NBA Lockout: David Stern 'Pathetic,' Says Bryant Gumbel
Bryant Gumbel, host of HBO “Real Sports,” is placing blame on NBA Commissioner David Stern for the NBA lockout.
During his show Tuesday night, Gumbel called Stern a “plantation overseer” and suggested that the commissioner abused his authority over NBA players.
“Stern’s version of what has been going on behind closed doors has of course been disputed, but his efforts were typical of a commissioner who has always seemed eager to be viewed as some kind of modern plantation overseer, treating NBA men as if they were his boys,” the Emmy award winning host said on his show.
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“It’s part of Stern’s [modus operandi], like his past self-serving edicts on dress code and the questioning of officials,” Gumbel said Tuesday night. “His moves were intended to do little more than show how he’s the one keeping the hired hands in their place.”
Although the sportscaster admitted that some might be alarmed by his controversial statements, he defended his reasoning behind the comments.
“Some will of course cringe at that characterization, but Stern’s disdain for the players is as palpable and pathetic as his motives are transparent,” Gumbel said. “Yes, the NBA’s business model is broken. But to fix it, maybe the league’s commissioner should concern himself most with the solution and stop being part of the problem.”
Gumbel said it seemed Stern was trying to punish players, instead of seeking to compromise during negotiations and create a new collective bargaining agreement.
“The NBA’s infamously egocentric commissioner seemed more hell-bent recently on demeaning the players rather than his game’s labor impasse. How else to explain Stern’s rants in recent days,” Gumbel questioned.
“To any and everyone who would listen, he has alternately knocked union leader Billy Hunter, said the players were getting inaccurate information, and started sounding ‘Chicken Little’ claims about what games might be lost if players didn’t soon see things his way,” he said.
According to Gumbel, the only way to resolve the current lockout is to do so without the approval of Stern.
“If the NBA lockout is going to be resolved any time soon, it seems likely to be done in spite of David Stern, not because of him,” Gumbel said.
