http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/basketball/kings/story/12928961p-13776855c.html
Kings simply wonder
The stall in labor negotiations creates fears of obstinacy.
By Martin McNeal -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PDT Saturday, May 21, 2005
Bobby Jackson said he thinks he understands why NBA owners are troubled.
Then again, the Kings guard said he also understands why players need to stick together in their current collective bargaining negotiations.
Kings forward Corliss Williamson trusts the sides will come to an agreement so the NBA will start on time next fall, even though talks between the union and owners stalled this week.
Meanwhile, Kings basketball president Geoff Petrie said he is planning to have a team ready in Las Vegas on July 6, when the summer league is supposed to begin.
With the current collective bargaining agreement expiring June 30, news that the sides had broken off talks on a new one means different things to different people. The worst-case scenario would be the league locking out the players July 1.
Jackson, 32, is expected to have the final season of his six-year contract assumed by the Kings. He will be paid $3.375 million next season if the Kings pick up that option.
On one hand, that salary is considered low for a player with his spark. On the other, Jackson has been sidelined by injuries for major portions of the past three seasons.
"If I was an owner, I'd probably feel the same way when it comes to wanting to shorten the length of contracts from seven to five years," Jackson said this week. "There aren't a lot of players who receive (maximum) contracts, but how many times do those players give the owners what they are paying for during the length of the deal? Injuries usually are what keep players from doing that."
Jackson said both sides need to give a little.
"I think the owners have some legitimate gripes, and so do we," he said. "Really, if a player isn't performing, he really doesn't deserve to be paid some of the ridiculous money players get. And I think we as athletes take things for granted. We've been blessed with tremendous athletic gifts and talents, but we sometimes act as if the owners owe us something.
"We're fortunate to be here."
During the 1998-99 lockout, Williamson, 31, remembers how he kept feeling during the summer that the lockout would soon end and the season would start on time. But the season was shortened to 50 games, and the Kings played their first game Feb. 5, 1999.
"I was a little disappointed to hear that talks (this year) had been shut down," Williamson said, "but I hope both sides find a solution to the problem. Hopefully, shutting down the talks now will allow everyone to recognize there is a problem, and both sides will work harder to get things done.
"But you've got to hope both sides realize what will happen if the season doesn't start on time and that reality is going to set in for both sides."
Petrie, who said this week he is beginning to feel much better after undergoing an angioplasty May 4, didn't go to Europe to scout players this past week. He and the basketball staff will look at draft-eligible players next week at the team's practice facility. Then it will be on to the Chicago pre-draft camp in early June in preparation for the June 28 draft. The Kings' only selection will be the No. 23 pick. Their second-round choice goes to Utah in the 2003 deal that sent Keon Clark to the Jazz.
Kings simply wonder
The stall in labor negotiations creates fears of obstinacy.
By Martin McNeal -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PDT Saturday, May 21, 2005
Bobby Jackson said he thinks he understands why NBA owners are troubled.
Then again, the Kings guard said he also understands why players need to stick together in their current collective bargaining negotiations.
Kings forward Corliss Williamson trusts the sides will come to an agreement so the NBA will start on time next fall, even though talks between the union and owners stalled this week.
Meanwhile, Kings basketball president Geoff Petrie said he is planning to have a team ready in Las Vegas on July 6, when the summer league is supposed to begin.
With the current collective bargaining agreement expiring June 30, news that the sides had broken off talks on a new one means different things to different people. The worst-case scenario would be the league locking out the players July 1.
Jackson, 32, is expected to have the final season of his six-year contract assumed by the Kings. He will be paid $3.375 million next season if the Kings pick up that option.
On one hand, that salary is considered low for a player with his spark. On the other, Jackson has been sidelined by injuries for major portions of the past three seasons.
"If I was an owner, I'd probably feel the same way when it comes to wanting to shorten the length of contracts from seven to five years," Jackson said this week. "There aren't a lot of players who receive (maximum) contracts, but how many times do those players give the owners what they are paying for during the length of the deal? Injuries usually are what keep players from doing that."
Jackson said both sides need to give a little.
"I think the owners have some legitimate gripes, and so do we," he said. "Really, if a player isn't performing, he really doesn't deserve to be paid some of the ridiculous money players get. And I think we as athletes take things for granted. We've been blessed with tremendous athletic gifts and talents, but we sometimes act as if the owners owe us something.
"We're fortunate to be here."
During the 1998-99 lockout, Williamson, 31, remembers how he kept feeling during the summer that the lockout would soon end and the season would start on time. But the season was shortened to 50 games, and the Kings played their first game Feb. 5, 1999.
"I was a little disappointed to hear that talks (this year) had been shut down," Williamson said, "but I hope both sides find a solution to the problem. Hopefully, shutting down the talks now will allow everyone to recognize there is a problem, and both sides will work harder to get things done.
"But you've got to hope both sides realize what will happen if the season doesn't start on time and that reality is going to set in for both sides."
Petrie, who said this week he is beginning to feel much better after undergoing an angioplasty May 4, didn't go to Europe to scout players this past week. He and the basketball staff will look at draft-eligible players next week at the team's practice facility. Then it will be on to the Chicago pre-draft camp in early June in preparation for the June 28 draft. The Kings' only selection will be the No. 23 pick. Their second-round choice goes to Utah in the 2003 deal that sent Keon Clark to the Jazz.
