceled games, including 15 Spurs games.

Even favored son David Robinson is missing out. The Spurs’ All- Star center has lost nearly $2 million thanks to the cancellation of the league’s November games.

But players, owners and National Basketball Associ- ation cities aren’t the only losers.

In San Antonio, the lockout creates an economic hardship for about 90 ushers, elevator operators, parking lot attendants, program hawkers and other part- time Alamodome employees, workers who earn about $6.50 an hour.

And on nights when the upper decks are open, such as for a Chicago Bulls game, the Alamodome adds staff for a total of about 140 part-time workers.

“I feel the financial loss,” said usher Emilio Valdez, a mechanic by trade.

“It’s been hurting everybody. Both sides are at fault. I followed it all pretty closely at first, but not so much now.”

The NBA team owners voted to lock out the players, beginning July 1, on the grounds that the players’ salaries amounted to 57 percent of basketball revenue last season.

The owners and players agreed in 1995 that the collective bargaining agreement could be renegotiated if the players’ percentage went beyond 51 percent.

The owners want a ceiling placed on salaries, preferably in the form of a hard salary cap for each team. The players prefer to let individual owners decide salaries based on the depth of a team’s pocketbook.

To Donna Barclay, an Alamodome usher and a state employee, the financial ramifications to the players and owners don’t matter so much. It’s the fans and workers like herself who are losing, she said.

“I’m very upset, because they are not thinking about everyone else, just themselves. I just want them to get back to it,” Barclay said, adding she misses the additional income.

“It helps me pay bills early,” she said. “I can buy a new outfit that catches my eye or go out to eat. It’s nice to have a little money in my purse.”

Another usher, Richard Gomez, said, “It’s extra money for me, so it’s a pretty good blow. I work about 85 percent of the games.”

“It just seems to me that the more they make, the more they want. I know that I can’t just go to my boss and say I should make more money. I’d be out of a job.”

Hope Arrendondo, a substitute teacher, has been working as an usher at Spurs games since the Alamodome opened five years ago.

“We do count on it,” she said. Arrendondo works at the games with her husband, Armando. “It’s extra gas money, dinner out. I remember when we first came for training for the first games. We all wore hard hats because they were still working on the facility.”

Not all part-time workers are hurt financially by the lockout, although the games are being missed.

Wayne Brown, an Alamodome parking lot attendant, said, “It won’t bother me that much. I’m retired Air Force. I’ve got irons in the fire, so I work around the schedule. But I’ll miss the games, the activity.”

For some people, the lockout’s financial impact stretches beyond the dome.

Along Cherry Street, the people hurting are the ones who would normally be seen on game nights waving their arms to get the attention of drivers seeking parking spaces.

“If you look at the area as a whole, it hurts a lot,” said Edwin Rivera, who owns an automobile repair shop on the street and is authorized by the city to use his grounds for parking. Other residents and business owners make their driveways and back yards available for parking at $3 to $5 a game per car.

“I have room for about 50 cars,” Rivera said. “I’ve only been doing it for about three years. I’ve had my business here for 18 years, so I don’t really depend on the extra income.”

The people who sell space in their yards are expected to take the biggest financial hit, Rivera said.

“I suffer a good 40 percent loss in the parking income,” said Al Alaniz, owner of Al’s Mexican Food and More restaurant. “Money is money, so it’s nice.”

The wiped-out games also will lead to a few more empty tables at area restaurants and bars.

“We are really affected,” said Theresa Meek, manager of Hooters in Rivercenter mall. “When the Spurs play, there is a significant rise, especially for a Bulls game. It’s full when the Spurs play.”

With the lockout, tips will be more scarce.

“Sure, it hurts,” waitress Grace Salinas said. "Tips are the greatest part of my money. That’s cut in half when the Spurs don’t play. If they (players) worked here, they’d get an idea of what’s going on.

“The players need to reconcile and get in there and play. We miss them.”

Tony Roma’s restaurant in Rivercenter mall also is bracing for a hit from the lockout.

“It affects us quite dramatically,” manager Richard Schwarte said. “When I forecast future sales, for a week, month or quarter, the figures will be influenced by whether or not there are games. … Most of the extra business is before games. If a team is in the same division - if it is Utah - people make a night of it.”

On a game night, Schwarte said, he usually will bring in an extra cook, an extra host, another waiter or two - meaning another hit for paychecks during the lockout.

Patrons at Champions, a sports bar in Rivercenter, will be able to hear themselves talk on nights when the NBA is out of action.

“We depend on those games,” manager Fred Jackson said. "The first few weeks really were important because of the Lakers, Jazz and Bulls games. Plus, we do good business from the Spurs games on pay-per-view and regular television. We have a lot of sets on, and people come in to watch them.

“The difference? Instead of three-quarters or completely full, it’s about half that.”

The standoff between the league owners and players also has interrupted the flow of NBA-related merchandise.

“We don’t have any new merchandise, it’s all on hold,” Champions manager Jaime Riojas said. "Everything we have in the store is held over from last year. It’s on sale.

“Normally, once the season starts, the traffic in the (Rivercenter) mall is way up on game days. We see players in the mall. The fans know they are in town and come down here. The traffic here is about double on game Saturdays.”

The NBA Players Association and the league chiefs seem to be negotiating in earnest now, and it looks like a deal will be struck eventually.

For some San Antonio residents, having a little extra Christmas shopping money depends on whether the lights will be on in the dome Dec. 2. That’s when the Spurs are scheduled - for now, at least - to play the Dallas Mavericks.

By Glenn Rogers, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1998-11-02, By Arthur Garcia

电视台和广播电台应对停摆

NBA停摆不仅抹去了赛季的首月，也迫使联盟的广播合作伙伴进行了一些创造性的节目安排。

特纳体育(Turner Sports)，负责在TNT和TBS频道播放NBA比赛，计划用电影和动作类节目（无论这意味着什么）来代替被取消的比赛。原定于周三在TBS播出的马刺对阵爵士的揭幕战以及11月25日的洛杉矶快船的比赛都被取消了。

马刺在11月有14场比赛被安排，而他们当地的广播和电视台朋友们正在用各种各样的节目来弥补。

受影响最大，但实际上并没有那么大的电台是WOAI-AM。WOAI在1200频道播放每场马刺的比赛，此外还有
The Pop Show 以及赛前和赛后节目。

但比赛的取消对WOAI的影响应该不大，因为电台会在马刺本应比赛的日子继续播放其正常的节目。WOAI体育总监杰伊·霍华德(Jay Howard)将继续主持他每天晚上6点到8点的“圣安东尼奥体育谈话”(Sportstalk San Antonio)，之后是吉姆·罗马(Jim Rome)主持的“丛林夜幕”(Jungle After Dark)，时间是晚上8点到午夜。

The Pop Show，由霍华德和马刺主教练格雷格·波波维奇(Gregg Popovich)共同主持，已经暂停了。霍华德表示，该节目将在停摆结束后不久恢复。

KRRT有6场，包括周三的爵士比赛，从电视节目单上消失了。KRRT，作为WB的子频道，还失去了对阵菲尼克斯（周四）、金州（11月11日）、多伦多（11月16日）、明尼苏达（11月17日）和爵士（11月30日）的比赛。

KRRT电台经理戴夫·霍威特(Dave Howitt)希望停摆能尽快解决，这样电台就不会错过更多的马刺比赛。

“我们失去了几场非常有吸引力的比赛，”霍威特说。“我们只希望它能尽快结束，这样我们就能在KRRT上播回一些比赛。”

在此期间，电台计划播放更多WB节目，包括“道森的溪谷”(Dawson’s Creek)和“吸血鬼猎人巴菲”(Buffy the Vampire Slayer)。

福克斯体育网(Fox Sports Net)，包括福克斯体育西南(Fox Sports Southwest)，将用针对每个市场的“经典”NBA比赛来代替被取消的比赛。福克斯西南，11月有3场马刺比赛，将在周四开始播放其经典系列赛。

前两场比赛已经确定，而且都是马刺的季后赛胜利。（当我想到马刺季后赛经典比赛时，它们都是失败。）第一场比赛，晚上8点播出，是1993年对阵波特兰的第四场比赛，马刺在加时赛中以100-97战胜对手，将卫冕西区冠军淘汰出局。

11月12日的比赛仅仅过去了6个月，是圣安东尼奥最近一次季后赛之旅的亮点之一。球迷们可以重温大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson)在首轮系列赛第二场对阵菲尼克斯时砍下40分的壮举。

KSAT的影响很小。体育总监格雷格·西蒙斯(Greg Simmons)表示，电台在11月会安排很少的比赛，可能只有两场左右，但还没有和马刺确定下来。如果赛季像许多人猜测的那样在12月开始，KSAT的马刺比赛安排将会增加，电台最终会播出大约20场比赛。

点击查看原文：TV, radio stations deal with lockout

TV, radio stations deal with lockout

Not only has the NBA lockout wiped out the first month of the season, it’s also forced the league’s broadcast partners into some creative rescheduling.

Turner Sports, which carries NBA games on TNT and TBS, has planned to air movies and action programming (whatever that means) in place of lost games. The Spurs opener against Utah on Wednesday and the Nov. 25 Los Angeles Clippers game were both scheduled for TBS.

The Spurs had 14 games scheduled for November, and their local radio and TV friends are making due with a varied mix of programming.

The station most affected, but then again not really, is WOAI-AM. WOAI broadcasts every Spurs game on 1200, in addition to “The Pop Show,” and pregame and postgame programs.

But the missed games shouldn’t affect WOAI much, since the station will continue with its normal programming on the days the Spurs would have played. WOAI sports director Jay Howard will continue with his nightly Sportstalk San Antonio from 6-8 p.m. followed by Jim Rome’s “Jungle After Dark” from 8-midnight.

“The Pop Show,” which features Howard and Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, has been put on hiatus. Howard said that show should resume shortly after the lockout ends.

KRRT had six of its 20 games, including Wednesday’s Jazz game, wiped off the TV plate. KRRT, which serves as the WB’s affiliate, also lost games against Phoenix (Thursday), Golden State (Nov. 11), Toronto (Nov. 16), Minnesota (Nov. 17) and the Jazz on Nov. 30.

KRRT station manager Dave Howitt is hoping for a speedy resolution to the lockout so the station doesn’t miss out on even more Spurs games.

“We lost some pretty attractive games,” Howitt said. “We just want it to end quick so we can get some games back on KRRT.”

In the meantime, the station plans to carry more WB programming, which includes shows like “Dawson’s Creek” and “Buffy the Vampire Slayer.”

Fox Sports Net, which includes Fox Sports Southwest, will replace its lost games with “classic” NBA games specific to each market. FoxSW, which had three Spurs games on tap for November, starts its classic series on Thursday.

The first two games have already been decided - and are both Spurs playoff wins. (When I think of classic Spurs playoff games, they’re all losses.) The first game, airing at 8 p.m., is the 1993 Game 4 clincher against Portland, which the Spurs won 100-97 in overtime to knock the defending Western Conference champs out of the playoffs.

The Nov. 12th game is barely six months old and was one of the highlights of San Antonio’s latest playoff run. Fans get to relive David Robinson’s 40-point outburst against Phoenix in Game 2 of first-round series.

KSAT will feel little change. Sports director Greg Simmons said the station would have had a light schedule in November, possibly as little as two games, but nothing had been finalized with the Spurs. Should the season start in December, like many are speculating, KSAT’s Spurs schedule would pick up and the station would end up doing about 20 games.

- First for the Great One: Hockey legend Wayne Gretzky, center for the New York Rangers, will wear a microphone during ESPN’s telecast of the Rangers at New Jersey Devils game on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m.

By Arthur Garcia, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1998-11-06, By Johnny Ludden

马刺质疑斯特恩的言论 - 煽动者？珀杜和埃利奥特说不

在一个他本来应该在美国西部球馆与马丁·穆尔塞普或其他一些来自菲尼克斯太阳队的250磅级球员对抗的夜晚，马刺队的中锋威尔·珀杜(Will Perdue)正在洗衣服。

“也没什么别的事可做，”珀杜说。“就享受一点高质量的安静时光。”

周四，联盟的劳资纠纷让比赛取消，球馆关闭，球员没有工资，沉默继续笼罩着NBA。

联盟老板和球员工会的代表可能会在今天通过电话进行沟通，以安排可能在周一进行的会面。在周三的谈判持续了两个小时后破裂之后，联盟总裁大卫·斯特恩(David Stern)指责重量级经纪人戴维·福尔克(David Falk)和阿恩·特莱姆(Arn Tellem)欺凌工会主席比利·亨特(Billy Hunter)，要求为他们的精英客户争取更好的待遇。

“我知道我的经纪人非常投入，”珀杜说，他由特莱姆代理。“但他愿意破坏一个可能的协议吗？我不确定。”

“我认为经纪人比上次他们不断叫嚣脱离联盟时参与得少得多。我知道他们仍然在为他们客户的最佳利益着想，但我认为他们不像以前那样投入了。”

肖恩·埃利奥特(Sean Elliott)加入了珀杜，蒂姆·邓肯(Tim Duncan)，查克·珀森(Chuck Person)，蒙蒂·威廉姆斯(Monty Williams)和雷吉·吉尔(Reggie Geary)，他们在周四参加了在“满人生命健身和健康中心”的训练，他不相信斯特恩的说法，即球员没有获得关于老板提案的足够信息。斯特恩表示，他正在考虑允许每支球队派出一名代表来回答球员的问题。

“那是一种策略，”埃利奥特说。“我认为老板们现在开始有点担心球迷对球员的负面反应了。所以他们试图说球员没有被告知，球队应该告诉他们发生了什么。”

“他们试图扭转公众舆论，确保球迷不责怪球员。他们不想让比赛出现球迷因为生球员的气而不来观看的情况。球员的薪水不依赖于门票销售，而老板的收入则依赖于此。”

- 注：德雷克·戴尔(Derrick Dial)，马刺队在6月选秀大会上选择的第二轮球员，已经接受了一份为期一年的合同，将在希腊打球，薪水约为40万美元。

戴尔，来自东密歇根大学的6尺5寸后卫，最初表示他想赌一把，争取进入马刺队的阵容。他最近改变了主意，因为他所在的经纪人凯文·波斯顿(Kevin Poston)表示，罢工持续不断。

在劳资纠纷之前，马刺队鼓励戴尔去海外打一年球，积累一些经验。马刺队保留着戴尔的NBA权利，直到他们放弃他。

点击查看原文：Spurs dispute Stern words - Agents provocateurs? Perdue, Elliott say no

Spurs dispute Stern words - Agents provocateurs? Perdue, Elliott say no

On a night he would have battled Martin Muursepp or some other 250-pound Phoenix Sun in far-off America West Arena, Spurs center Will Perdue did his laundry.

“There’s not much else to do,” Perdue said. “Just enjoy a little quality quiet time.”

Silence continued to blanket the NBA Thursday as the league’s labor dispute left games canceled, arenas closed and players unpaid.

Representatives of the owners and union may speak by phone today to set up a possible meeting Monday. After Wednesday’s talks broke off after two hours, Commissioner David Stern accused heavyweight agents David Falk and Arn Tellem of bullying the union director Billy Hunter into seeking a better deal for their elite clients.

“I know my agent is thoroughly involved,” said Perdue, who is represented by Tellem. "But is he willing to squash a possible deal? I’m not sure about that.

“I think the agents are a lot less involved than last time when they kept screaming decertification. I know they’re still looking out for the best interest of their clients, but I don’t think they’re as involved as before.”

Sean Elliott, who joined Perdue, Tim Duncan, Chuck Person, Monty Williams and Reggie Geary for a workout at the Full Life Fitness and Health Center Thursday, doesn’t buy Stern’s claim that the players are not receiving enough information about the owners’ proposals. Stern said he is considering allowing a representative from each team to answer players’ questions.

“That’s a ploy,” Elliott said. "I think the owners now are getting a little concerned about the negative reaction the fans have toward the players. So they’re trying to say the players aren’t being informed and that the teams should tell them what’s going on.

“They’re trying to reverse public opinion, make sure the fans don’t blame the players. They don’t want to have games where the fans don’t show up because they’re angry at the players. The players’ salaries don’t depend on ticket sales. The owners’ revenue does.”

- Notes: Derrick Dial, the Spurs second-round pick in the June draft, has accepted a one-year contract for about $400,000 to play in Greece.

Dial, a 6-foot-5 guard from Eastern Michigan, initially said he wanted to gamble on making the Spurs’ roster. He recently changed his mind after the lockout persisted, said his agent, Kevin Poston.

Prior to the labor dispute, the Spurs encouraged Dial to play overseas for a year to get some experience. The Spurs retain Dial’s NBA rights until they waive him.

By Johnny Ludden, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1998-11-10, By Glenn Rogers

马刺球员在停摆期间坚守立场

大卫·斯特恩(David Stern) 联盟总裁要求各队总经理或教练与球员沟通，但在圣安东尼奥，这些话显然不会引起任何反响。

马刺球员表示，他们还没有收到圣安东尼奥管理层的任何消息，任何评论都不会动摇他们对当前NBA停摆的看法。

“你是说他们想宣传联盟的版本吗？”大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson) 在结束与其他马刺球员在Full Life 健康与健身中心的训练后说道。“不，他们没有联系我。但我们一直在获取信息。我们知道问题所在。这不是什么高深的科学。”

球员工会和联盟将在周四之前不再进行谈判，除非出现奇迹般的突破，否则比赛预计将取消到12月14日，这将使马刺总共损失19场比赛，其中包括11场主场比赛。

预计各队的代表将于今晚在纽约与球员谈判委员会会面，然后在周三晚上与执行委员会会面。工会随后可能在周四向联盟提出新的提议。

联盟副总裁拉斯·格兰尼克(Russ Granik) 将在今天前往亚特兰大参加美国篮球协会的年度董事会会议。格兰尼克是美国篮球协会的主席。

有消息称，下周晚些时候可能会达成协议，赛季可能从每年圣诞节的双重比赛开始，在NBC电视台直播。

罗宾逊同意时间过得飞快，球员们迫切希望重返赛场。

“这真的太晚了。我们已经到了想要比赛的时候了。”罗宾逊说。“但如果我们没有利用这个机会达成一个合适的协议，那就太愚蠢了。”

罗宾逊不同意联盟的主要论点，即特许经营权正在亏损。

“也许有几支球队是亏损的，如果有，那么他们是有理由的。”他说。“亚特兰大去年没有主场。有些球队正在建造球馆。也许快船队亏损了。”他笑着补充道。

“但联盟总体上是盈利的，所有收入都在增加，那么如果一支球队去年亏损了，那就是有问题。这是球队管理层可以解决的问题。”

罗宾逊说，最重要的是，球员们可能不会接受低于他们去年所获得的任何条件。

马刺球员代表查克·珀森(Chuck Person) 表示，他不指望球队管理层打来电话。

“你认为他们会给我打电话吗？我将是最后一个人。”他说。“但球员们知道，沟通渠道一直保持畅通，已经足够了。”

马刺总经理兼主教练格雷格·波波维奇(Gregg Popovich) 周一出差在外，无法联系到他发表评论。

控球后卫艾弗里·约翰逊(Avery Johnson) 认为，马刺不会试图影响球员的立场。

“如果格雷格打电话，他可能只是想说声你好，问问最近怎么样，因为他整个夏天都没有和我们谈话。”约翰逊从他在休斯敦的家中说道。“你知道，联盟不允许球队这段时间和我们谈话，现在它说可以了。好吧，他们没有付钱给我们，所以现在和他们谈话没有意义。

“整个事情是联盟将我们锁定了，现在没有人愿意让步。”

雷吉·吉尔里(Reggie Geary) 说他对工会的处理方式感到满意。

“我一直在通过邮件接收所有信息。”他说。“工会一直在联系我，让我了解情况。”

- 马刺消息：马刺队仍在追逐拉特雷尔·斯普雷维尔(Latrell Sprewell)。最近有报道称，可能与多伦多进行交易，交易涉及一群球员，显然包括肖恩·埃利奥特(Sean Elliott) 和威尔·珀杜(Will Perdue) 到多伦多，一些猛龙队球员到金州勇士队，斯普雷维尔和可能还有多尼尔·马歇尔(Donyell Marshall) 到圣安东尼奥。

这笔交易可能已经破裂，但波波维奇显然还没有放弃得到斯普雷维尔的希望。

* * *

快速了解NBA停摆

周一损失的比赛：5场

总共损失的比赛：53场

赛季最早预计开始日期：12月8日

谈判：没有安排。工会谈判委员会将在周三在纽约会面。

预计球员薪资损失（截至12月8日）：2.08亿美元

今天最值得关注的取消比赛：新泽西网队客场挑战芝加哥公牛队，美国中部时间晚上7:30。这是上赛季季后赛首轮的重演，迈克尔·乔丹(Michael Jordan) 在第三场比赛中锁定胜局后，瞪着网队主教练约翰·卡里帕里(John Calipari)。

点击查看原文：Spurs players stand firm as lockout continues

Spurs players stand firm as lockout continues

Commissioner David Stern has asked team general managers or coaches to talk to their players, but those words apparently will fall on indifferent ears in San Antonio.

Spurs players say they haven’t heard from any San Antonio management types, and any comments wouldn’t sway their opinions on the current NBA lockout.

“You mean they want to give the league’s version,” David Robinson said after he finished working out with other Spurs at the Full Life Health and Fitness Center. “No, they haven’t contacted me. But we’ve been getting the information. We know what the issues are. This is not rocket science.”

The players association and league will not negotiate again before Thursday, and barring a miracle breakthrough, games are expected to be canceled through Dec. 14, wiping out a total of 19 Spurs games, including 11 at home.

Representatives from each team are expected to meet tonight in New York with the players negotiating committee and then meet with the executive committee Wednesday night. The association then may offer a new proposal to the league Thursday.

The league’s deputy commissioner Russ Granik will spend today in Atlanta for USA Basketball’s annual board meeting. Granik is president of USAB.

Sources indicate that an agreement could be reached late next week with the season possibly starting with the annual doubleheader Christmas Day on NBC.

Robinson agreed that time is flying by and the players are eager to get back into action.

“This is really late. It’s at the point where everything in us says it’s time for us to be playing,” Robinson said. “But it would be foolish of us not to take advantage of the opportunity to get the right deal.”

Robinson disagrees with the league’s prime argument that franchises are losing money.

“Maybe a couple are, and if they are there is good reason in those cases,” he said. “Atlanta didn’t have a home court last year. Some teams are building arenas. Maybe the Clippers lost money,” he added with a laugh.

“But with the league’s overall prosperity, with all the revenue coming in, then something is wrong if a team lost money last year. Something that a team could fix with its management.”

Robinson said the bottom line is that the players probably are not going to accept anything less than what they operated under last year.

Spurs player representative Chuck Person said he didn’t expect any calls from team management.

“You don’t think they’ll call me, do you? I’d be the last person,” he said. “But the guys know that the lines of communication have been open as much as they need to be.”

Spurs general manager/coach Gregg Popovich was out of town Monday and could not be reached for comment.

Point guard Avery Johnson figured the Spurs wouldn’t try to influence the players one way or another.

“If Gregg does call, it would probably be just to say hello, how are things going, because he hasn’t talked to us all summer,” Johnson said from his home in Houston. "You know, the league wouldn’t let the teams talk to us all this time and now it says it’s OK. Well, they’re not paying us so there’s no point in talking to them now.

“The whole thing is the league locked us out and now nobody wants to give in.”

Reggie Geary said he’s satisfied with the union’s handling of the affair.

“I’ve been receiving all the information through the mail,” he said. “The association has been contacting me, keeping me aware of what’s going on.”

- Spurs note: The Spurs remain in the hunt for Latrell Sprewell. Reports surfaced again recently about a potential move with Toronto involving a group of players, apparently including Sean Elliott and Will Perdue to Toronto, some Raptors to Golden State, and Sprewell and perhaps Donyell Marshall to San Antonio.

That may have fallen apart but Popovich apparently hasn’t given up hope in getting Sprewell.

* * *

A quick look at the NBA lockout

Games lost Monday: 5

Total games missed: 53

Earliest estimated date that season can start: Dec. 8

Negotiations: Nothing scheduled. Union’s negotiating committee meets in New York on Wednesday.

Projected player salary losses (through Dec. 8): $208 million

Today’s best canceled game: New Jersey at Chicago, 7:30 p.m. CST. Rematch of last season’s first-round playoff matchup in which Michael Jordan stared down Nets coach John Calipari in the clinching Game 3.

By Glenn Rogers, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1998-11-12, By Buck Harvey

锁定胜利？马刺队如何抢占先机

安东尼奥·丹尼尔斯(Antonio Daniels)投出了一记糟糕的球，简直像温哥华灰熊队的球员。

查克·珀森(Chuck Person)是丹尼尔斯的队友，他说道：“这球很有趣。”然后珀森停顿了一下，对丹尼尔斯说：“小伙子，过来一下。”

就这样，又是新的一天，马刺队在联盟中抢占了先机。当NBA恢复比赛时——在缩短的赛季中，每场比赛都很重要——马刺队只需要格雷格·波波维奇(Gregg Popovich)的几句训斥就能恢复到赛季中期状态。

想对比一下？问问他们在盐湖城在干什么吧。

据报道，湖人和步行者也在训练，还有耐克。当斯派克·李(Spike Lee)对着一位名叫雷吉娜·米勒(Regina Miller)的八年级女生大喊“不，你闭嘴！”时，这是第一个暗示停摆的广告活动吗？

马刺队没有那么幽默，只是心怀感激。毕竟，如果停摆是在一年前，他们可能又要参加选秀抽签了。去年，波波维奇和蒂姆·邓肯(Tim Duncan)都开始了他们的第一个完整赛季，马刺队战绩挣扎，10胜10负。今年的相同战绩可能会让他们陷入困境，因为可能还需要20场比赛才能找到答案。

现在，马刺队在取得了一些成功后，正在寻求更多。大卫·罗宾逊(David Robinson)从阿斯彭来到休斯顿，与埃弗里·约翰逊(Avery Johnson)一起训练，这肯定有原因。

但其中一部分也是计划好的。波波维奇在停摆前就问过AJ是否愿意花一些时间陪陪邓肯。当AJ发现邓肯也是个训练狂人时，他们就照做了。

“我们分享了很多东西，”AJ说道。但那是AJ，他在休斯顿的每个休赛期都刻苦训练。更值得注意的是，过去几周发生的事情，邓肯和蒙蒂·威廉姆斯(Monty Williams)打电话给了道格·里弗斯(Doc Rivers)。

起初，马刺队组织担心外界会怎么看，因为球队不允许和球员交流。但里弗斯的雇主是特纳网络，而不是马刺队。所以他每天都来，有时只是组织一场模拟比赛，有时则是进行训练。

里弗斯是免费的，部分原因是他喜欢这样，部分原因是他现在认为这是他的未来。里弗斯说，他必须离开比赛一段时间才能知道自己想当教练。现在他知道了。今年夏天，他向杰里·韦斯特(Jerry West)和里克·马耶尔斯(Rick Majerus)学习了很多东西。

里弗斯已经知道一些东西，所以他现在的见解不容忽视。他说邓肯比去年更出色。肖恩·埃利奥特(Sean Elliott)的腿又可以爆发出能量了。而丹尼尔斯在第一天看起来很犹豫，但仅仅一周后就让人印象深刻。

给波波维奇的建议：也许没有人比退休的大个控卫更适合教导一位年轻的大个控卫。

里弗斯只给丹尼尔斯打过一个电话，因为他是一个新人。其他球员则会主动联系里弗斯，询问训练时间。几乎所有球员都参加了训练，但并非所有球队都这样。比如爵士队。卡尔·马龙(Karl Malone)在洛杉矶主持一个广播节目，爵士队怎么训练呢？

爵士队的小前锋山顿·安德森(Shandon Anderson)找到了一个方法。他在这里和马刺队一起训练。

对犹他州来说，更糟糕的是马刺队到目前为止避免了一件事。约翰·斯托克顿(John Stockton)的反工会立场在他和马龙之间制造了一道裂痕。也许这就是马龙周三在节目中宣布离开犹他州的原因。马龙现在说他想成为湖人球员。

与此同时，马刺队今天将继续训练。拥有老将核心。拥有和谐的更衣室。以及针对丹尼尔斯的几个建议。

这在五月会起作用吗？也许如果赛季在1月份开始。D

点击查看原文：Lockout love? How the Spurs grab an edge

Lockout love? How the Spurs grab an edge

Antonio Daniels takes a bad shot. A Vancouver Grizzlies-kinda shot.

Chuck Person, playing on Daniels’ team, says, “That was interesting.” Then Person pauses and says to Daniels, “Young fella, come over here.”

Thus another day passes when the Spurs get an edge on the rest of the league. When the NBA resumes play - when every game matters in a shortened season - the Spurs will require only a few Gregg Popovich bleeps to reach mid- season form.

For a contrast? Ask what they are doing in Salt Lake City.

The Lakers and Pacers are reported to be working, too, and then there is Nike. When Spike Lee yells at an eighth-grade girl conspicuously named Regina Miller - “No, you shut up!” - is this the first ad campaign to wink at work stoppage?

The Spurs aren’t as witty, just thankful. Had the lockout come a year ago, after all, they might have waddled into another lottery. Last year, with both Popovich and Tim Duncan starting their first full seasons, the Spurs struggled at 10- 10. The same record this year might doom, what with maybe another 20 games to find some answers.

Now the Spurs come off some success looking for some more. There must be a reason David Robinson came down from Aspen to work out with Avery Johnson in Houston for the first time.

But some of this is planned, too. Popovich asked AJ before the lockout if he would spend some time with Duncan. When AJ found Duncan is as much a gym rat as he is, they did just that.

“We shared a lot of stuff,” AJ said. But that’s AJ. He works hard every off-season in Houston. More remarkable is what transpired here the past few weeks, when Duncan and Monty Williams called Doc Rivers.

At first, the Spurs organization worried about the perception, since franchises are not allowed to even talk to players. But Rivers’ employer is the Turner Network, not the Spurs. And so he started showing every day, sometimes doing nothing more than organizing a scrimmage, sometimes running through drills.

Rivers does it for free, partly because he likes it and partly because he now sees this as his future. Rivers says he had to get away from the game before he knew he wanted to coach. Now he knows. He took lessons himself this summer, spending considerable time with Jerry West and Rick Majerus.

Rivers already knew a few things, so what he sees now is not to be dismissed. He says Duncan is better than last year. Sean Elliott’s legs can explode again. And Daniels, after looking tentative his first day, impresses after just a week.

Note to Popovich: Maybe no one is better suited to tutor a young, big point guard than a retired, big point guard.

Rivers has only telephoned one guy, Daniels, because he’s new. Otherwise, the players themselves solicit Rivers to find out what time. Almost everyone shows, and not all the teams are doing the same. Such as the Jazz. How can the Jazz practice when Karl Malone runs a radio show in L.A.?

Shandon Anderson, the Jazz’s small forward, figured out a way. He works out here with the Spurs.

Worse for Utah is something the Spurs have thus far avoided. John Stockton’s anti-union stance has driven a wedge between he and Malone. Maybe that explains why Malone went on his show Wednesday and announced he was finished in Utah. Malone now says he wants to be a Laker.

The Spurs, meanwhile, will practice again today. With a veteran core. With locker-room peace. With a few suggestions for Daniels.

Will it matter in May? Maybe if the season starts in January. D

By Buck Harvey, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1998-11-12, By Glenn Rogers

工会领袖抨击NBA拖延谈判

周三，NBA中唯一能听到的声音是剑拔弩张。

球员协会召开新闻电话会议，执行董事比利·亨特(Billy Hunter) 猛烈抨击联盟，坚称联盟总裁大卫·斯特恩(David Stern) 正在拖延谈判，直到11月底。

“我们仍然认为，NBA没有谈判的动力，因为他们似乎认为球员会在错过两张工资单后屈服，” 亨特说。

球员原本定于周日和11月30日领取工资。

“我认为，在月底之前，不会进行严肃的谈判，” 亨特说。“我认为，联盟计划在1月1日开始新赛季。”

亨特表示，斯特恩已暗示他还有另一个方案，但可能不愿在球员屈服之前提出。联盟副总裁拉斯·格兰尼克(Russ Granik) 表示，不存在这样的方案。

“我们不知道（亨特）在说什么，” 格兰尼克说。

亨特相信，新赛季将开始，因为29支球队价值约50亿美元。他不认为老板们会愿意让他们的投资因停摆一年而蒙受损失。

“几年后，新特许经营权将价值1.75亿至2亿美元，” 亨特说。“我们会达成协议，除非是糟糕的协议，他们会为了让赛季在1月1日开始而接受任何协议。”

为了让赛季在1月1日开始，协议必须在本月底之前达成。如果赛季在1月开始，马刺队将失去27场比赛。

亨特还表示，老板们会担心其他富有的商人介入，并利用闲置的球员。

“有些人，比如鲁珀特·默多克(Rupert Murdoch)，如果赛季没有开始，他们可能会跳进来填补空白，” 亨特说，暗示着可能会出现一个竞争联盟。

自上周五短暂会谈以来，双方没有进行过任何接触。亨特计划在周三晚上或今天早上给斯特恩打电话。

“我会询问他是否愿意会面谈判，或者我们是否只是为了看看我们之间的差距有多大而见面，” 亨特说。

亨特说，上周五没有进行谈判，因为工会甚至无法“调整”自己的提案，以符合联盟的提议。

双方在篮球收入分配给球员的比例上仍然僵持不下。联盟要求50%，工会要求60%。双方都没有透露实际的“魔法数字”。

“我们愿意协商这个数字，但我们会等待联盟的回应，” 亨特说。“我们不会自己跟自己谈判。”

亨特指责联盟自1995年签署上一份集体谈判协议以来就一直在计划这次停摆。

“他们说，如果球员的份额超过51.8%，他们就可以重新回到协议中，”他说。“但我注意到，几周前，球员的份额在1995年就已经达到了52%。所以他们知道它会超过他们的预期。

“他们认为，他们让我们在1995年的协议中对新秀和中级球员设置了限制，然后可以在三年后用另一份协议来对付顶级球员。”

目前摆在台面上的方案包括在协议的最后几年实行一个托管系统，这个系统将在一年结束前将球员工资的一部分存入托管账户。剩余的工资将根据球员收入份额超过最终商定的比例的多少而决定是归球员还是归老板。

亨特说，托管金额必须协商。他说，联盟希望如果球员的份额超过百分比，则将“等额”金额返还给老板。

“他们希望能够支付给球员任何金额的薪水，因为他们知道，这笔钱会通过托管账户返还给他们，” 亨特说。“好吧，我们不是在保护老板免受他们自己的伤害。他们知道球员的价值。如果他们没有意识到，在合同期限内，凯文·加内特(Kevin Garnett) 的价值超过1.26亿美元，他们就不会支付给他那么多钱，因为从特许经营权价值和其他收入方面来看，他值更多钱。”

亨特说，他召集球员们到纽约市，因为NBA释放了特许经营权的管理层人员。

“我们只是想确保我们的球员代表掌握了所有关于谈判桌上方案的信息，”他说。“我认为特许经营权会对谈判进行联盟的解读。事实上，我毫不奇怪，我们的球员对这些方案的了解远超过总经理和教练。他们接收所有信息。”

一些球队正在与球员们进行小组讨论，另一些球队则让他们进行一对一交流。据报道，马刺队的总经理兼主教练格雷格·波波维奇(Gregg Popovich) 向圣安东尼奥的球员们发了一份传真，邀请他们如果需要任何信息，可以打电话联系他。

点击查看原文：Union leader blasts NBA for delaying negotiations

Union leader blasts NBA for delaying negotiations

The only sound heard in the NBA on Wednesday was more sabre rattling.

The players association called a news teleconference and executive director Billy Hunter slashed away at the league, insisting that Commissioner David Stern was holding back on negotiations until the end of November.

“We still think there is no incentive for the NBA to negotiate because they apparently think the players will cave in after they miss two paychecks,” Hunter said.

The players were scheduled to be paid Sunday and Nov. 30.

“I don’t think serious talks will come until the end of the month,” Hunter said. “I believe that the league plans on beginning the season Jan. 1.”

Hunter said Stern has indicated that he has another proposal but may not want to offer it until the players buckle. League deputy commissioner Russ Granik said there is no such proposal.

“We have no idea what (Hunter) is talking about,” Granik said.

Hunter believes the season will begin because the 29 franchises are worth some $5 billion. He doesn’t see the owners wanting to damage their investments with a year off.

“New franchises are going to be worth $175 (million) to $200 million in a few years,” Hunter said. “We will do a deal, short of a bad deal, and they will take one to get the season going by Jan. 1.”

In order for the season to start Jan. 1, a deal will have to be reached by the end of this month. The Spurs will have lost 27 games if the season starts in January.

Hunter also indicated that the owners would fear other wealthy businessmen stepping in and taking advantage of idle players.

“There are people out there, people like Rupert Murdoch, who could jump into the void if there were no season,” said Hunter, implying the start of a rival league.

There has been no contact between the two sides since the short session Friday. Hunter planned to call Stern on Wednesday night or this morning.

“I’ll inquire whether or not he wants to meet to negotiate, or whether we will just meet to see how far apart we are,” Hunter said.

Hunter said there were no negotiations Friday because the union was unable to even “tweak” its proposals to fit in with what the league was offering.

The two sides remain at an impasse over what percentage of basketball revenue should go to the players. The league says 50 percent, the union 60. Neither side will disclose what the actual magic number will be.

“We are willing to negotiate the number, but we will wait to see what the league says,” Hunter said. “We will not negotiate against ourselves.”

Hunter accused the league of planning this lockout since 1995 when the last collective bargaining agreement was signed.

“They said if the players’ share went above 51.8 percent, then they could go back into the agreement,” he said. "But I noticed a few weeks ago that the players’ share was already at 52 percent in 1995. So they knew it would rise above their figure.

“They thought that they got us to put restrictions on the rookies and the mid-level players with the 1995 deal and then could get the top- scale guys with another deal three years later.”

Proposals now on the table feature an escrow system in the latter years of the deal, a system that would put portions of a player’s salary in escrow until the end of the year. The amount remaining with the player or being returned to the owner would be determined by how much the players’ share of revenue exceeded the eventually agreed upon percentage.

Hunter said the escrow amount has to be negotiated. He said the league wants a “dollar-for-dollar” amount returned to the owners if the players’ share rises above the percentage figure.

“They want to be able to pay a guy any amount of money, knowing that it will come back to them through the escrow account,” Hunter said. “Well, we’re not in the business of protecting the owners from themselves. They know what a player is worth. They would not have paid Kevin Garnett ($126 million) if they didn’t realize that, over the term of the contract, he would be worth more than that in terms of franchise value, other incomes.”

Hunter said he called a gathering of players to New York City because the NBA had unleashed franchise front office personnel.

“We just wanted to make sure that our player representatives had all information available about the proposals on the table,” he said. “I figured the franchises would be putting the league’s spin on the negotiations. Actually, I wouldn’t be surprised that our players are far more knowledgeable about the proposals than the general managers and coaches. They receive all the information.”

Some teams are talking to players in groups, others calling them in for one-on-one sessions. Gregg Popovich, the Spurs’ general manager and head coach, reportedly faxed a note to San Antonio players that invited them to call if they wanted any information.

By Glenn Rogers, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1998-11-13, By Glenn Rogers

正常营业* *几乎：没有马刺，但问题不多

马刺队的球员们可能想仔细看看，在NBA停摆期间，谁在圣安东尼奥遭受着最严重的经济损失。

目前来看，他们似乎是。

与马刺队有业务往来的各个场馆都出现了亏损，但大多数亏损都被节省的开支或其他领域弥补。

如果赛季直到1月才开始，球员和老板之间的半心半意的谈判将让马刺队损失13场常规赛主场比赛。

金钱损失将达到数百万美元。

马刺队每场阿拉莫穹顶比赛的门票销售额约为40万美元，这意味着当球馆再次开放时，他们将损失520万美元。

此外，每场比赛还会损失大约50万美元的收益，包括特许经营权、本地广播和广告权、停车费、NBA版权费、高级座位和其他收入来源。总计约为650万美元。

但这绝不是全部损失。马刺队将通过27场比赛节省大约10,701,126美元的球员薪水。他们还将节省伙食费和差旅费。

球员们损失的10,701,126美元将永远消失，除非有一些补赛或联盟同意偿还部分损失的薪水。

但马刺队还有其他持续的开支，这将吞噬掉节省的球员薪水和成本。

马刺队员工的薪水仍然在账面上，将在他们通常的每两周或每月日期到期。球队在1996-97赛季支付了大约640万美元的薪水，82场比赛的平均每场比赛大约78,000美元。

马刺队还通过合同义务每年向阿拉莫穹顶支付最低金额。

“无论比赛场次多少，球队必须每年向穹顶支付84万美元，无论是一场也不打还是全部打完，”穹顶主管迈克·阿宾顿(Mike Abington)说。“他们按照合同规定的时间和金额付款。”

阿拉莫穹顶的损失相当于每场比赛约37,476美元，这意味着如果12月31日之前的比赛被取消，将损失约50万美元。

“但我们有收入损失储备。这些损失将被覆盖，”阿宾顿说。“你可以把它比作你为了支付紧急情况而存的钱，比如你家里的空调系统坏了。”

阿宾顿说，他只能重新预订几个空闲的晚上。

“你不能只提前一两周就预订活动，”阿宾顿说。“但，在这种情况下，我们有高中橄榄球季后赛正在进行，我们可能会获得其中一些比赛。

“穹顶对孩子们来说是一个特殊的场地，他们喜欢在这里比赛。”

对于圣安东尼奥的其他人来说，停摆的影响要小得多。

“我们可能处理了(NBA)酒店业务的70%到80%，包括客队和裁判，”万豪酒店总经理史蒂夫·伦德格伦(Steve Lundgren)说。“整个赛季的损失将达到几十万美元。

“但我们可以弥补许多空缺的晚上。填补像这样的少量空缺更容易。每场比赛晚上，我们只填补了大约20到25个房间，来自NBA的人。”

停摆对市中心地区的影响远非致命，主要集中在几家餐厅和酒吧。

“自从马刺队搬到穹顶之后，商场活动的效应实际上并没有那么大，”里弗森特购物中心总经理克里斯·奥维亚特(Chris Oviatt)说。“比赛带来的生意现在主要是赛前，而且在河边，比如冠军体育酒吧或胡桃夹子餐厅。

“但总体影响现在是无法衡量的。我们必须等到月底做完账目才能知道。可能不会有什么可衡量的影响。如果12月和11月没有比赛，对餐馆的影响可能会相当大。”

奥维亚特还认为，如果僵局持续到12月，运动用品商店的销售额将受到人们对NBA的兴趣和关注度下降的影响。

“这件事没有一点好处，这是肯定的，”会议中心游客局执行主任史蒂夫·摩尔(Steve Moore)说。“但对城市的影响主要来自印刷媒体和电子媒体。

“停摆期间，全国各地将不会出现任何关于圣安东尼奥的新闻。ESPN或福克斯体育也不会提到圣安东尼奥。这些关注有助于吸引人们来到这座城市。”

KSAT(12频道)副总裁兼总经理吉姆·乔斯林(Jim Joslyn)说，马刺队的比赛只占该电视台节目的一小部分，不会产生巨大的影响。

“这些比赛直到新年之后才会真正影响我们，”他说。“我认为我们只安排了6场1月1日之前的比赛。”

乔斯林拒绝透露与马刺队之间的任何财务安排。

马刺队的旗舰广播电台WOAI将受到自己的打击——主要是夜间收视率，除非赛季被取消。

“当然会产生影响，”运营总监安德鲁·阿什伍德(Andrew Ashwood)说。“我们损失了赛前和赛后节目中直接赞助商的收入。”

马刺队拥有比赛广播期间的所有播出时间。

“幸运的是，我们已经能够将部分收入转移到牛仔比赛和其他体育节目上，”阿什伍德说。“这不像我们要关灯，但确实有影响。”

点击查看原文：Business as usual* *Almost: No Spurs, but few problems

Business as usual* *Almost: No Spurs, but few problems

The Spurs players may want to take a close look at just who is taking the hardest financial hit in San Antonio during the NBA lockout.

Right now, it looks like they are.

Various venues that deal with the Spurs are showing losses, but most are being offset by saved expenses or made up in other areas.

The halfhearted negotiating between the players and owners will cost the Spurs 13 regular-season home games if the season doesn’t get under way until January.

The monetary loss is in the millions.

The Spurs average about $400,000 in ticket sales for each Alamodome contest, meaning $5.2 million will be lost by the time the doors open again.

You can add another $500,000 or so per game from concessions, local broadcasting and advertising rights, parking fees, NBA royalties, premium seating and other revenue streams. That total is about $6.5 million.

But, that will be far from a total loss. The Spurs will be saving about $10,701,126 in player salaries through 27 games. They’ll also save on per diems and travel expenses.

The $10,701,126 the players lose is money that is gone forever, barring some make-up games or an agreement by the league to reimburse some of the lost pay.

But the Spurs still have other ongoing expenses that will chew into the savings on player salaries and costs.

Spurs employee salaries remain on the books and become due at their usual bi-weekly or monthly dates. The team paid out about $6.4 million in salaries through the 1996-97 season, averaging about $78,000 per game for 82 games.

The Spurs also are contractually obligated to pay a minimum amount to the Alamodome each year.

“The team must pay the dome $840,000 a year, regardless of how many games are played, none or all of them,” dome director Mike Abington said. “They pay it according to the times and amounts stipulated in the contract.”

The Alamodome losses equal about $37,476 each game night, meaning about $500,000 will be lost if games through Dec. 31 are canceled.

“But we have reserves for revenue losses. They will be covered,” Abington said. “You can compare it to your putting money away to pay for emergencies, like the air- conditioning system in your home breaking down.”

Abington says he will be able to re-book only for a few of the empty nights.

“You can’t book events with just a week or two notice,” Abington said. "But, in this case, we have the high school football playoffs going on, and we might be able to get some of those games.

“The dome is a special venue for the kids, they love to play here.”

The lockout packs far less of a financial punch for the rest of San Antonio.

“We probably handle 70 to 80 percent of the (NBA) hotel business, the visiting teams and referees,” Marriott general manager Steve Lundgren said. "It would amount to a couple hundred thousand dollars through the whole season.

“But we can make up a lot of those nights. It’s easier to fill small vacancies like that. We fill maybe just 20 to 25 rooms a night from the NBA people on game nights.”

The blow to the downtown area is far from critical overall, zeroing in primarily on a few restaurants and bars.

“The effects of the activity at the Mall really haven’t been that great since the Spurs moved to the dome,” said Chris Oviatt, general manager of the Rivercenter Mall. "The business the games bring is primarily pre-game now, and it’s at the river level, like at Champions or Hooters.

“But the overall impact is not measurable right now. We won’t know until we do our accounting at the end of the month. It probably will be no measurable impact. There could be a relatively dramatic effect on the restaurants if there are no games in December and November.”

Oviatt also figured sales at the sports paraphernalia shops would be affected by a lack of interest and attention to the NBA if the standoff continues through December.

“There’s no upside to this affair, that’s for sure,” said Steve Moore, executive director of the Convention Center Visitors Bureau. "But the impact on the city comes primarily from the print and electronic media.

“There won’t be any San Antonio datelines across the country during the lockout. There won’t be any mention of San Antonio on ESPN or Fox Sports. That attention helps draw to the city.”

KSAT (Channel 12) vice president/general manager Jim Joslyn says the Spurs games are too small a part of the station’s programming to have a dramatic effect.

“The games don’t really impact us much until after the first of the year,” he said. “I think we only had six games scheduled before Jan. 1.”

Joslyn declined to go into any financial arrangements with the Spurs.

The Spurs’ flagship radio station, WOAI, will take its own beating - mostly in nightly ratings unless the season is lost.

“Sure it’s an impact,” said operations director Andrew Ashwood. “We lose the direct sponsors’ revenue from the pregame and postgame shows.”

The Spurs own all the airtime during the actual game broadcasts.

“Fortunately, we’ve been able to move some of the revenue to Cowboy games and other sports shows,” Ashwood said. “It’s not like we’re going to have to turn off the lights over here, but it’s felt.”

By Glenn Rogers, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1998-11-15, By Glenn Rogers

这联盟到底怎么了？

只是在哼着小曲，琢磨着那些应该在纽约谈判的笨蛋们产生的几个想法。

现在球员们已经正式错过了第一笔工资，他们会去相应的政府办公室排队填写失业救济金申请表吗？

这对他们中的有些人来说可能是一次不错的练习。

还有一个乐观的预测：赫伯·鲁多伊(Herb Rudoy)，他代理了包括查克·珀森(Chuck Person)在内的很多球员，他说将会有一季比赛。

“如果没有，那么到了明年夏天，将会有大约350名自由球员，”鲁多伊说，“而且 CBS 可以用比其他网络支付给 NBA 权利费更少的钱来资助一个新的联盟。”

那将是我们所需要的一切。

沟通：联盟允许总经理和教练与球员交谈的决定或许正在起作用。

太阳队的丹尼·曼宁(Danny Manning)表示，他对听取菲尼克斯老板杰里·科兰格洛(Jerry Colangelo)的意见很感兴趣，科兰格洛是联盟中坚定的支持者之一。曼宁指出，从科兰格洛那里获得信息就像从马嘴中听一样，他还补充说他希望科兰格洛能加入谈判委员会。

后卫雷克斯·查普曼(Rex Chapman)早就已经料到，当老板们否决了旧协议，因为球员们获得的收益超过了 57%，所以会发生这种情况。

查普曼认为，双方都有调整的空间，而现在是自我膨胀阻碍了进展。

“我们已经失去了比赛，损失已经太大了，这太荒谬了，”查普曼说。

他说的多么正确。

仅凭电话：在纽约，克里斯·达德利(Chris Dudley)与联盟有过很多法庭上的争斗，他对于尼克斯队给他打电话没有任何问题。

“我和厄尼（尼克斯总裁格伦菲尔德）的谈话进展顺利，”达德利说。“他问我的儿子怎么样，并说如果我有任何问题，他会回答。然后他说，‘但你可能比我更了解这些提案。’”

的确如此。

四处奔波的波波维奇：马刺队的总经理兼主教练格雷格·波波维奇(Gregg Popovich)足够明智，不会激怒任何球员。他只是给每个人都发了传真，邀请他们如果有任何疑问就给他打电话。

波波维奇现在正在东海岸，观看大学比赛，并参加一些训练。他正与老朋友兼老板拉里·布朗(Larry Brown)和约翰·卡利帕里(John Calipari)一起旅行。

和拉里一起旅行总是很有趣，但这次波波维奇不必过于担心布朗的许多怪癖和缺点。波波维奇也必须清楚地意识到，卡利帕里是前马刺队主教练鲍勃·希尔(Bob Hill)最亲密的朋友之一。

原地不动：太阳队自由球员明星安东尼奥·麦克戴斯(Antonio McDyess)解雇了经纪人阿恩·特莱姆(Arn Tellem)，并聘请了詹姆斯·布莱恩特(James Bryant)和托尼·杜特(Tony Dutt)，杜特也代表艾弗里·约翰逊(Avery Johnson)。

麦克戴斯显然没有在休斯敦寻找房子，这个传言帮助点燃了火箭队正在追逐这位自由球员的真实故事。

据报道，麦克戴斯向队友保证，如果“价格合适”，他将留在菲尼克斯。这是一个不祥的预兆，但除非新的集体谈判协议真正限制了球队可以为经验不足六年的球员提供的金额，否则预计麦克戴斯将继续成为一名太阳球员。

请到海外去：意大利联赛博洛尼亚金德队正在热烈追逐黄蜂队自由球员中锋弗拉德·迪瓦茨(Vlade Divac)和掘金队自由球员前锋拉方索·埃利斯(LaPhonso Ellis)。

弗拉德说，如果停摆在圣诞节期间仍在继续，他将考虑来自欧洲的报价。

博洛尼亚队已经为埃利斯提供了一份本赛季价值 600 万美元的合同，但埃利斯除非 NBA 赛季取消，否则不会感兴趣。

点击查看原文：Just what is going on in this crazy league?

Just what is going on in this crazy league?

Just humming along, mulling and chuckling over a few of the spawnings of the cement-heads who are supposed to be negotiating in the Big Apple.

Now that the players have officially missed one paycheck, will they join the line at the appropriate government office and fill out the necessary paperwork for unemployment pay?

Might be a good exercise for a few of them.

Here’s another happy prediction: Herb Rudoy, who represents Chuck Person, among many others, says there will be a season.

“If there isn’t, well, by next summer there would be about 350 free agents,” said Rudoy, “and CBS could fund a new league for less than what other networks are paying the NBA in rights fees.”

That would be all we’d need.

Communication: The league’s decision to let general managers and coaches talk to the players may be paying off a little.

The Suns’ Danny Manning says he’s interested in listening to Phoenix honcho Jerry Colangelo, one of the league’s hard- liners. Manning noted that getting info from Colangelo was similar to hearing it from the horse’s mouth, and he added that he wished Colangelo was on the negotiating committee.

Guard Rex Chapman had already assumed that when the owners scotched the old deal because the players were getting more than 57 percent of the pie.

Chapman figures there’s room for movement on both sides and that egos now are impeding progress.

“It’s ridiculous that we’ve already lost games, too much damage already has been done,” Chapman said.

How right he is.

Phone alone: In New York, Chris Dudley, who has had his share of courtroom battles with the league, had no problems with the Knicks giving him a ring.

“My talk with Ernie (Knicks president Grunfeld) went fine,” Dudley said. “He asked how my son was doing and said he’d answer any questions if I had any. Then he said, ‘But you probably know more about the proposals than I do.’”

He did.

Traveling Pop: Spurs general manager/coach Gregg Popovich had enough sense to back away from antagonizing any of his players. He simply faxed a note to each, inviting them to call him if they had any queries.

Popovich is now on the East Coast, watching college games and dropping in on some practices. He’s traveling about with old chum and boss Larry Brown and John Calipari.

Traveling with Larry is always a hoot but this time Popovich won’t have to be overly concerned about Brown’s many quirks and foibles. Popovich also must be all too aware that Calipari is one of former Spurs coach Bob Hill’s closest friends.

Staying put: Suns free-agent star Antonio McDyess has fired agent Arn Tellem and hired James Bryant and Tony Dutt - the latter also represents Avery Johnson.

McDyess apparently is not shopping for a house in Houston, a rumor that helped ignite the true tale that the Rockets are in the hunt for the free agent.

McDyess reportedly has assured teammates that he will stay in Phoenix “if the price is right.” Ominous words but, unless the new collective bargaining agreement really curtails amounts teams can offer players with less than six years experience, McDyess is expected to remain a Sun.

Overseas, please: The Italian league Kinder Bologna is in hot pursuit of Hornets free-agent center Vlade Divac and Denver free-agent forward LaPhonso Ellis.

Vlade says he’ll consider the European offer if the lockout is still going on at Christmas.

Bologna has offered Ellis $6 million to play this season, but Ellis isn’t interested unless the NBA season is canceled.

By Glenn Rogers, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1998-11-19, By Johnny Ludden

常规赛和球员薪水导致巨额亏损

尽管在球场上实现了NBA历史上最惊人的逆转，并打进了西部半决赛，但根据周三球队公布的财务报表，马刺队在上个赛季的运营亏损接近200万美元。

马刺队常规赛的亏损为398万美元，收入为6140万美元。

这几乎与1996-97赛季的运营亏损（422万美元）相当，当时球队以20胜62负的战绩创下了球队历史最差战绩。

1996-97赛季，马刺队的平均上座率为17235人，是球队搬到阿拉莫穹顶以来的最低水平，比上个赛季（56胜26负）减少了近2000人。

然而，与两个赛季前不同的是，马刺队在1997-98赛季通过212万美元的季后赛净收入部分抵消了亏损。运营亏损中没有反映的是，马刺队上个赛季因肖恩·埃利奥特(Sean Elliott)、查克·珀森(Chuck Person)和查尔斯·史密斯(Charles Smith)的伤病而收到的515万美元残疾保险金。

“残疾保险金不是我们每年都能指望的收入来源，”马刺队首席财务官里克·派克(Rick Pych)说。

马刺队老板可以用来抵税的摊销和折旧费用为340万美元，相比两个赛季前的1010万美元有所下降。

尽管在停摆期间联盟范围内的禁令，马刺队官员还是向NBA请愿，要求允许他们发布财务记录，以帮助建立球队需要搬迁到一个更具财务可行性的球馆以在圣安东尼奥生存的理由。

自1994-95赛季（球队首次公布财务记录）净赚15.4万美元以来，马刺队每个常规赛都处于亏损状态。

马刺队预计，只要能够打进季后赛首轮，本赛季总亏损将达到360万美元。尽管球员在停摆期间没有获得薪水，但如果整个NBA赛季被取消，球队预计仍将亏损。

球员薪水从1996-97赛季的2820万美元暴涨至上个赛季的3490万美元，抵消了球队在1997-98赛季获得的850万美元的票务收入和全国广播收入增长。

蒂姆·邓肯(Tim Duncan)的菜鸟合同和艾弗里·约翰逊(Avery Johnson)的新合同（每份合同价值约300万美元）以及现有的合同加薪，造成了薪水的大幅增长。

由于需要遏制薪金的快速增长，NBA老板已经暂停了本赛季，他们正在努力与球员谈判新的集体谈判协议。

在周三下午关于拟议的新球馆在贝克萨尔县法院举行的会议上，球队官员表示，球员薪金的“适度”调整将有助于球队支出以每年约6%的速度增长。这与马刺队自1994-95赛季以来平均9%的支出增长率形成对比。

点击查看原文：Regular season, player salaries blamed for big drain on coffers

Regular season, player salaries blamed for big drain on coffers

Despite enjoying the greatest on-court turnaround in NBA history and a berth in the Western Conference semifinals, the Spurs recorded operating losses of almost $2 million last season, according to financial statements released by the franchise Wednesday.

The Spurs had regular-season losses of $3.98 million on revenues of $61.4 million.

That almost matches the $4.22 million in operating losses the team suffered during the 1996-97 season when it finished with the worst record (20-62) in franchise history.

The Spurs’ average attendance of 17,235 in 1996-97 was their lowest since moving to the Alamodome and almost 2,000 fewer than last season when they finished 56-26.

Unlike two seasons ago, however, the Spurs partly offset their 1997-98 losses with $2.12 million in net playoff revenue. Not reflected in the operating losses are $5.15 million in disability insurance payments the Spurs received last season for injuries to players Sean Elliott, Chuck Person and Charles Smith.

“The disability payments are not a revenue stream we can count on every year,” said Rick Pych, the Spurs’ chief financial officer.

Amortization and depreciation, which can be used as a tax write- off by the Spurs’ owners, was listed at $3.4 million, compared to $10.1 million listed two seasons ago.

Despite a leaguewide gag order during the lockout, Spurs officials petitioned the NBA to allow them to release the financial records to help build the case that the team needs to move to a more financially viable arena in order to survive in San Antonio.

The Spurs have lost money each regular season since netting $154,000 in 1994-95, the first season the franchise disclosed its financial records.

Providing the Spurs reach the first round of the playoffs, the franchise projected total losses of $3.6 million for the upcoming season. Even though players are not being paid during the lockout, the team projects it will lose money if the entire NBA season is canceled.

Players’ salaries, which ballooned from $28.2 million in 1996-97 to $34.9 million last season, offset much of the $8.5 million increase in ticket and national broadcast revenue the franchise earned in 1997-98.

The addition of Tim Duncan’s rookie contract and Avery Johnson’s new deal - each worth about $3 million annually - as well as raises in existing contracts accounted for the jump in salaries.

Citing a need to curtail the rapid climb of salaries, NBA owners have put the current season on hold while they attempt to negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement with the players.

During a meeting Wednesday afternoon at the Bexar County Courthouse about a proposed new arena, team officials said a “moderation” of players’ salaries would help franchise expenses increase at an annual rate of about 6 percent. That’s opposed to the 9 percent average Spurs expenses have increased since 1994-95.

By Johnny Ludden, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1998-11-21, By John Gutierrez-Mier

马刺教练帮助天主教青年组织球队

圣玛丽玛达肋纳天主教堂的体育馆周三晚上挤满了人，但并非篮球迷。

相反，约75名天主教青年组织篮球教练在两位顶尖教练的指导下，认真学习，两位教练很乐意分享他们的成功秘诀。

“我们努力让这些教练让比赛变得简单有趣，让参与的孩子们享受比赛，”汉克·伊根(Hank Egan)说，他是圣安东尼奥马刺队的助理教练。他和马刺队的另一位助理教练保罗·普雷西(Paul Pressey)共同参加了由儿童体育网络主办的为期三小时的教练培训课程。

儿童体育网络的临床协调员乔迪·卢斯(Jode Luce)表示，这家非营利组织为教练颁发证书，并运营着全美最大的非学校附属青少年体育联盟。

“这是天主教青年组织多年来首次要求所有篮球教练通过我们的项目获得认证，”她说。

圣玛丽玛达肋纳天主教堂的天主教青年组织教区主席安东尼·桑切斯(Anthony Sanchez)表示，此次培训将使球员和教练受益。

“所有这些教练都是志愿者，”桑切斯说，他也参加了培训。“通过培训和专业教练，他们（参与者）将能够以不同的视角看待问题。他们会学到一些以前从未想过的事情。”

桑切斯表示，圣安东尼奥拥有全美最大的天主教青年组织项目之一，超过14,000名儿童参与各种体育运动。

普雷西在弗吉尼亚州里士满长大的时候，小时候曾在教堂青年联盟打球，他说基本功、体育精神和友谊是打造胜利球队的必备工具。

“我在里士满那些青年联盟中早早地学会了打球，”普雷西说，他曾效力于密尔沃基雄鹿队，然后是马刺队，并在1992年退役。

“比赛的基本功非常重要，”普雷西说。“没有它们，你无法让任何人对比赛感兴趣。”

大卫·伊巴拉(David Ybarra)是第一次当教练，他渴望从伊根和普雷西那里学习。

“我小时候打过天主教青年组织的篮球，但现在他们更正规了，”伊巴拉说，他在圣菲利普耶稣天主教堂执教。他说，信仰也将成为他的比赛计划的一部分。

“这是一个天主教联盟，做这件事有助于加强我的信仰，”伊巴拉说，他8岁的女儿朱莉(Julie)参加了天主教青年组织的体育运动。

博恩圣彼得天主教堂的助理篮球教练雷·马丁内斯(Ray Martinez)表示，关于安全、营养和处理家长的讲座特别有用。

点击查看原文：Spurs coaches helping CYO teams

Spurs coaches helping CYO teams

The gymnasium at St. Mary Magdalen’s Catholic Church was packed Wednesday night, but it wasn’t filled with basketball fans.

Instead, about 75 Catholic Youth Organization basketball coaches listened and learned from two top-notch coaches who were happy to share their secrets to success.

“We try to get these coaches to make the game easy and fun for kids who participate,” said Hank Egan, an assistant coach for the San Antonio Spurs. He was joined by fellow Spurs assistant coach Paul Pressey for a three-hour coaching clinic sponsored by Kids Sports Network.

Jode Luce, a clinician coordinator for the network, said the nonprofit organization certifies coaches and operates the largest non-school affiliated youth sports leagues across the country.

“This is the first time in many years that the Catholic Youth Organization has mandated that all their basketball coaches be certified through our program,” she said.

Anthony Sanchez, CYO parish president for St. Mary Magdalen Catholic Church, said the training will benefit players as well as coaches.

“All of these coaches are volunteers,” said Sanchez who also participated in the training. “Through the clinic and professional coaches, they (participants) will be able to see things differently. They’ll be taught things they never even thought about.”

San Antonio, said Sanchez, operates one of the largest CYO programs in the country with more than 14,000 children participating in various sports.

Pressey, who played in church youth leagues as a child growing up in Richmond, Va., said fundamentals, sportsmanship and fellowship are essential tools in building winning programs.

“I learned to play ball early on during those youth leagues in Richmond,” said Pressey, who played for the Milwaukee Bucks and then the Spurs before retiring in 1992.

“Fundamentals of the game are so important,” said Pressey. “Without them, you’re not going to get anyone interested in the game.”

David Ybarra is a first-time coach and was eager to learn from Egan and Pressey.

“I played CYO basketball as a youth, but they’re a little more organized today,” said Ybarra, who coaches at St. Philip of Jesus Catholic Church. He said faith would also be a part of his game plan.

“It’s a Catholic league and doing this helps strengthen my faith,” said Ybarra, whose 8-year-old daughter, Julie, participates in CYO sports.

Ray Martinez, an assistant basketball coach at St. Peter’s Catholic Church in Boerne, said lectures on safety, nutrition and dealing with parents, were especially helpful.

By John Gutierrez-Mier, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1998-11-21

霍尔特称马刺队为城市带来独特优势

圣安东尼奥马刺队主席彼得·霍尔特(Peter Holt)正全力以赴，为这支位于阿拉莫城的NBA球队争取一座新的球馆。

霍尔特正在积极推动一项颇具争议的方案，计划建造一座耗资1.57亿美元的球馆，大部分资金将由公共资金提供。

周四，霍尔特与《圣安东尼奥快报》商业作家特拉维斯·E·波林(Travis E. Poling)、特约撰稿人克里斯托弗·安德森(Christopher Anderson)和高级体育作家约翰尼·拉登(Johnny Ludden)进行了一场问答环节。

这位商人也是马刺队最大股东，他阐述了自己对于以下问题的看法：将东北学区龙角采石场及周边地区增值税收入用于建设一座新的含有18500个座位的球馆的可行性，以及公众将从这项协议中获得什么。

以下是采访摘录：

Q：你要求公众为一座价值1.57亿美元的新球馆承担大部分费用，而建造球馆的主要目的是让你的篮球队获得更多、更确定的利润。公众为什么要这样做？

**霍尔特：**当然，我绝不会这样描述它。我们试图实现的是一种公私合作模式，在这个模式中，我们将首次在圣安东尼奥历史上投入资金和土地，帮助建造一座中型球馆，供所有社区使用，马刺队将成为主要租户。这样做是为了让我们在NBA最小的市场中保持活力、经济活力，并保持竞争力。我们相信，圣安东尼奥市和圣安东尼奥社区也和我们一样渴望这样做。

Q：作为交换，马刺队愿意支付2000万美元，这笔钱相当于你预计的球馆命名权收入。这公平吗？

**霍尔特：**我不会将两者等同起来。我们认为——我再说一遍，在接下来的45分钟里，我都会说——我们无法在阿拉莫穹顶体育馆保持经济活力。我们在圣安东尼奥市已经存在了25年，我想大家都承认，这是NBA最小的市场。这个所有权群体——全部来自圣安东尼奥，都致力于让球队留在圣安东尼奥——非常希望留在圣安东尼奥。我们相信，向这座新球馆投入2000万美元，以及Bitterblue集团和阿拉莫水泥公司提供土地，是公私合作的公平部分。

Q：还有哪家企业会要求公众为其建造新总部，不支付租金，不支付收入，并放弃对建筑设计、建造和运营的完全控制权？马刺队是特殊情况吗？

**霍尔特：**我们认为，作为圣安东尼奥的职业联赛，我们为这座城市带来了其他大多数企业无法带来的东西，那就是来自圣安东尼奥马刺队的国家级认可，以及过去25年我们一直存在于此，并在过去10年左右的时间里极具竞争力。我们认为我们是这个社区进程和体系的一部分。我们真诚地认为，作为球队所有者，我们参与了这项投资以让球队留在圣安东尼奥，希望公众也能与我们共同参与。

Q：如果东北学区选择退出或参与程度不到100%，新的球馆是否可以使用TIF（税收增量融资资金提案）进行建设？

**霍尔特：**如果他们完全退出，我们认为无法完成。现在的百分比——我知道这些数字正在不断调整，我认为就在我们说话的时候——我无法百分之百地回答这个问题。我知道我不知道答案。

Q：关于使用增值税来为球馆筹集资金的猜测不断出现。如果TIF被否决，你们的备用计划是什么？

**霍尔特：**我们没有备用计划。我必须相信TIF是正确的选择。据我了解，如果你使用增值税，除非我弄错了，否则必须通过全民公决。我认为，在当前情况下，我们还没有看到政治、商业、民间等任何方面的领导人愿意站出来支持这个方案。使用半美分的增值税或第92号议案（其中包括酒店住宿税、租车税和其他方式），都需要进行全民公决。我们与Bitterblue公司一起尝试制定了一项我们认为对每个人都有利的计划，该计划不会增加任何新税收，我们认为东北学区的数据将显示他们在这次计划中实际上会得到更多收益。现在，他们需要自己计算数据。我们已经计算出了数据，并希望在接下来的几周内能够坐下来逐项分析。我们认为他们——所有征税实体——

Q：你提到马刺队将承担所有风险，但在你的提议中，你将获得所有收入收益。如果收入超过预期，球队是否愿意分享任何收入流？

**霍尔特：**不，我们不会。我们试图预测未来——我称之为可行性分析——就像任何组织一样，包括民间组织。我们需要这些资金来维持稳定。我们认为，在短期内，我们实际上会在球馆亏钱，直到我们建立起来并填满比赛日期。我们必须克服这些困难，因为这些都是借来的钱。

Q：马刺队是否真的需要这座新球馆？

**霍尔特：**是的。我们并不是为了获得更好的座位而这样做。我的意思是，如果我们不确信无法长期留在阿拉莫穹顶体育馆，我们就不会经历这一切。为了在NBA最小的市场中保持经济活力，我们必须进入一座新的球馆。

Q：你或马刺队的代表是否联系过其他城市？或者其他城市是否联系过你或马刺队的代表，询问关于迁址的事情？

**霍尔特：**没有。我们没有联系任何人。我们偶尔会接到电话。有一些体育经纪人，我想他们会给很多人打电话。在过去6个月左右的时间里，我们接到了几个电话，我认为这些电话比体育经纪人打电话给你的电话更严肃。我不会谈论这些。我们告诉他们——从我成为主席的那天起，我们就一直在告诉他们——我们没有兴趣。我认为这句话已经传播得很广泛。我想，人们开始阅读从停摆到球馆建设的各种信息，然后他们就开始猜测。很多人对此很感兴趣，但我们不想搬迁。再次提醒你，看看这个所有权群体，看看我们住在哪里，看看公司的总部在哪里。我不想出售球队，而且我从来没有与现在这个所有权群体中的任何一位老板谈过出售球队的想法。我们一直在说。但我们会耐心等待。

Q：使用TIF为私人球馆提供资金的提议引起了部分负面反应。你对此感到个人受到伤害吗？这值得吗？

**霍尔特：**不，我没有感到个人受到伤害。这值得吗？绝对值得。如果你从事篮球业务或任何体育业务，你必须保持一定程度的乐观。其次，我是一个现实主义者，我理解，当你开始使用任何类型的公共资金机制时，无论是什么，你都会自动遇到反对者，他们不想这样做。我们明白这一点。因此，这就是我们以这种方式建立TIF的原因。我们相信这绝对是正确的做法。其次，60天的公众讨论期是我们力主开始的。我们感谢市议会以9比0的投票结果让它开始。所以，我们所做的一切，你们（《快报》）都在场。这是公开的。这是摆在桌面的。我们希望以这种方式进行，无论我们是否成功。我们相信我们有很大的成功机会，因为我们相信每个人都真诚地看待这件事。

Q：还没有政治家支持这项提议。公众的反应也不像预期那样积极。你感到失望吗？

**霍尔特：**不，我不认为失望。我们的预期是，这并不是所有人都争相抢着做的事情。从刚刚结束的选举到即将到来的选举，都有各种因素。我说的是市级选举。如果你还记得的话，9月底，东北学区举行过学区债券选举。你知道，没有一个完美的时机来提出这样的建议。

我们理解，在他们了解到所有相关影响之前，这些征税实体不会强烈支持它，因为彼得·霍尔特有一天突然出现，将它扔到他们腿上。放在桌子上。不会这样发生的。这就是60天流程存在的意义。当我们接近12月17日的时候——我知道你们知道，但我想谈谈你们是否可以写出来——请记住，那是流程的下一步，而不是结束。当然，市议会必须投票将TIF区域确定下来，但他们可以根据初步融资计划进行投票。然后，我们完全预期，一旦我们获得投票结果，我们将继续谈判，并处理所有这些复杂的数字。

这并不是一个容易理解的概念。它不适合用简单的词语来描述。我的意思是，从某种意义上说，你可以争辩说，半美分的增值税至少很直白。它是半美分的增值税，它将筹集大约5000万到6000万美元；无论它在圣安东尼奥做了什么，就到此为止。每个人都必须投票支持它，每个人都必须支付它。TIF有点混乱，而且很复杂。我们理解，尤其是东北学区，因为这种方式会影响他们的州拨款，他们真的需要花些时间和精力。我们理解他们已经聘请了一些顾问来帮助他们处理这件事。这不像：它在一段时间内花费了这么多，因为我猜，不是猜，我知道，它会直接影响州拨款（对NESD）的运作方式。所以这是一个复杂的公式。

Q：五年后，马刺队将在哪里打篮球？

**霍尔特：**在龙角采石场的新球馆。我完全相信。我确实相信。我相信，如果我们以正确的方式去做，我们相信我们已经以正确的方式做了，一步一步来。我们知道这不会是一个简单的过程。我们喜欢我们公开进行这件事。我们认为这是正确的做法。我认为，还有一点，我感谢你们从这个角度进行报道，那就是我们没有被指控进行秘密交易。理解并认可。所以，我们认为这些数字会看起来不错。

点击查看原文：Holt says Spurs offer unique benefits for city

Holt says Spurs offer unique benefits for city

San Antonio Spurs Chairman Peter Holt is in the fight of his life to get a new arena for the NBA franchise in the Alamo City.

Holt is making a play for a controversial $157 million arena to be built largely with public money.

On Thursday, Holt sat down with San Antonio Express-News Business Writer Travis E. Poling, Staff Writer Christopher Anderson and Senior Sports Writer Johnny Ludden for a question-and-answer session.

The businessman and owner of the largest chunk of the Spurs laid out his views on what the chances are of diverting taxes on increased property values in and around the Longhorn Quarry in the North East School District to fund a new 18,500-seat arena and what the public will get out of the deal.

Excerpts of the interview follow:

Q: You’re asking the public to pick up the tab for most of a new $157 million arena built largely so that your basketball team can make a bigger and more certain profit. Why should they?

HOLT: Well, of course I wouldn’t characterize it that way at all. What we’re trying to do is have a public-private partnership, of which we, for the first time ever in the history of San Antonio, are going to contribute money and land to help build a mid-sized arena for all the community, of which we’ll be, the Spurs will be, the primary tenant. It is to keep us viable, economically viable, in the smallest market in the NBA and stay competitive, which we believe the city of San Antonio and the community of San Antonio wants just as much as we do.

Q: In exchange for a new arena, the Spurs are willing to pay $20 million, or the same amount of money you project to be paid for naming rights to the facility. Is that fair?

HOLT: I don’t equate one with the other. What we believe is, and I’ll say it, and I’m going to say it for the next 45 minutes, we are not economically viable in the Alamodome. We’ve been here for 25 years in the city of San Antonio, which I assume everyone acknowledges is the smallest market in the NBA. This ownership group - all from San Antonio, all committed to keeping the team here - very much wants to stay here. And we believe putting $20 million into this new arena, and the Bitterbluegroup and Alamo Cement putting the land in, is a fair part of the public- private partnership.

Q: What other business would ask the public to build it a new home, make no lease payment, pay no revenue, and surrender complete control over the structure’s design, construction and operation? Are the Spurs a special exception?

HOLT: Well, we think being the major league in San Antonio that certainly we bring something to the city that most other businesses don’t bring, and that’s the national recognition that comes about from being not only the San Antonio Spurs and being here 25 years but also within the last 10 years or so being extremely competitive. We think we’re part of the process and system of this community. And we just strongly, strongly believe that we, as the owners and the participants in making this investment to keep the team here, want the public to also participate with us.

Q: Can a new arena be built with the TIF (tax increment financing funding proposal) if North East School District opts out or participates at less than 100 percent.

HOLT: If they opt out completely, we don’t believe it could be done. The percentages now, I know those are numbers that are being worked literally I think as we speak, and I just can’t answer the question at least 100 percent. I know that I just don’t have that answer.

Q: There continues to be speculation about a sales tax increase to fund an arena. What is your fallback plan if the TIF is rejected?

HOLT: We don’t have a fallback plan. I’ve got to believe the TIF, we believe, is the right way to go. If you do anything with a sales tax, my understanding is - unless I’m off - that has to go through a general referendum. And I think certainly at this point we haven’t seen the leadership - political, business, civic, whatever - be willing to step forward on that. Using the half- cent sales tax or also House Bill 92, which had hotel-motel tax, I think rental car tax, and other ways to do it, but all demanding a general referendum. We have tried with Bitterblue to come up with a plan that we think works for everybody, that does not create any new taxes, and we think that the numbers are going to show at North East School District that they’re actually going to come out ahead on this. Now, they’ve got to work the numbers themselves. We’ve worked out numbers and we hope within the next few weeks to be able sit down and walk through that. We think they’ve been, as all the taxing entities, and I

Q: You mentioned the Spurs would assume all the risk but under your proposal you would accrue all the benefits from the revenue. Is the team willing to share any of the revenue streams if the revenues are higher than projected?

HOLT: No. No. We wouldn’t be. We tried to put a crystal ball together - I’d call that the pro formas - just like any organization does, including civic organizations. We need those dollars for stability. We think that in the short term that we’re going to actually lose money in the arena until we build it up and get the dates filled. We’re going to want to have to overcome that because those will be borrowed dollars.

No. We don’t. I’ll keep repeating it. We’re not doing this just to get better seats. I mean, we wouldn’t be going through all of this if we didn’t absolutely believe that we cannot stay in the Alamodome long term. To be economically viable in the smallest market in the NBA we must be in a new arena.

Q: Have you or a representative of the Spurs contacted any other cities, or have any other cities contacted you or any representative of the Spurs, about moving the franchise?

HOLT: No. We have not contacted anybody. We do get calls occasionally. There are sports brokers out there, and my guess is they call a lot of people. We have had, over the last six months or so, a couple of calls that I would call a little more serious than just a sports broker ringing you up. I’m not going to talk about those. We’ve told them - as what we’ve told them from the day I came in as chairman - we’re not interested. And I think that word has pretty strongly gotten out there. My guessis what happens, people start reading everything from the lockout to the arena situation and they start speculating. There’s plenty of interest out there, but we don’t want to move. Again, I ask you to look at the ownership group, look where we live, look where corporate headquarters are. I don’t want to sell the team and I have never talked to any owner that’s in this group right now that wants to sell this team. We keep saying it. But we’re going to be patient.

Q: The proposal to use the TIF to fund the private arena has drawn some negative reaction. Are you taking this personally, and is this worth it?

HOLT:No, I’m not taking it personally. Is it worth it? Absolutely. You’ve got to be somewhat optimistic if you’re in the basketball business or any sports business. And, secondly, I’m a realist and I understand that anytime you start using any kind of public-funding mechanism no matter what it is, you can automatically get people that are going to be against you and not want to do this. And we understand that. So, that’s why we’ve set this TIF up the way we have. We believe it absolutely is the right way to do it. And, secondly, is the 60-day public period is something that we pushed for, wanted to get started. And the City Council, we appreciate them getting it started with a 9-0 vote. And so everything we’re doing you guys (Express- News) are there. It’s public. It’s up front. It’s on top of the table and that’s the way we want it to be done, whether we succeed or not. And we believe we have a good chance to succeed because we believe everybody’s trying to look at this in good faith.

Q:No politician has endorsed the proposal. And the public reaction has been less than overwhelmingly positive. Are you disappointed?

HOLT: No, I don’t think disappointed. Our expectation was that this is not something that everybody runs up and grabs. There’s everything from the elections that just ended to the elections coming up. I’m talking about the city-type elections. There were the school bond elections that went on, if you remember, at the end of September that North East was involved in. You know there’s no perfect time to present something like this.

We understand why people, until they understand all of the ramifications of this, that these taxing entities are not going to strongly embrace it because Peter Holt shows up one day and throws it on their laps. On the table. It’s not going to happen that way. That’s why the 60-day process is there. And once we get close to Dec. 17, and I know you guys know this, but I’d like to talk about if you can or write about it, is remember that’s the next step in the process, not the ending. Certainly,the City Council must vote to put the TIF zone in place but they can do that off a preliminary financing plan, then we fully expect once we have that vote to continue negotiating and working through all these complex numbers.

It’s not an easy concept to grasp. It doesn’t fit well with a sound bite. I mean in a way you could argue a half-cent sales tax at least is pretty cut and dry. It’s a half-cent sales tax and it will raise roughly $50-$60 million; whatever it does in San Antonio and that’s about it. And everybody’s got to vote for it and everybody’s got to pay it. The TIF gets a bit confusing and it’s complex. And we understand why the North East School District particularly, because the way it affects their state funding, really has to spend some time and effort. And we understand they’ve hired some consultants to help them work through it. It’s not as cut and dry as: It costs this over this amount of time, because I guess, not guess, I know, it directly affects then how the state funding works (for NESD). So that’s a complex formula.

Q: Where will the Spurs be playing basketball in five years?

HOLT: A new arena in Longhorn Quarry. I’m an absolute believer. I am. I’m a believer. I’m a believer that if we do this the right way, and we believe we have done it the right way, one step at a time. We knew this was not going to be an easy process. We like the fact that we’re doing it publicly. We think it’s the right way to go. I think that’s one thing, and I appreciate the way you guys have written it up from the point of view, is that we’re not getting accused of doing back-door deals.understand and buy into. So, we think the numbers are going to look good.

via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1998-11-21

轮到你了 - 聚焦：马刺队和公共资金

金融领域与股票发行、债券

作为一个体育迷，我最初对提出的Longhorn Quarry体育馆感到兴奋。然而，作为东北学区纳税人，当细节公开时，我开始持怀疑态度。

马刺队辩称，我们应该在做出决定之前听取事实，所以我查阅了体育馆的网站，并且在本周参加了一个会议，会上马刺队代表介绍了计划概述。

我理解最终细节还有待确定，但任何接近当前提议的内容对NESD来说都是个坏主意。

马刺队，一家盈利性组织，希望用公共资金支付大部分成本，但他们希望在体育馆在约25年内偿清之前，从活动、特许经营和停车场获得100%的收入。

当体育馆还清后，马刺队的租赁协议将到期，有可能让公众留下一个老体育馆和一个没有球队的体育馆。

谁会不喜欢这种交易？在商业世界中，应该由那些能够获利的人承担风险。然而，我们没有听到关于马刺队筹集私人资金的任何尝试。

我认为，经营马刺队的商人们可以通过私人手段筹集资金，例如公司债券或公开股票发行。

我相信忠实的马刺队球迷会投资于他们球队的未来。还有什么比确保球队留在社区中更好的方式呢？斯科特·罗斯(Scott Ross)

马刺队的资金提议听起来像是一笔糟糕的交易

最近关于新的马刺队体育馆的辩论似乎遗漏了两个重要的点。

首先，如果这对圣安东尼奥的人民来说是一笔如此划算的交易，为什么马刺队和市政厅不举行公投，让市民投票？我猜测，因为这样的公投将以压倒性优势失败，而将这强加于我们喉咙的企图将戛然而止。

其次，通过要求东北学区参与拟议的增值税融资计划或TIF计划，马刺队和市政厅正在要求居住在该学区的人们将一支运动队置于我们孩子的教育之上。

作为该学区的居民，我认为这是不可取的。如果TIF像马刺队一直说的那样是一个好主意，为什么他们不想更多地参与其中呢？毕竟，他们是为了盈利而经商的。

相反，他们想投入2000万美元，让圣安东尼奥的市民拥有该物业。当然，根据他们的提议，他们将获得与马刺队比赛相关的所有体育馆收入。

他们不愿拥有该设施证明了对我来说，参与这项风险投资将是一笔糟糕的交易。比尔·克劳福德(Bill Crawford)

效仿其他例子；继续进行体育馆计划

我们需要找到一种方法，最好的方法，让圣安东尼奥建造一座新的体育馆。

南圣安东尼奥集团提出另一个场址，马刺队也提出了他们可以提供的资金，这是件好事。

让我们共同完成这个项目。丹佛正在这样做。甚至印第安纳波利斯和他们的国家篮球协会球队也在建造一个新的体育馆。

让我们开放规划，选择最好的场址和最好的融资方式，然后完成它。查尔斯·鲍登(Charles Bowden)

城市应该为了公共利益购买马刺队

如果城市真的要考虑花费1.6亿美元为马刺队建造一座新的体育馆，那么为什么城市不考虑直接购买马刺队呢？

现任老板只花了大约8500万美元购买了球队，最近他们拒绝了1.3亿美元的报价。我认为1.6亿美元将是一个慷慨的报价。

如果城市购买了马刺队，那么我们可以不再担心球队会被一群贪婪的老板搬到另一个城市。

马刺队可以继续在城市拥有的Alamodome体育馆比赛。我们可以为那些通常负担不起参加比赛的圣安东尼奥市民开放一些马刺队的比赛。马刺队的利润可以返还给城市用于慈善事业和公共改善 - 也许甚至可以用来资助交响乐团。

这是一个疯狂的想法吗？与城市为马刺队融资建造另一个体育馆相比，这并不疯狂。罗伯·西蒙斯(Rob Simons)

拟议的资金协议只是企业福利

马刺队的Longhorn Quarry提议只是另一个特殊利益集团的企业福利计划。

用经济学的语言来说，马刺队试图构建一个外部性，将为他们私人企业融资的成本转嫁给纳税人的一部分。因此，马刺队遵循了过去半个世纪美国公司标准的操作程序：将利润私有化，将成本公有化。

马刺队计划中有一个独特之处 - 愿意从东北学区抽取资源。也许这种使该学区儿童贫困的策略揭示了马刺队对社区的真正感情。

马刺队提供的任何战略性财务计划的真正面貌，将不会体现在付费公司顾问和公共关系宣传人员的夸张修辞中，而是体现在对看似微不足道的细节进行解码中。迪翁·丹尼斯(Dion Dennis)

体育特许经营寻求皇室待遇

马刺队，以及事实上所有职业体育特许经营似乎想要的，就是被当作皇室对待。

职业运动员和球队老板是我们国家最富有的人，但我们并没有用我们的税款来支持像英国温莎城堡这样的东西，而是建造了Alamodome，也许很快我们还会建造“Quarry-dome”。

我的许多祖先逃离英国是为了摆脱皇室和皇室实施的寄生性、吸取税款的贪婪行为。

所以，我们为什么要考虑那些运动特许经营的“皇室 wannabes”对更多公共资金的财务需求呢？乔治·科森(George Cosson)

为体育馆寻找别人的口袋

奥斯汀已经证明，职业体育并不是吸引大量人口所必需的。只需要一个管理良好的城市。

奥斯汀的经济领先于圣安东尼奥，因为他们在技术和教育方面取得了进步。

想象一下，为一个新的篮球馆提出的数百万美元可以用来促进圣安东尼奥的技术发展。

所以，一旦体育馆建成，这对城市有什么好处？你猜对了，什么都没有。所有收入都将归马刺队球员和老板所有，而我们的城市一分钱也拿不到。

如果马刺队要建造一个新的体育馆，他们应该找到别人的口袋来拿钱。基里尔·莫基耶夫(Kirill Mokeyev)

点击查看原文：Your Turn - Focus: Spurs, public financing

Your Turn - Focus: Spurs, public financing

Finance arena with stock offering, bonds As a sports fan, I was initially excited about the proposed Longhorn Quarry arena. However, as a North East School District taxpayer, I became skeptical as the details were made public.

The Spurs argued we should hear the facts before making a decision, so I looked up the arena’s Internet Web site and this week attended a meeting where a Spurs representative presented an overview of the plan.

I understand the final details are still to be worked out, but anything close to the current proposal is a bad idea for the NESD.

The Spurs, a for-profit organization, want public funds to pay for the vast majority of the costs, yet they want one hundred percent of the revenues from events, concessions and parking until the arena is paid off in about 25 years.

And when the arena is paid off, the Spur’s lease will expire, potentially leaving the public with an old arena and no team in it.

Who would not want that kind of deal? In the business world, the one who stands to profit should be the one taking the risks. Yet we hear nothing about the Spurs attempts to raise private funds.

I would assume the businessmen who run the Spurs could raise the money through private means, such as corporate bonds or a public stock offering.

I am sure the loyal Spurs fans would invest in their team’s future. And what better way to ensure that the team stays in the community? Scott Ross

Spurs’ funding proposal sounds like bad deal

The recent debates regarding a new Spurs arena seem to be missing two important points.

First, if this is such a great deal for the people of San Antonio, why don’t the Spurs and City Hall hold a referendum and let the citizens vote? My guess is because such a referendum would lose overwhelmingly and the attempt to shove this down our throats would grind to a halt.

Second, by asking the North East School District to participate in the proposed tax-increment financing, or TIF, plan, the Spurs and City Hall are asking the people who live in the district to put a sports franchise above the education of our children.

As a resident of the district, I think this is unconscionable. If the TIF is as great an idea as the Spurs keep saying, why don’t they want to participate more? After all, they are in business for profit.

Instead, they want to put up $20 million and let the citizens of San Antonio own the property. Of course, under their proposal, they will get all the arena revenues associated with the Spurs games.

Their reluctance to own the facility proves to me that this venture will be a bad deal to participate in. Bill Crawford

Follow other examples; get on with arena plan

We need to find a way, the best way, for San Antonio to build a new arena.

It is great that the South San Antonio group has proposed an additional site and that the Spurs have proposed the funds they can contribute.

Let’s make this a project we come together on. Denver is doing it. Even Indianapolis and their National Basketball Association team are building a new arena.

Let’s open up the planning, pick the best site and the best financing approach, and get it done. Charles Bowden

City should buy Spurs for public good

If the city is going to seriously consider spending $160 million to build a new arena for the Spurs, then why doesn’t the city just consider buying the Spurs?

The current owners only paid about $85 million for the team, and recently the they turned down an offer for $130 million. I think $160 million would be a generous offer.

If the city buys the Spurs, then we can stop worrying about the team being moved to another city by a group of greedy owners.

The Spurs can continue to play in the city-owned Alamodome. We can open up a few Spurs games to the citizens of the San Antonio who can’t normally afford to attend a game. And the profits from the Spurs can be put back into the city for charities and public improvements - maybe even to fund the symphony.

Is this a crazy idea? Not any crazier than the city financing another arena for the Spurs. Rob Simons

Proposed funding deal just corporate welfare

The Spurs Longhorn Quarry proposal is just another special-interest, corporate- welfare program.

In the language of economics, the Spurs are attempting to construct an externality, passing off the cost of financing their private business enterprise onto segments of the taxpaying public. As such, the Spurs are following the standard operating procedure for U.S. corporations over the past half-century: Privatize the profits and publicly distribute the costs.

If there is one aspect that is unique about the Spurs plan - the willingness to drain resources from North East School District. Perhaps this strategy to impoverish that district’s children reveals the Spurs’ truest sentiment toward the community.

The true shape of any strategic financial plan offered by the Spurs will be revealed not in the hyperbolic euphemisms of paid corporate consultants and public relations spin doctors but in decoding the effects of the seemingly insignificant details. Dion Dennis

Sports franchises seek royal treatment

What the Spurs, and, indeed, what all professional sorts franchises seem to want is to be treated like royalty.

Professional athletes and team owners are among the wealthiest people in our country, but instead of supporting something like England’s Windsor Castle with our taxes, we built the Alamodome, and, soon perhaps, we will build the “Quarry-dome.”

Many of my ancestors fled England to get away from royalty and the parasitic, tax-sucking greed practiced by the royals.

So why do we even consider the financial demands of the sports-franchise “royal wannabes” for more public financing? George Cosson

Find someone else’s pocket to pick for arena

Austin has proved that professional sports are not needed to bring in an abundance of people. All that is needed is a well-run city.

Austin is ahead of San Antonio economically because of their technological and educational advances.

Imagine what the millions proposed for a new basketball arena could do to advance San Antonio’s technology.

So, once the arena is built what is in it for the city? You guessed it, absolutely nothing. All revenues will go to the Spurs players and owners, and not a penny towards our city.

If the Spurs are going to build a new arena, they should find someone else’s pocket to pull the money out of. Kirill Mokeyev

via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1998-11-22, By Chris Sheridan

大门依然紧闭 赛季开打仍不乐观

在终于取得了一些进展之后，NBA联盟和球员工会之间的劳资谈判在周六迎来现实的考验，双方都意识到还有大量工作要做。

超过120名球员参加了电话会议，被告知联盟已经听取了工会提出的妥协谈判要求。但双方在许多问题上存在分歧，这些问题不会轻易解决。

“我们最好的提议和他们的最佳提议并不匹配，这意味着我们之间仍然存在相当大的差距。这将会是一个问题，”联盟总裁大卫·斯特恩(David Stern)说道，“我们必须克服相当大的困难。”

双方尚未确定恢复谈判的具体日期，但预计将在本周初举行会谈。

联盟老板们也花了一整天的时间评估了周五全天谈判期间讨论的妥协方案。双方都同意这场谈判是迄今为止最富有成效的一次。双方都在寻求的收入比例和处理球员工资预提税的规则方面做出了让步。

一些进展可以通过肢体语言来衡量。在晚餐后，老板们、球员们和律师们在人群中随意交谈，开玩笑，看起来比以往的谈判会议轻松多了。

“你的牛排和龙虾怎么样？”步行者队的安东尼奥·戴维斯(Antonio Davis)问尼克斯队老板大卫·切克特斯(Dave Checketts)。

“事实上，我吃的是金枪鱼三明治，”切克特斯笑着回答。

热火队老板米奇·阿里森(Mickey Arison)心情很好，他冒着风险调侃了脾性暴躁的阿隆佐·莫宁(Alonzo Mourning)，嘲笑他在去年第一轮季后赛对阵尼克斯的系列赛中与拉里·约翰逊(Larry Johnson)的冲突。莫宁只是抿着嘴唇回应。

改善情绪的最佳解释是双方在主要的分歧点——球员工资占篮球相关收入的比例——上都做出了让步。

联盟老板们原本要求50/50的收入分成，现在已经增加了超过两个百分点。球员们原本将预提税的实施与60%的收入分成联系在一起，现在也已经增加了至少两个百分点。

“还有很多工作要做，”马刺队的后卫艾弗里·约翰逊(Avery Johnson)在与工会执行董事比利·亨特(Billy Hunter)的电话会议后说道，“我们可能只走了十步中的一步——接下来的九步是最难的。

“如果我们能在未来两三周内克服重大障碍，也许就能拯救这个赛季。我们有可能迎来一个赛季，也有可能没有。

“他们（工会和联盟）在周五付出了巨大的努力，来来回回，转弯抹角，跳跃翻滚，但我们可能还需要一个星期这种马拉松式的会议才能达成任何协议。”

但许多有争议的问题仍然存在：

联盟老板们仍然希望将最高薪资与工资帽的固定比例挂钩（对于效力1-6年的球员为25%，7-9年为30%，10年以上老将为35%）。球员们仍然希望对联盟老板征收奢侈税，作为阻止任何球员签署年薪超过1500万美元的合同的主要威慑。

联盟老板们希望实施一个为期四年的新秀工资制度，并额外拥有优先续约权。工会已经提出一个为期四年的制度，但没有优先续约权。

联盟老板们希望修改“时间规则”，该规则有利于那些在工资帽以下签下其他球队自由球员的球队，然后在“拉里·伯德条款”的例外情况下，用超过工资帽的价格重新签下自己的自由球员。工会表示，这种改变会抑制球员流动。

联盟老板们希望将最高年薪涨幅从20%降至5%，尽管“伯德条款”下的合同可以有10%的涨幅。工会希望将涨幅与联盟收入的年增长率的10%或更高者挂钩。

双方都已提出为老将提供更高的最低工资，但对具体的金额存在分歧。

最重要的是，赛季似乎仍然要等到1999年才能开始。

- Express-News NBA专栏作家格伦·罗杰斯(Glenn Rogers)为本文做出了贡献

* * *

更新：第144天

周六取消的比赛：10场

总共取消的比赛：140场

总共取消的天数：10天

预计最早的赛季开幕时间：12月22日

谈判：双方在周五举行了迄今为止最富有成效的会议。预计本周初将恢复谈判。

预计球员工资损失（截止12月22日）：2.98亿美元

周六取消的最佳比赛：掘金队对阵湖人队。

点击查看原文：Doors remain locked Morning-after blues temper NBA optimism

Doors remain locked Morning-after blues temper NBA optimism

A day after finally getting somewhere, the opposing sides in the NBA lockout dealt Saturday with the realization that plenty of work remains to be done.

More than 120 players held a conference call and were told that the owners had heeded the union’s call for compromise bargaining. But the sides are at odds over numerous issues that won’t be settled easily.

“Our best offer and their best offer are not matching, and that means there’s still a pretty big gap between us. And that’s going to be a problem,” Commissioner David Stern said. “It’s really quite a hill that we have to climb.”

An exact date for a resumption of talks has not yet been set, but a meeting should take place early in the week.

The owners also spent the day assessing the compromises discussed during an all-day bargaining session Friday that both sides agreed was their most productive to date. Each side gave ground on the percentage of revenues they are seeking and the rules dealing with the establishment of an escrow tax that might be levied on player salaries.

Some of the progress could be measured in body language. As owners, players and lawyers milled around after dinner, they spoke casually to each other, joked around and seemed far more at ease than in past negotiating sessions.

“How was your steak and lobster?” Antonio Davis of the Pacers asked Dave Checketts of the Knicks’ ownership group.

“Actually, I had a tuna-fish sandwich,” a smiling Checketts replied.

Owner Mickey Arison of the Miami Heat was in such good spirits that he took the risk of teasing the temperamental Alonzo Mourning about his fight with Larry Johnson in last year’s first-round playoff series against the Knicks. Mourning bit his lip in response.

The best explanation for the lightened mood was the movement by both sides on the main number that has been keeping them apart - the percentage of basketball related income that should be devoted to player salaries.

Owners, who had been asking for a 50-50 split, moved more than two percentage points. Players, who had been tying the implementation of the escrow tax to a 60 percent share of the pie, also moved at least two points.

“There’s still a lot of work to be done,” said Spurs guard Avery Johnson after the conference call with union executive director Billy Hunter. "We probably made one step out of 10 - the next nine are going to be the hardest.

"If we can cross major hurdles during the next two or three weeks, perhaps we can save the season. There is the possibility we will have a season, a possibility we won’t.

“They (union and league) put in some gallant work Friday, going back and forth, going around corners, diving and jumping, but we’ll probably need another week of those marathon meetings to get anything done.”

But many divisive issues remain:

Owners still want a maximum salary tied to a fixed percentage of the salary cap (25 percent for players with 1-6 years of experience, 30 percent in years 7-9 and 35 percent for 10-year veterans). Players still want a luxury tax on owners to be the main deterrent against any player signing a contract for more than $15 million annually.

Owners want a four-year rookie salary scale with an additional right of first refusal. The union has offered a four-year scale with no right of first refusal.

Owners want changes to the “timing rules” that benefit teams who sign other teams’ free agents while below the cap and then re- sign their own free agents under the Larry Bird exception to exceed the cap. The union says such a change would stifle player movement.

Owners want to lower the maximum annual raise from 20 percent to 5 percent, although Bird exception contracts could have 10 percent raises. The union wants raises to be tied to the greater of 10 percent or the annual percentage increase in league revenue.

Both sides have offered higher minimum salaries for veterans, but they are apart on exactly how much higher.

The bottom line: It still appears the season won’t start until 1999.

- Express-News NBA writer Glenn Rogers contributed to this report

* * *

Update: Day 144

Games lost Saturday: 10

Total games missed: 140

Total days missed: 10

Earliest estimated season-opening date: Dec. 22.

Negotiations: The sides held their most productive meeting to date on Friday. Talks are expected to resume early this week.

Projected player salary losses (through Dec. 22): $298 million.

Saturday’s best canceled game: Denver at L.A. Lakers.

By Chris Sheridan, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1998-11-24, By Glenn Rogers

马刺仍然坚挺 - 罗宾逊深知停摆的代价，但认为值得

马刺球员认为现在就开始感谢谈判者为时尚早，他们正努力结束 NBA 停摆并达成一份新的集体谈判协议。

戴维·罗宾逊在 Full Life 健康和健身中心的早晨比赛中，在“他的球队”输给包括蒂姆·邓肯在内的年轻小伙子后，他摇了摇头，当谈到停摆时，他变得严肃起来。

这位中锋表示，他不知道双方何时才能达成协议，并且对一些老板的要求感到震惊。

他坚决反对对支付给任何球员的金额设定上限。球队老板建议，拥有六年或更少经验的球员的薪水最高不得超过球队工资帽的 25%，拥有七到九年经验的球员的薪水最高不得超过 30%，拥有十年或更长经验的球员的薪水最高不得超过 35%。

“没有人会接受这一点，”罗宾逊说，“限制顶级球员的薪水将是一个巨大的错误。你知道，如果你说，‘蒂姆（邓肯），你下一份合同只能拿 900 万美元’ - 那接下来会发生什么？你立即限制了比蒂姆更低级别的球员的薪水。作为一名老板，你说，‘好吧，埃弗里（约翰逊），我们给蒂姆支付 900 万美元，你应该得到大约 150 万美元。’”

“所有的薪水都会下降 - 所有东西实际上都是根据顶级薪水来衡量的。这笔新交易实际上不会影响我和卡尔（马龙）这样的老球员。这将会打击年轻球员。

如果本赛季不能继续，邓肯将损失超过 300 万美元。但是罗宾逊说，今年损失 300 万美元的薪水与在几年里每年损失 2000 万美元不同，邓肯在旧协议下有资格获得这一数额。

“我们保持坚定，我可以告诉你这一点，”罗宾逊谈及球员们的心情时说道。“联盟的收入每年都在上升。球员们不相信现在是削减他们百分比的时候。”

“老实说，我不知道老板们想要什么，他们将满足于什么。但是我们绝对不会垮掉。”

文尼·德尔·内格罗和罗宾逊说，一个破坏交易的因素被称为时间条款。它指的是老板们的提议：如果一支球队签下了另一支球队的自由球员，那么它将失去对自身自由球员的拉里·伯德权利。

“似乎每当我们接近达成协议时，他们就会从中作梗，”德尔·内格罗说，“但是（工会主席比利）亨特听起来很乐观，所以我希望我们正朝正确的方向前进。显然，双方都将不得不做出更多的妥协。”

“你知道，他们可以就框架达成一致，但随后在框架内达成双方满意的数字非常困难。我认为必须在 12 月 15 日之前完成，其中包括起草协议并使其获得批准的两周左右的时间。”

这意味着必须在 12 月的第一周达成协议。然后，本赛季将在 1 月的第一周左右开始。

威尔·珀杜说，双方在漫长的谈判会议后总是表现得乐观。

“那时他们终于意识到他们做得不够，”他说，“现在可能有一种紧迫感。”

“我们必须决定本赛季是否会继续。失去一个赛季将是毁灭性的。我们失去的每一场比赛，都将疏远更多的球迷。”

马刺队的替补中锋说，他也反对对个人薪水设定任何上限。

珀杜说：“我听到人们说，‘800 万美元和 1600 万美元有什么区别？’区别在于 800 万美元。我知道球员之间对于顶级球员的薪酬存在一定的分歧，但这种情况并不普遍。我只是认为，如果我们屈服，我们最终将得到四或五支顶级球队和剩下的平庸球队，因为规则将迫使球队将他们所有的工资帽金额用于两到三个球员。”

珀杜还指出了过去一贯发生的事情。

“无论协议是什么，你知道球队都会寻找并找到其中的漏洞，”他说。

---

更新：第 147 天

共错过天数：21 天

星期一输掉比赛：7 场

共错过比赛：149 场

最早预计赛季开幕日期：12 月 22 日

谈判：双方进行了短暂会面，并且在周六之前不会举行完全的谈判会议。

预计球员薪资损失（至 12 月 22 日）：2.98 亿美元

今日最佳取消比赛：休斯顿对阵明尼苏达。森林狼队的年轻枪手斯蒂芬·马布里和凯文·加内特，将对阵由哈基姆·奥拉朱旺带领的火箭队老将。

点击查看原文：Spurs still standing strong - Robinson knows lockout is costly, but says price is worth it

Spurs still standing strong - Robinson knows lockout is costly, but says price is worth it

Spurs players figure it’s too early to start giving thanks to the negotiators who are trying to end the NBA lockout and reach a new collective bargaining agreement.

While David Robinson was shaking his head after “his team” lost to the younger guys, including Tim Duncan, during the morning’s games at Full Life Health and Fitness Center, he was serious when talk turned to the lockout.

The center said he had no idea when the two sides would reach agreement, and he remains amazed at some of the owners’ requests.

He is adamantly opposed to putting a cap on the amount paid to any individual player. The owners have suggested players with six or fewer years of experience max out at 25 percent of the team’s cap, seven to nine years at 30 percent and 10 or more at 35 percent.

“Nobody is going to accept that,” Robinson said. "It would be a huge mistake to limit the top guys’ salaries. You know, if you say, ‘Tim (Duncan), you can only make $9 million on your next contract’ - what happens then? You immediately restrict salaries of guys in a lesser category than Tim. You say, if you’re an owner, ‘Well, Avery (Johnson), we’re paying Tim $9 million, you should get about $1.5 million.’

“All the salaries will fall - everything really is measured according to the top salaries. This new deal is really not going to affect the older guys like me, or Karl (Malone). It’s going to hit the younger ones.”

Duncan will lose more than $3 million if there is no season. But Robinson said missing a $3 million salary this year is not the same as losing $20 million a year for several years, an amount Duncan would have been eligible for under the old agreement.

“We’re holding firm, I can tell you that,” Robinson said of the players’ moods. "Revenues in the league are going up every year. The players don’t believe this is the time to cut back on their percentage.

“To be honest, I don’t know what the owners want, what they will settle for. But there is no way we will crumble.”

Vinny Del Negro and Robinson said one deal-breaker is what’s being called the timing clause. It refers to the owners’ proposal that if a team signs another team’s free agent, it loses the Larry Bird rights to its own free agents.

“It seems whenever we appear close to a deal, they throw a wrench into the works,” Del Negro said. "But (union director Billy) Hunter sounds optimistic, so I hope we’re moving in the right direction. Obviously, both sides are going to have to compromise more.

“You know, they can agree on a framework, but then it’s real difficult to crunch the numbers within that framework to please either side. I would think it would have to be done by Dec. 15, and that includes the couple of weeks or so of writing up the agreement and getting it ratified.”

That would mean an agreement would have to be reached by the first week of December. Then, the season would start the first week or so of January.

Will Perdue said two sides always appear optimistic after a long bargaining session.

“That’s when they finally realize they haven’t been doing enough,” he said. "Now maybe there’s a sense of urgency.

“There is a point where we have to decide whether or not there will be a season. A lost season will be devastating. Every game we lose, we alienate more fans.”

The Spurs’ backup center said he, too, would be opposed to any cap on an individual salary.

“I hear people say, ‘What’s the difference between $8 million and $16 million?’ The difference is $8 million,” Perdue said. “I know there is some disagreement among players about pay to top guys, but it’s not widespread at all. I just figure if we cave in, we’re going to wind up with four or five top teams and the rest mediocre because the rules will force teams to use all their cap money for two or three guys.”

Perdue also pointed to what has always happened in the past.

“Whatever the deal, you know the teams will hunt and find some loopholes in it,” he said.

* * *

Update: Day 147

Total days missed: 21

Games lost Monday: 7

Total games missed: 149

Earliest estimated season-opening date: Dec. 22

Negotiations: The two sides met briefly and won’t hold a full negotiating session until Saturday.

Projected player salary losses (through Dec. 22): $298 million

Today’s best canceled game: Houston at Minnesota. The Timberwolves’ young guns, Stephon Marbury and Kevin Garnett, square off against the Rockets’ veterans, led by Hakeem Olajuwon.

By Glenn Rogers, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1998-11-25, By Glenn Rogers

NBA谈判再次陷入僵局 - 圣诞节比赛取消

周二，结束NBA停摆的可能性再次恶化。

联盟老板和球员的谈判团队原定于周六会面，但由于工会律师通知联盟副总裁拉斯·格兰尼克(Russ Granik)，上周五的会议中存在重大误解，因此该会议面临风险。

杰夫·凯斯勒(Jeff Kessler)告诉格兰尼克，工会无法接受联盟最新的税收提案。随后，格兰尼克向媒体发布公告，称协议框架已经消失，之前认为取得的任何进展都不过是幻觉。

同样在周二，NBA通知NBC，该电视台的圣诞节双头赛，原本将由芝加哥公牛队以及可能出现的迈克尔·乔丹(Michael Jordan)领衔，成为这场持续近五个月的停摆的最新受害者。

为了替代纽约尼克斯队对阵公牛队以及洛杉矶湖人队对阵菲尼克斯太阳队的比赛，NBC将播放弗兰克·卡普拉(Frank Capra)的圣诞电影《生活多美好》(It’s A Wonderful Life)。

除非很快达成协议，否则NBC更多节目将面临风险。该电视台计划于1月16日开始每周播出三个比赛的地区直播。

联盟首席法律官杰夫·米什金(Jeff Mishkin)表示，工会执行董事比利·亨特(Billy Hunter)收到了一封信，信中指出现在似乎没有理由举行谈判会议。

“周六的会议绝对悬而未决，”米什金说。“问题在于，争议的焦点是托管和税收制度，而不是硬工资帽。”

米什金说，双方在篮球收入分配比例方面取得了一些进展。联盟将比例提高到52%，工会则从60%降至57%。

米什金表示，这些数字尚未确定，并指出联盟绝不会将比例提高到57%。

“但我们认为，我们在框架方面取得了进展，确保如果球员的收入超过商定的比例，超出部分将返还给老板，”米什金说。

周五的辩论重点集中在托管和税收的组合上。联盟希望将球员工资的百分比扣留，然后将超过球员收入分配比例的每一美元返还给老板。

工会拒绝了一对一的返还，但讨论了15%的扣留比例，并对超过工资帽的球队老板征税。

“我们最终同意，对于每支球队超过工资帽和工资帽之间差额的每一美元，征税1美元，另外还要征收15%的税，”米什金说。“如果一支球队支出超过15%，超过部分将按每1美元征收2美元的税。”

米什金说，联盟认为，这种税收对老板来说将是沉重的负担，足以抑制支出。

凯斯勒周二宣布，工会不同意这一点。

“正是这一声明，加上工会最近关于破坏交易的言论，促使我们宣布，我们没有取得任何进展，”米什金说。

亨特表示，球员们仍然愿意与托管计划合作。

“如果NBA真心实意地想要达成协议，他们应该停止姿态，周六来到谈判桌前，目标是结束停摆，拯救赛季，”亨特在一份事先准备好的声明中说。“我们强烈反对拉斯·格兰尼克的说法，认为上周五没有取得任何进展。我们在之前的提议基础上提出了一个新的提议。这些提议仍然在桌面上。”

工会还表示，联盟试图淡化拉里·伯德条款是不可接受的。老板们坚持认为，如果一支球队签下了另一支球队的自由球员，那么它就不能签下自己的球员，除非它保持在工资帽之下。

伯德条款允许球队签下自己的球员，无论它在工资帽方面处于何种状态。

此外，工会不希望对球员的薪资设定上限。

米什金说，联盟仍然建议，经验少于6年的球员在合同的第一年薪资不得超过工资帽的25%，7到9年不得超过30%，10年以上不得超过35%。

球员们一直坚持认为，控制老板的支出不是他们的工作。

“我可以理解他们为什么会这么说，但事实是，球员及其经纪人给球队老板施加了巨大的压力，”米什金说。“经纪人会说，‘付钱给他，否则他会去其他球队。’或者他告诉球队，它将无法再签下他的任何球员。”

“此外，当地媒体也给球队施加压力，要求他们给球员支付巨额薪资，他们坚持认为，球队没有球员将无法具有竞争力。必须有指导方针。”

- 美联社为本报道做出贡献。

* * *

NBA停摆：第148天

总共错过的比赛天数：22天。

周二错过的比赛数量：7场。

总共错过的比赛数量：156场。

最早预计的赛季开幕日期：12月26日。

谈判：双方计划于周六会面，但周二出现的障碍可能会取消该会议。

预计球员薪资损失（截至12月22日）：2.98亿美元。

今天最精彩的取消比赛：西雅图对阵马刺。西部联盟冠军犹他州的两大竞争对手首次交锋。

今日金句：“看，爸爸。老师说，每次铃声响起，一个天使就会得到翅膀。” - 祖祖，《生活多美好》，这部电影将在圣诞节那天在NBC播出，取代NBA双头赛。 - 美联社

点击查看原文：NBA talks hit sticking point again - Christmas games canceled

NBA talks hit sticking point again - Christmas games canceled

Chances to end the NBA lockout took another turn for the worse Tuesday.

Negotiating teams for the league owners and players were scheduled to meet Saturday, but that session was jeopardized when a union lawyer informed league deputy commissioner Russ Granik that there had been a crucial misunderstanding during last Friday’s meeting.

Jeff Kessler told Granik that the union could not go along with the league’s latest tax proposal. Granik then sent a bulletin to the media that the framework for a deal was gone and that any progress thought to have been made was merely an illusion.

Also Tuesday, the NBA informed NBC that the network’s Christmas Day doubleheader, featuring the Chicago Bulls and possibly Michael Jordan, is the latest casualty of the nearly five-month-long lockout.

In place of the New York Knicks at the Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers at the Phoenix Suns, NBC will show Frank Capra’s Christmas movie “It’s A Wonderful Life.”

Unless a deal is reached soon, more of NBC’s schedule will be put in jeopardy. The network is scheduled to begin its weekly telecasts Jan. 16 with regional coverage of three games.

Jeff Mishkin, the league’s chief legal officer, said union executive director Billy Hunter was sent a letter indicating that there appeared to be no reason now to hold a negotiation session.

“The session for Saturday is definitely up in the air,” Mishkin said. “The problem goes to the issue of an escrow and tax system instead of a hard cap.”

Mishkin said the two sides had advanced somewhat on what percentage of basketball revenue should be paid to each side. The league came up to 52 percent, the union down from 60 to 57.

Mishkin said those figures weren’t settled on and indicated the league would never go as high as 57 percent.

“But we thought we made progress on the framework to make sure that if revenue to players exceeded the agreed-upon percentage, it would be returned to the owners,” Mishkin said.

The debate Friday focused on the combination of escrow and tax. The league wanted a percentage of players’ salaries withheld and then every dollar spent over the players share of revenue returned to owners.

The union balked at a dollar-for- dollar return but talked about a 15- percent withholding number combined with a tax on team owners who exceeded the salary cap.

“We eventually agreed to tax $1 for every $1 that a team spent between the cap figure and the cap, plus 15 percent,” Mishkin said. “If a team spent more than the 15 percent, that amount would be taxed $2 for every $1.”

Mishkin said the league figured the tax would be onerous enough on owners to curb spending.

Kessler announced Tuesday that the union didn’t agree with that.

“It was that statement, plus other recent statements by the union about deal-busters, that prompted us to announce that we have not made any progress,” Miskin said.

Hunter said the players are still willing to work with the escrow plan.

“If the NBA is serious about making a deal, they should stop posturing and come to the bargaining table this Saturday with the goal of ending the lockout and saving the season,” Hunter said in a prepared statement.

“We strongly disagree with Russ Granik’s statement that no progress was made last Friday. We made an additional proposal on top of previous proposals. Those proposals are still on the table.”

The union also has said that the league’s attempt to water down the Larry Bird exception is unacceptable. The owners are insisting that if a team signs another team’s free agent, it cannot then sign its own players unless it stays under the cap.

The Bird exception permits teams to sign its own players, regardless of where it stands with the cap.

In addition, the union does not want to put a ceiling on a player’s salary.

Mishkin said the league is still proposing that a player with six years or less experience be paid no more than 25 percent of the cap on the first year of the contract, with seven to nine years, 30 percent, 10 or more, 35 percent.

The players all along have been insisting it’s not their job to police owners’ spending.

“I can see why they would say that, but the truth is the players and their agents put a great deal of pressure on team owners,” Mishkin said. "The agent says, ‘Pay the guy, or he goes to another team.’ Or he tells the team it won’t be able to sign any more of his players.

“Plus, the local media puts pressure on teams to pay these huge sums to players by insisting the team won’t be competitive without them. There has to be guidelines.”

- The Associated Press contributed to this report.

* * *

NBA lockout: Day 148

Total days missed: 22.

Games lost Tuesday: 7.

Total games missed: 156.

Earliest estimated season-opening date: Dec. 26.

Negotiations: The two sides are scheduled to meet Saturday, but a snag developed Tuesday that threatened to cancel the session.

Projected player salary losses (through Dec. 22): $298 million.

Today’s best canceled game: Seattle at SPURS. Two of the top contenders to beat Western Conference champion Utah meet for the first time.

Quote of the day: “Look, Daddy. Teacher says, every time a bell rings an angel gets his wings.” - Zuzu, from “It’s A Wonderful Life,” which will be shown Christmas Day on NBC instead of an NBA doubleheader. - Associated Press

By Glenn Rogers, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1998-11-28, By Travis Poling

马刺租约优惠，但无法弥补损失

圣安东尼奥马刺队可能不喜欢阿拉莫圆顶体育馆，但他们却拥有NBA中最优惠的租约之一。

他们可以在2003年租约到期前一个月通知，便可从这份为期10年的租约中解脱出来。

但马刺队主席彼得·霍尔特(Peter Holt)表示，如果球队老板能实现他们的圣诞愿望清单上的第一项愿望——在2001年前建成一座新的球馆，他愿意支付剩余的租金。

这意味着这座由城市拥有的大型圆顶体育馆在未来三年每年将获得超过20万美元的收入——但没有马刺队。

与圣安东尼奥的一个流行传言相反，阿拉莫圆顶体育馆并非为篮球而建。圆顶体育馆是一个很棒的体育场，但糟糕的球馆，这就是为什么马刺队在租约方面拥有所有筹码的原因。

“他（霍尔特）想要表明阿拉莫圆顶体育馆仍然是一个很棒的设施，”马刺队副总裁利奥·戈麦斯(Leo Gomez)说。

包括马刺队执行副总裁鲁斯·布克宾德(Russ Bookbinder)在内的马刺队官员表示，他们希望成为一家娱乐公司，在未来的新球馆和巨大的阿拉莫圆顶体育馆中举办非马刺队的活动。

支付阿拉莫圆顶体育馆租金的举动将弥补一些设施的损失，但没有考虑到马刺队作为租户带来的附带利益。其中最重要的是，城市失去了部分餐饮收入和其他收入来源，而这些收入来源超过了每场比赛5000美元的租金。

圆顶体育馆主任迈克·阿宾顿(Mike Abington)表示，很少有阿拉莫圆顶体育馆的活动能像马刺队比赛一样售出啤酒、汽水、热狗和汉堡。即使是加斯·布鲁克斯演唱会等大型活动，每人带来的餐饮收入也比马刺队比赛少。

正如《快报》城市专栏作家卡洛斯·格雷拉(Carlos Guerra)上个月报道的那样，阿拉莫圆顶体育馆因停摆而损失了大约37,000美元的收入，用于每场常规赛。季前赛每场为城市 coffers 带来约27,000美元的收入，不经常进行的季后赛每场带来约93,000美元的收入。

简单的算术表明，马刺队想要让阿拉莫圆顶体育馆恢复元气，远远不止自愿支付租金解约金。

收购成为常态。奥斯汀的 Golfsmith International Inc. 公司在一个月内完成了第三次收购。

这家高尔夫零售商以170万美元的价格收购了 Snake Eyes Golf Clubs Inc. 的资产。Golfsmith 首席财务官马克·奥斯本(Mark Osborn)表示，Snake Eyes 品牌一直是 Golfsmith 店铺和目录中的畅销品牌。此次收购将使该公司能够将该品牌独家在 Golfsmith 店铺销售。

这仅仅是这家奥斯汀公司整合碎片化的高尔夫市场的最新举措。该公司最近收购了 Lynx Golf Inc. 和 Black Rock Golf Corp. 的资产，后者生产 Killer Bee 品牌高尔夫装备。

Golfsmith 声称自己是全球最大的高尔夫球杆组件供应商。该公司还拥有 24 家超级商店，并已为 1999 年的开业准备了 10 家商店。

点击查看原文：Spurs lease offer sweet, but it won't cover losses

Spurs lease offer sweet, but it won’t cover losses

The San Antonio Spurs may not like the Alamodome, but they have one of the sweetest leases in the NBA.

They can get out of the 10-year lease, which expires in 2003, with only a month’s notice.

But Spurs Chairman Peter Holt said he is willing to pay for the remainder of the lease if franchise owners get the thing at the top of their Christmas wish list: a new arena by 2001.

That means the city-owned dome would have revenue of more than $200,000 a year for three years - but no Spurs.

Contrary to a popular San Antonio myth, the Alamodome was not built for basketball. The fact that the dome is a heck of a stadium and a lousy arena is why the Spurs hold all the cards when it comes to the lease.

“What he (Holt) is trying to show is that the Alamodome continues to be a wonderful facility,” said Spurs Vice President Leo Gomez.

Spurs officials, including Spurs Executive Vice President Russ Bookbinder, have said the Spurs want to become an entertainment company that would include booking non-Spurs events in a possible new arena and the massive Alamodome.

The gesture of paying for an Alamodome lease would offset some of the losses to the facility, but it doesn’t take into account side benefits of having the Spurs as a tenant. Chief among them is the loss of the city’s cut of concession revenue and other revenue streams that exceed the $5,000 a game lease.

Dome Director Mike Abington says there are few Alamodome events that sell beer, sodas, hot dogs and burgers like a Spurs game. Even major events such as the Garth Brooks concert don’t bring in as much concession revenue per person as a Spurs contest.

As Express-News Metro columnist Carlos Guerra reported last month, the Alamodome is losing out on about $37,000 in revenue for every regular season game lost to the lockout. Pre- season games put about $27,000 each into city coffers and infrequent playoff games generate about $93,000.

The simple math shows it will take much more than a voluntary lease buyout for the Spurs to make the Alamodome whole again.

Acquisition par for the course. Austin-based Golfsmith International Inc. has completed its third acquisition in a month.

The golf retailer bought the assets of Snake Eyes Golf Clubs Inc. for $1.7 million. Golfsmith Chief Financial Officer Mark Osborn said Snake Eyes brand has been a strong seller in Golfsmith stores and catalogs. The acquisition will allow the company to make the line available exclusively at Golfsmith.

This is only the latest move for the Austin firm to consolidate the fragmented golf market. The company recently bought the assets of Lynx Golf Inc. and Black Rock Golf Corp., which makes Killer Bee-branded golf equipment.

Golfsmith lays claim to the title of the world’s largest supplier of golf club components. The firm also has 24 superstores and has 10 more teed up for 1999 openings.

By Travis Poling, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1998-12-02, By Joseph Barrios

马刺主教练和“郊狼”联手拆房

对于路过的司机来说，看到马刺队的“郊狼”和主教练格雷格·波波维奇(Gregg Popovich)挥舞着大锤将一座废弃房屋砸得粉碎的场景，一定觉得非常超现实。

对于住在房子里的白面负鼠来说，这肯定很可怕。

由于近期没有篮球比赛， “郊狼”和波波维奇决定最近尝试一下拆房。

波波维奇身穿牛仔裤和T恤，手持大锤，帮助拆除了城市东区科利斯街271号的一栋废弃房屋。他是马刺队和房利美基金会40多名志愿者中的一员，他们一起参与了拆除工作。

他们还协助在南边一个街区外的费里斯街271号建造了一栋新的三居室房屋。在几个小时内，志愿者们就完成了整个房屋的框架搭建和屋顶铺设。

由于球员工会正在努力与球队老板协商新的谈判协议，NBA停摆仍在继续。这使得马刺队的主教练和管理人员无事可做，直到真正比赛的可能性出现。

在此期间，教练们发现自己参加了篮球训练营，并在全市范围内为各种组织志愿服务。

“走出办公室，做点事情感觉很好，”波波维奇说，“我们在办公室里已经做了所有能做的事情。”

他承认，挥舞大锤砸碎石膏板和木头比他过去几周所做的事情更有乐趣。他称这次拆除是一次“真正的体力劳动”。

“郊狼”也到场了，向经过工地的困惑的司机挥手致意。

这项志愿者活动由“主场球队计划”赞助，这是一个房利美项目，呼吁各支NBA球队帮助全国内城地区的社区改造。该项目还帮助建造像费里斯街房屋这样的新型经济适用房。

“主场球队”合作项目已经成立6年，在圣安东尼奥市建造了30栋房屋。

同时进行的建造和拆除工作由邻里住房服务机构组织，这是一个非营利组织，负责在圣安东尼奥市周围建造10栋房屋。这些面向中低收入家庭的房屋的建造部分依靠了房利美基金会的10万美元赠款和马刺基金会的1.5万美元捐款。

科利西姆/柳树公园社区协会主席雷·胡德(Wray Hood)表示，虽然这对球迷来说可能是一个失望，但NBA停摆对科利西姆/柳树公园社区来说却是一个利好消息。

胡德说，科利斯街上的房子已经“废弃多年”。她和附近居民怀疑这所房子是吸毒的场所。她还说，这房子对社区来说只是一块丑陋的污点。

“这真是太棒了，”胡德说，“它看起来很糟糕，很破败，简直就是眼中钉。”

胡德说，她也很高兴新房子的建造。在接下来的几个月里，组织者希望彻底清理科利斯街271号的地块，并建造一栋全新的房子。

当大部分房子已经倒塌后，一只白面负鼠从天花板和屋顶之间的缝隙里探出头来，看着面前的人群。志愿者们敲打着剩下的墙壁，扔着碎石，希望能把负鼠吓跑。

“郊狼”不见踪影。

点击查看原文：Spurs coach, Coyote aim at house demolition

Spurs coach, Coyote aim at house demolition

For motorists passing by, the scene of the Spurs Coyote and Coach Gregg Popovich smashing an abandoned house to bits with sledge hammers must have looked surreal.

For the white-faced possum living in the house, it must have been scary.

With no basketball games on the horizon, the Coyote and Popovich decided to take a swing at house demolition recently.

Dressed in jeans and a T-shirt, Popovich, wielding a sledgehammer, helped tear down an abandoned house at 271 Corliss Street on the city’s East Side. He was one of more than 40 volunteers from the Spurs and the Fannie Mae Foundation who turned out for the demolition.

They also assisted in the construction of a new 3-bedroom house just a block south at 271 Ferris Street. Within a few hours, volunteers had framed the entire house and put on a roof.

The NBA lockout continues as the players’ union tries to negotiate a new bargaining agreement with the owners. That leaves Spurs coaches and administrators with little to do until the prospect of an actual game returns.

In the meantime, coaches have found themselves attending basketball clinics and volunteering time with various organizations citywide.

“It’s good to get out of the office and do something,” Popovich said. “We’ve done about everything we can do in the office.”

He admitted that swinging a sledgehammer into drywall and wood was more fun than what he has been doing the last few weeks. He called the demolition a “real day’s work.”

The Coyote also was on hand, waving to perplexed motorists who drove by the site.

The volunteer effort was sponsored by the Home Team Program, a Fannie Mae program that calls on various NBA teams to help rehabilitate neighborhoods in inner cities nationwide. The program also helps build new, affordable housing like the home on Ferris Street.

The Home Team partnership is six years old and has helped construct 30 homes in San Antonio.

The simultaneous construction and demolition was organized by Neighborhood Housing Services, a nonprofit organization overseeing the construction of 10 houses around San Antonio. The houses for low-to-moderate income families are being built in part with a $100,000 grant from the Fannie Mae Foundation and $15,000 from the Spurs Foundation.

Although it might be a disappointment for fans, the NBA lockout turned out as a plus for the Coliseum/Willow Park neighborhood, said Wray Hood, president of the Coliseum/Willow Park Neighborhood Association.

Hood said the house on Corliss had been abandoned “for years.” She and other neighbors suspected the house was a site for drug use. She also said the house was simply a blight for the community.

“This is marvelous,” Hood said. “It looked bad. It was depressed. It’s what I would call an eyesore.”

Hood said she also was delighted about the construction of a new house. In the next few months, organizers hope to completely clear away the property at 271 Corliss and build a brand new house.

After most of the house already had crashed to the ground, a white-faced possum peered out from between the ceiling and the roof at the crowd in front of him. Volunteers banged the remaining walls and threw debris, hoping to scare the possum out.

The Coyote was nowhere to be seen.

By Joseph Barrios, via San Antonio Express-News

[这也将成为过去]

1998-12-02, By Kevin O’Keeffe

锁定让罗宾逊展现领袖风范

马刺球迷应该对NBA停摆感到高兴。

说真的。

好吧，虽然我们错过了西雅图和芝加哥来阿拉莫圆顶球馆的比赛。

但我们也避免了与金州勇士、达拉斯小牛、克利夫兰骑士、丹佛掘金和洛杉矶快船的比赛。

这简直是解脱。

而且请记住，在老板们把球员们锁定的这段时间里，大部分留在圣安东尼奥的马刺球员每天都与多克·里弗斯（Doc Rivers）一起训练，多克·里弗斯(Doc Rivers)曾是马刺队的杰出球员，现在是特纳体育网的NBA评论员。

里弗斯的篮球知识和他的教学能力对蒙蒂·威廉姆斯（Monty Williams）和雷吉·吉尔里（Reggie Geary）来说都是一大优势。

但马刺球迷最应该对停摆感到高兴的原因是，大卫·莫里斯·罗宾逊(David Maurice Robinson)展现了领袖风范。

无论你是否同意罗宾逊对联盟劳资纠纷的看法，如果你热爱马刺，你一定会喜欢看到50号球衣燃烧的斗志。

罗宾逊挑战老板，谈论球员团结的重要性，这种行为值得赞赏。

10月下旬，在拉斯维加斯球员会议上，他坐在主桌席上，发表了充满激情和怒火的演说，令人印象深刻。

“老板们不想谈，他们想把他们的意志强加于我们，”罗宾逊强有力地表示。

罗宾逊是一个非常聪明和有洞察力的人，他知道大多数球迷在这场争端中站在老板一边，尽管这可能不公平。

但他毫不犹豫地发表自己的意见。

对于喜欢当“好人”的罗宾逊来说，采取不受欢迎的立场并不容易。

他第一次与争议产生交集是在1991年。当时的主教练拉里·布朗(Larry Brown)利用罗宾逊向当时的马刺老板红·麦科姆斯(Red McCombs)施压，要求为球队提供包机。

许多球迷认为这种要求使他成为另一个被宠坏、自大的运动员，对此罗宾逊感到很受伤。

几年后，马刺队必须在圣诞节那天进行客场比赛，因此必须在平安夜离开圣安东尼奥，我问罗宾逊他的感受。

他不认为NBA应该在圣诞节比赛。再次，罗宾逊受到许多球迷的批评。

但他发表这些言论是因为他的宗教信仰、他对家庭的奉献以及他想与家人共度假日的愿望。

尽管如此，批评还是让他很受伤。

或许是潜意识里，罗宾逊退缩了。你会记得，在之前的停摆期间，他几乎是匿名状态。

也许在1996-97赛季，他饱受伤病困扰，只打了6场比赛，这对他来说是一个警钟。

没有篮球让篮球对他来说更重要了。

也许罗宾逊签署了一份远远低于市场价值的合同——六年6600万美元——让他对老板想要让球员保护他们自己感到恼火。

有一点要明白：无论罗宾逊在季后赛中的球场上有什么缺点，他两次拯救了球队。

首先，仅仅因为他在1987年以状元的身份来到球队。

其次，他没有测试自由球员市场，而是签署了一份比他能得到的少一半的合同。

今天，罗宾逊正在成为每个人都希望他成为的领袖。

我为他感到自豪……你也应该感到自豪。

点击查看原文：Lockout brings out the leader inside Robinson

Lockout brings out the leader inside Robinson

Spurs fans should be elated with the NBA lockout.

Seriously.

OK, so visits to the Alamodome by Seattle and Chicago have been missed.

But so have visits by Golden State, Dallas, Cleveland, Denver and the Los Angeles Clippers.

Talk about a reprieve.

And remember, all the while the owners have had the players locked out, most of the Spurs in town have been working each day with Doc Rivers, former Spurs standout and current NBA analyst with the Turner network.

Rivers’ knowledge of the game and his ability to teach particularly have been a plus for Monty Williams and Reggie Geary.

But the biggest reason why Spurs patrons should be glad about the lockout is the emergence of David Maurice Robinson as a leader.

Whether or not you agree with what Robinson has said regarding the league’s labor problems, if you love the Spurs, you have to love seeing the fire in No. 50.

That Robinson is challenging the owners and talking about the need for solidarity among the players is commendable.

His fire-and-brimstone spiel while seated at the head table during the players’ meeting in Las Vegas in late October was remarkable.

“The owners don’t want to talk. They want to impose their will on us,” Robinson stated forcefully.

An incredibly bright and perceptive man, Robinson knows most fans side with the owners in this dispute, unfair as that might be.

But he hasn’t been hesitant to speak out.

For Robinson, who enjoys being the “good guy,” taking an unpopular stand isn’t easy.

His first brush with controversy came in 1991. That’s when then- coach Larry Brown used Robinson to get at then-Spurs owner Red McCombs to secure a charter plane for the team.

Robinson was stung by criticism from many fans who thought such a request made him just another pampered, spoiled athlete.

Several years later, when the Spurs had to play a road game on Christmas Day, thus having to leave S.A. on Christmas Eve, I asked Robinson his feelings.

He didn’t think the NBA should play on Christmas. Again, Robinson took heat from numerous fans.

But he made those remarks because of his religious beliefs, his dedication to his family, and his desire to spend the holiday with them.

Still, the criticism hurt.

Perhaps unconsciously, Robinson withdrew. You’ll recall that during the previous lockout he was practically anonymous.

Maybe the injury-plagued '96-97 season, when Robinson played in only six games, was a clarion call for him.

Not having basketball made it more important to him.

Maybe that Robinson signed a contract for well less than market value - six years, $66 million - causes him to be irritated by the owners wanting the players to protect them from themselves.

Understand one thing: Regardless of Robinson’s foibles on the court at playoff time, he twice has saved the franchise.

First, just by arriving as the No. 1 pick in 1987.

Second, by not testing the free- agent market and signing for little more than half of what he could have gotten.

Today, Robinson is being the leader everyone hoped he would be.

I’m proud of him … and you should be, too.

By Kevin O’Keeffe, via San Antonio Express-News