We're in the midst of prepping a few bigger articles for next week, and with the "cheery" news from yesterday's labour talks, figured we'd roll out a lunchbox links today.
And to start, yep, the lockout.
CBS Sports Ken Berger hits it out of the park with his take on the talks saying good luck finding someone who cares regarding getting talks back on track.
Yahoo! Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski summarizes yesterday's mess which has players calling owners "liars," and both sides now seeming to be farther away then ever. Sir Charles goes as far as saying "I think if they take 50-50 that’s their only chance of playing this year," in response to the current players union versus owners struggle.
CNBC looks at the business impact of a lost season and highlights 7 NBA Teams That Can't Afford a Season-Long Lockout. I'd argue that the Raps should be included in this if we weren't looking at strictly the bottom line.
However while there may be certain teams in dire straits without a season, apparently the NBA lockout is no big deal for athletics retailers.
Finally on the financial front, SmartMoney blog takes a look at the Hidden Cost of the NBA Lockout and impact on ticket re-sale market.
Who needs the NBA anyways?
Amar’e Stoudemire Believes Players Could Start Their Own League, while Stephen Colbert recently took an "all too easy" shot at both the owners and players, bickering over millions while unemployment in the US is rampant.
Yep, some pretty cheery stuff.
Even better, from a Raptors' perspective, it sounds like our good buddy Ed Stefanski is back in the top spot for the Raps' vacant front-office position.