The tournament had 87 people! (And Eric lost his bet) Also one of the most exciting grand finals I've ever seen! Sorry about the late posting of the results, the internet here is worse than 9600 baud! Oof needs to be banned! I have 35 videos from the tournament coming soon.
Grand Finals was WingZero (Kilik) vs Oofmatic (Lizardman).
http://www.8wayrun.com/picture.php?albumid=8&pictureid=445
Set #1
http://www.zshare.net/video/583269006ef95e1c/
Set#2
http://www.zshare.net/video/583269175759465f/
Set#3
http://www.zshare.net/video/5832660470121dde/
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Yupz,Get Moneyz Monthlies!! - Birmingham,AL - SAT(4/18/09)
In the hype of the NEW Bama monthly tournament coming up, I've taken the liberty to post some videos from at least two of the previous tournaments.
Please post comments and reply click the link to view.
http://www.zshare.net/video/58325052ce7afc77/
Please post comments and reply click the link to view.
http://www.zshare.net/video/58325052ce7afc77/
Friday, February 27, 2009
March 13-15 FINALROUND12 "The HYPE Continues!"
(FINAL ROUND)XII "The HYPE Continues!"
Right now (FINAL ROUND) is "Sponsered by ShinBlanka, and all of his friends around the ATL South community"
Date: March 13-15 ,2009
Location: Same location as the past 3 years. I was going to change venues, but I decided to add an extra day to help with the crowding by spreading out the games over 3 days!
Holiday Inn - Atlanta
Northeast/Doraville
2001 Clearview Avenue
Atlanta, Ga. 30340
Phone: (770)455-3700
This is a EMS/DigitalFrontier Phat Production
Small disclaimer just like last year:
"OK PEOPLE I MADE THIS THREAD 10 MONTHS BEFORE THE TOURNAMENT IS SUPPOSE TO BE THROWN! I HOPE THIS IS ENOUGH WARNING NOT TO PUT ANOTHER MAJOR TOURNAMENT DURING OR AROUND THE SAME DATE AS (FRXI)!"
Anyone that wants to pre-reg PLEASE USE THE FOLLOW EXAMPLE:
Real Name "Tag name" : city, state= games playing at final round
ex.
Larry S. Dixon Jr. "ShinBlanka" : Tha "A"= 3s, st, sf4
Also directions from the airport
Get on the public train system from the airport. The public train system is called "MARTA"! You will take the "DORAVILLE" train to the "DORAVILLE" station! Call the hotel so they can pick you up with the shuttle. If you want you can walk to the hotel also. Get off the train and walk down to the road outside of the doraville train station. Cross over the road and head down hill towards buford hwy. You should see the doraville police station as you walk down the hill on the right hand side. When you get to "buford hwy" turn left. Then go until you get to a WAFFLE HOUSE ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE OF THE ROAD. You turn right at the waffle house. and you should see the Holiday inn in the cut! Easy if you want to walk from the station.
1st of all, I would like to thank all of the people that support the FR tournaments for the past 12 years and support the ATL South scene before if was even call the ATL South division when you attend FR3-FR5. I've met so many people over the past 12 years of running FR. My dreams of having a major tournament in the southeast region has come true and it couldn't have happend without you guy's supporting the FR tournaments back in the day.
Alot of people in the ATL South don't get the chance to travel around the nation to play against top players, so FR is an outlet for them to play the best in the southeast and hopefully other regions top players will come down to the dirty south. With the help of the community supporting (Final Round) every year it has grown into one of the best tournaments in the usa! The history of FINAL ROUND is based on the"Console Warriors" style tournament.
But with me growing up learning to play fighters in the arcades. I've always want to keep that old school tournament feeling with FR tournaments. That's why we have some old school capcom games that will be played only on an arcade cabinet at Final Round. We can't forget our roots and I won't let people forget how we use to get down and dirty! We will have atleast 3-4 arcade cabinets on games that the console version are truly not worth playing on a tournament level.
Games like ST, A2, and A3 will be in arcade cabinets some having Perfect 360's joysticks, Sanwa's japanese sticks, and other's having 8 way standard switch joysticks. The arcade cabinets are donated by different players in the southeastern community. I really appreciate all of the support from those that always help out me and the southeast scene. I will put a star(*) by the games that will be on the cabinet's and the rest will be on console.
There is a entry fee that is separate from the entry fee to each tournament. FRXII entry fee is "$30". (This fee is to pay for the VENUE fee, BADGES, NEW JOYSTICKS AND BUTTONS FOR ARCADE MACHINES, and FRXII PIMP CUPS) Like always say I need FRXII to pay for itself.
OFFICIAL SIGN UP'S FOR BADGES START AT 9:30AM ON MARCH 13, 2009!
unofficial sign up's will be on Thursday March 12, 2009 around 9pm like we did for frxi the day before the event.
The extra day was added to FR because people wanted to run team tournaments during main tournament times. This held up some of the tournaments due to people playing in multiple single and team tournaments! Adding the extra day will solve a lot of tournament conflicts imo.
The games, how much, and the days that will be played are as followed:
Friday March 13, 2009
Starting time 1pm
Team tournaments:
3S team=$5 per player, 3v3 round robin team tournament 70/20/10
GGXX(AC) team=$5 per player, 3v3 round robin team tournament 70/20/10
SSBM Team=$5 per player, 3v3 round robin team tournament 70/20/10
CvS2=$10 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
Super Smash Brothers Melee (Teams)= $5 per team mate= 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
Super Smash Brothers Melee= $10 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
A2(*)=$5 1st 70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
KOF98UM =$10 1st-70% 2nd-20% 3rd-10%
TvC=$10 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
**Special Event** HD remix tournament to qualify for the SE 5 man HD remix team at EVO2k9!!
$5 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
Saturday March 14, 2009
1pm
SuperSmash Brothers Brawl "Regular Brawl"= $20 Top 5 1st-65%, 2nd-15%, 3rd-10%, 4th-5%, 5th splits 2.5%(unless they want to fight it out)!
Street Fighter Four=$10 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
GGXX(AC)=$10 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
SC4=$10 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
A3=$5 1st 70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
Mark Of The Wolves=$5 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
Sunday March 15, 2009
2pm
Tekken5DR=$20 Top 5 1st-65%, 2nd-15%, 3rd-10%, 4th-5%, 5th splits 2.5% (unless they want to fight it out)!
3S= $10 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
ST(*)=$10 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
AHF= $10 1st 70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
SS2=$5 1st 70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
MvC2=$10 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
Rules
All CAPCOM and SNK games are Double Elim.--Best 2 out of 3
CONDUCT
Players must conduct themselves in a reasonable manner. Permanent ejection of a player from the tournament is at the staff's discretion. Any sign of cheating will also result in forfeit of the game. Any intentional forfeiting or conspiring to manipulate the brackets will result in ejection and possible suspension from future tournaments.
On all console tournament games:
This is a (B.Y.O.C. = Bring Your Own Controller/converter or Joystick) tournament for all of the console games being played at FRXI. You are responsible for your equipment and we will not supply anyone with a controller or converter at this tournament for any console tournament. I won't supply anymore converter's for finalround. I'm tired of getting my stuff stolen by some people that don't have any home trainning.
If you hit the start button or a malfunction in your equipment happens during a
match that makes the game pauses or resets during a tournament match get the head judge in charge of running that tournament to decide what will happen next for that match. Replays are automatic if it's at the beginning of the match and you have played 5-10 seconds in the game with no one having an advantage in the match. It's not my problem if "YOUR STICK" malfunction's during a tournament. I WILL BE THE FINAL SAY ON ANY PROBLEMS THAT MY TOURNAMENT JUDGES CAN'T RESOLVE!
I have had alot of email's about "button shouldering/mapping" in certain genre of games. I don't believe in them due to me growing up playing 2d fighters in the arcade's. I want to keep FinalRound as close to arcade perfect as I can, but this isn't the way that most namco 3d players view button shouldering gameplay. So I came up with this solution:
"Button shouldering" will "NOT" be allowed at FRX in the following games:
All capcom 2d fighters, Tekken6, and all snk fighters
(THAT MEANS IF YOU RESET YOUR BUTTONS YOU MUST PUT THE DEFAULT MULTI-BUTTONS ON BLANK!!!) So that mean you won't have your 3xkick button, or 3xpunch button. This applies to snk games also. Any default presets that are NOT like the arcade set up are not allowed. If you don't have a 3x punch or kick button in the arcade then you won't use it at FRX! We are trying to make it as close to arcade type tournament as possible and NO button mapping the traditional way to play capcom and snk games IMO. I don't care where you put them on your controler/joystick but you should only have the following buttons input's for the following games:
Capcom games that are on consoles will have only 6 button inputs allowed on your controller/joystick and they are:
1. Jab punch=light punch
2. Strong punch=medium punch
3. Fierce punch=hard punch
4. Short kick=light kick
5. forward kick=medium kick
6. roundhouse kick=hard punch
SNK-Playmore games on console inputs that are allowed:
1. Light punch
2. Heavy punch
3. Light kick
4. Heavy kick
"Button Shouldering/mapping" "Will" be allowed for SC4.
Tournament game list:
STREETFIGHTER FOUR
PS3
Winner keeps the same character. The loser can choose a new character.
All characters are tournament legal!
***Capcom vs SNK 2***
Version: PS2
Roll Cancelling is allowed.
No EX Grooves allowed.
You may not use the same character twice on one team.
Ultimate Rugal, Super Akuma, Evil Ryu, and Evil Iori are not allowed in tournament play.
Switching the order of your characters during the loading screen is only allowed on your first match.
After winning, you must pick the same characters, same order.
***Marvel vs Capcom 2***
Game version: US Dreamcast
You may not use any glitch that prevent the game from being played. This includes game freezing, game resetting, player freezing, etc.
Deadbody infinites are allowed to gain a positional advantage, but not to delay the game.
Button switching during the loading screen is allowed (e.g. Holding ASSIST 1 to switch your first assist with the point).
You may not use the same character twice on one team.
Winner keeps the same team, while the loser can switch teams.
***Tekken 5DR***
PS3
If the players do not agree on a stage within 15 seconds the match judge will enforce blind random stage select.
***Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike***
Ps2 English version
Winning player must keep the same character, but can change super art's. The losing player can choose a new character.
Gill is banned in tournament play shawty!
The in-game judgment feature "WILL NOT" determine the outcome of draw games. You will have to play another 2/3 match to determine a "TRUE" winner!
***Guilty Gear AC Singles***
PS2 - American GGXX:AC copy (All bugs removed)
No ex, gold, shadow, or any other alternate characters allowed.
Button mapping for RC, Burst etc allowed.
Winner keeps the same character and the losers can change characters.
***Super Street Fighter II Turbo***(*)
Arcade Cab
Turbo speed 3!
Winner keeps the same character. The loser can choose a new character. "Akuma" is not allowed in tournament play.
***KOF98 UM***
PS2
Winner keep the same team and order. Loser can change everything. More rules will be posted later. No Non-arcade characters are allowed in tournament play!
***Super Smash Brothers Brawl "Regular brawl"***
***Super Smash Brothers Brawl "Regular Brawl"***
Nintindo Wii
[SIZE="4"]General Tournament Rules[/SIZE]
Double Elimination Bracket Best 2 out of 3 matches
Winners Finals= 3/5 matches
Losers Final= 3/5
Grand Finals=3/5, the player from the losers must win 2 sets of 3/5
3 Stock, 6 MINUTE TIME LIMIT for singles
All items OFF (including Smash Balls)
Doubles Team Attack is ON, LIFE stealing is allowed.
BYOC: (BRING. YOUR. OWN. CONTROLLER.) NO WIIMOTES OR CLASSIC CONTROLLERS!!! Gamecube controllers only!!!
All decisions made by tournament officials are final.
Controller mods of ANY kind (short-hop mod, L-trigger mod, etc), except for cosmetic changes (paint job, different colored plastic), are banned. Tournament staff may randomly inspect any controller at their discretion. If you are caught using a banned controller you will be immediately disqualified from the tournament.
Stage List:
Starter
Battlefield, Final Destination, Smashville, Yoshi's Island
Counter
Brinstar, Castle Siege, Delfino, Frigate Orpheon, Lylat Cruise, Halberd, Pokémon Stadium 1
Banned STAGES
75m, Big Blue, Bridge of Eldin, Corneria, Distant Planet, Flat Zone 2, Green Hill Zone, Hanenbow, Hyrule Temple, Jungle Japes, Luigi's Mansion, Mario Bros., Mushroomy Kingdom I, Mushroomy Kingdom II, New Pork City, Norfair, Pictochat, Pirate Ship, Rainbow Cruise, Rumble Falls, Shadow Moses, Spear Pillar, The Summit, Wario Ware, Green Greens, Mario Circuit, Onett, Pokémon Stadium 2, Port Town Aero Dive, Skyworld, Yoshi's Island (Pipes)
- At the beginning of a set, each player may strike 2 stages from the available 11. Of these, only 1 can be from the 4 Neutrals listed above. You may however choose to strike 2 counterpick stages.
- 1st match, characters are chosen with double blind picks. After that, advanced slob picks- Loser of 1st match pick stages, the winner of the 1st match picks character, then loser of 1st match picks character. Continue this as necessary until the set reaches completion. Standard sets are best of 3, finals or semi-fianls are left to the discretion of the tournament host, although best of 5 is recommended for time constraints.
- All forms of stalling are banned. Stalling- The act of deliberately avoiding any and all conflict so that one may make the game unplayable. This includes MK infinite cape, excessive edge stalling, or any form of stalling under the stage (DK spin, sonic charge B, snake infinite down B teching, etc).
- Any suicide KOs on the final stock resulting in sudden death will result in a loss for the user of this tactic. If it would be a suicide KO and the match screen shows a decisive winner, go with that instead. A Bowsercide final KO results in a win for the Bowser player.
- If the timer runs out, the victor is determined first by stock and then by percentage. In the event of a sudden death, both players are to suicide IMMEDIATELY. No fighting with bombs @ 300. At the results screen, regardless of what the screen says, the player with the higher DAMAGE TAKEN is the loser. No exceptions. In the result of a tie, the match will be discarded and played over, same characters and stage. For teams, if this should ever happen, add the damage taken instead for both teams.
- Any action that can prevent the game from continuing (i.e., freezing, disappearing characters, game reset, etc.) will result in a forfeit of that match for the player that initiated the action. You are responsible for knowing your own character, and must be wary about accidentally triggering one of these effects.
Super Smash Brothers Melee
Wii
Rules:
•4 stock
•2/3 sets
•3/5 finals
•8 minute time limit
•Items off
•Ties broken by lives, then %
•First stage agreed upon or random
•Dave’s Stupid Rule (DSR): No stage may be used twice in a single set if the counter-picking player has already won on that stage.
•Double Blind character pick can be called at anytime.
•Stage Knock Out: Each person may choose one stage to be disabled for the entire set, it must be chosen at the beginning of the set, after initial characters are chosen.
•Advanced Slob Picks: Loser may choose the next stage or select to go random. The winner may then change their character, followed by the loser.
•Bring your own controller
•Controller Mods, Glitches (IC Freeze Glitch, Mewtwo Soul Stunner, etc), and tactics used to stall a match (wall-bombing, rising pound), are banned.
•Team Attack will be ON
•Life stealing allowed
• Wobbling is BANNED
The Mages DQ Rule is applicable when a player is late for a match and it goes as follows:
2 Minutes Late – Warning
4 Minutes Late – Loss of first match of set
6 Minutes Late – Loss of set
- Singles Stages on random – Final Destination, Dream Land 64, Fountain of Dreams, Battlefield, Yoshi’s Story And Pokemon Stadium.
- Singles Stages Banned - Hyrule Temple, Yoshi 64, Fourside, Icicle Mountain, Flatzone, Venom, Brinstar Depths, Big Blue, Great Bay, Onnett, Princess Peach's Castle, Great bay, Yoshi's island (pipes), Mushroom Kingdom 1/2
All other levels open for counter picks.
***Soul Calibur 4***
PS3
Standard Tournament Rules
US Version
NO Bonus Chars Allowed
No Custom Chars
Random Stage Select ONLY
Winner keeps the same character. The loser can choose a new character.
Default Damage
Default Time
Buttom Mapping Allowed
Camera altering glitches banned
Console exclusive characters and AGOL BANNED!!
StreetFighter Alpha2
Arcade cabinet
Winner keeps the same character. The loser can choose a new character. Evil ryu is playable.
***StreetFighter Alpha3***(*):
Aracde Cab
M-ism and L-Ism are banned from tournament play.
Classic Mode is allowed.
Winner keeps the same character. The loser can choose a new character.
Sam Showdown 2
MVS supergun
Winner keeps the same character. The loser can choose a new character.
TvC
Wii
Winner keeps the same character's team/order. The loser can choose a new character's/teams.
**Special Event** HD remix tournament to qualify for the SE 5 man HD remix team at EVO2k9!! Only players between Md/Virgina-Puerto Rico and as far as Louisiana can compete in this event to earn a spot on the SE team! As stated by INKBLOT each team has a team leader and the SE team leader is Jason Wilson "Dreamtr" : Nashville, Tn. The rest of the spots are up for grabs! You have to be willing to attend EVO2k9 to compete in this tournament!!!!! Akuma is allowed since he will be allowed at EVO2k9. Winner keeps the same character. The loser can choose a new character. The top eight will play in a round robin to determind who will get the 2 spots for the SE team!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you are playing in multiple games you need to notify a organizer when you are about to play in another game, so they can skip your match on the brackets and come back to you after you completed the other tournament match.
Also once the tournament starts you are responsible for knowing when your next match will come up. If you have to go for a food or bathroom break, then "PLEASE" notify the judge at your station or "me" that you will be gone for a few minutes. The judge should beable to tell you when your next game will be and how long you have before your next match up. Just act like you have been to a tournament before people and everything will run smoothly.
Anyone that get's out of line inside or outside of the hotel will force me to call the police on you. Keep that "B.S." online or at home. I don't care where you keep it just don't bring that drama to FRXII. Act like you have some home training people. I don't want to break up any more arguements over dumb stuff!
I have 60 rooms reserved for people/groups that are attending FRXII. We need these rooms sold for that weekend since the hotel was nice enough to hold those rooms at a reduced rate for everyone attending FRXII. So if you are reserving a ROOM at the hotel for FINAL ROUND, MAKE SURE YOU TELL THE HOTEL STAFF YOU ARE WITH THE FINAL ROUND GROUP We have a discounted rate set up for you guys, just like we did last year. When you call up the hotel, don't just say you want to reserve a room, say you want to reserve a room for FINAL ROUND. The 2 queen size beds in 1 room are $69.00 when you tell them your with the Finalround group. If you have 3 people that would be only $23.00 each day for the hotel room.
I'm working on a tv sponsership, but if anyone is willing to bring a tv+system I WILL PAY for your badge! You can never have too many tv's+systems imo at a console tournament! Make sure they aren't TV's with lag. You maybe use to playing on them, but if they have lag I can't use them due to everyone will complain playing on them! We will test them out before we give you the badge.
I can't wait to see you guy's again. I'm already hyped! Better practice up and tighten up your skills because FRXII will be here before you know it shawty.
Anyone that plans on entering the SSBM and SSBB "regular" tournament needs to make sure they sign up no later than Friday morning. I'm trying to start SSBM tournament at 1pm sharpe on Friday march 14, 2009 if everyone is sign up on thursday night! I want to make the brackets on thursday night. That's why I need the Melee and regular brawl players to sign up on thursday night or friday morning.
If your coming to FR12 please rock one of these avatars and hit Str[e]ak up with the positive rep points for his great work!
Right now (FINAL ROUND) is "Sponsered by ShinBlanka, and all of his friends around the ATL South community"
Date: March 13-15 ,2009
Location: Same location as the past 3 years. I was going to change venues, but I decided to add an extra day to help with the crowding by spreading out the games over 3 days!
Holiday Inn - Atlanta
Northeast/Doraville
2001 Clearview Avenue
Atlanta, Ga. 30340
Phone: (770)455-3700
This is a EMS/DigitalFrontier Phat Production
Small disclaimer just like last year:
"OK PEOPLE I MADE THIS THREAD 10 MONTHS BEFORE THE TOURNAMENT IS SUPPOSE TO BE THROWN! I HOPE THIS IS ENOUGH WARNING NOT TO PUT ANOTHER MAJOR TOURNAMENT DURING OR AROUND THE SAME DATE AS (FRXI)!"
Anyone that wants to pre-reg PLEASE USE THE FOLLOW EXAMPLE:
Real Name "Tag name" : city, state= games playing at final round
ex.
Larry S. Dixon Jr. "ShinBlanka" : Tha "A"= 3s, st, sf4
Also directions from the airport
Get on the public train system from the airport. The public train system is called "MARTA"! You will take the "DORAVILLE" train to the "DORAVILLE" station! Call the hotel so they can pick you up with the shuttle. If you want you can walk to the hotel also. Get off the train and walk down to the road outside of the doraville train station. Cross over the road and head down hill towards buford hwy. You should see the doraville police station as you walk down the hill on the right hand side. When you get to "buford hwy" turn left. Then go until you get to a WAFFLE HOUSE ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE OF THE ROAD. You turn right at the waffle house. and you should see the Holiday inn in the cut! Easy if you want to walk from the station.
1st of all, I would like to thank all of the people that support the FR tournaments for the past 12 years and support the ATL South scene before if was even call the ATL South division when you attend FR3-FR5. I've met so many people over the past 12 years of running FR. My dreams of having a major tournament in the southeast region has come true and it couldn't have happend without you guy's supporting the FR tournaments back in the day.
Alot of people in the ATL South don't get the chance to travel around the nation to play against top players, so FR is an outlet for them to play the best in the southeast and hopefully other regions top players will come down to the dirty south. With the help of the community supporting (Final Round) every year it has grown into one of the best tournaments in the usa! The history of FINAL ROUND is based on the"Console Warriors" style tournament.
But with me growing up learning to play fighters in the arcades. I've always want to keep that old school tournament feeling with FR tournaments. That's why we have some old school capcom games that will be played only on an arcade cabinet at Final Round. We can't forget our roots and I won't let people forget how we use to get down and dirty! We will have atleast 3-4 arcade cabinets on games that the console version are truly not worth playing on a tournament level.
Games like ST, A2, and A3 will be in arcade cabinets some having Perfect 360's joysticks, Sanwa's japanese sticks, and other's having 8 way standard switch joysticks. The arcade cabinets are donated by different players in the southeastern community. I really appreciate all of the support from those that always help out me and the southeast scene. I will put a star(*) by the games that will be on the cabinet's and the rest will be on console.
There is a entry fee that is separate from the entry fee to each tournament. FRXII entry fee is "$30". (This fee is to pay for the VENUE fee, BADGES, NEW JOYSTICKS AND BUTTONS FOR ARCADE MACHINES, and FRXII PIMP CUPS) Like always say I need FRXII to pay for itself.
OFFICIAL SIGN UP'S FOR BADGES START AT 9:30AM ON MARCH 13, 2009!
unofficial sign up's will be on Thursday March 12, 2009 around 9pm like we did for frxi the day before the event.
The extra day was added to FR because people wanted to run team tournaments during main tournament times. This held up some of the tournaments due to people playing in multiple single and team tournaments! Adding the extra day will solve a lot of tournament conflicts imo.
The games, how much, and the days that will be played are as followed:
Friday March 13, 2009
Starting time 1pm
Team tournaments:
3S team=$5 per player, 3v3 round robin team tournament 70/20/10
GGXX(AC) team=$5 per player, 3v3 round robin team tournament 70/20/10
SSBM Team=$5 per player, 3v3 round robin team tournament 70/20/10
CvS2=$10 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
Super Smash Brothers Melee (Teams)= $5 per team mate= 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
Super Smash Brothers Melee= $10 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
A2(*)=$5 1st 70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
KOF98UM =$10 1st-70% 2nd-20% 3rd-10%
TvC=$10 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
**Special Event** HD remix tournament to qualify for the SE 5 man HD remix team at EVO2k9!!
$5 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
Saturday March 14, 2009
1pm
SuperSmash Brothers Brawl "Regular Brawl"= $20 Top 5 1st-65%, 2nd-15%, 3rd-10%, 4th-5%, 5th splits 2.5%(unless they want to fight it out)!
Street Fighter Four=$10 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
GGXX(AC)=$10 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
SC4=$10 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
A3=$5 1st 70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
Mark Of The Wolves=$5 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
Sunday March 15, 2009
2pm
Tekken5DR=$20 Top 5 1st-65%, 2nd-15%, 3rd-10%, 4th-5%, 5th splits 2.5% (unless they want to fight it out)!
3S= $10 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
ST(*)=$10 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
AHF= $10 1st 70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
SS2=$5 1st 70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
MvC2=$10 1st-70%, 2nd-20%, 3rd-10%
Rules
All CAPCOM and SNK games are Double Elim.--Best 2 out of 3
CONDUCT
Players must conduct themselves in a reasonable manner. Permanent ejection of a player from the tournament is at the staff's discretion. Any sign of cheating will also result in forfeit of the game. Any intentional forfeiting or conspiring to manipulate the brackets will result in ejection and possible suspension from future tournaments.
On all console tournament games:
This is a (B.Y.O.C. = Bring Your Own Controller/converter or Joystick) tournament for all of the console games being played at FRXI. You are responsible for your equipment and we will not supply anyone with a controller or converter at this tournament for any console tournament. I won't supply anymore converter's for finalround. I'm tired of getting my stuff stolen by some people that don't have any home trainning.
If you hit the start button or a malfunction in your equipment happens during a
match that makes the game pauses or resets during a tournament match get the head judge in charge of running that tournament to decide what will happen next for that match. Replays are automatic if it's at the beginning of the match and you have played 5-10 seconds in the game with no one having an advantage in the match. It's not my problem if "YOUR STICK" malfunction's during a tournament. I WILL BE THE FINAL SAY ON ANY PROBLEMS THAT MY TOURNAMENT JUDGES CAN'T RESOLVE!
I have had alot of email's about "button shouldering/mapping" in certain genre of games. I don't believe in them due to me growing up playing 2d fighters in the arcade's. I want to keep FinalRound as close to arcade perfect as I can, but this isn't the way that most namco 3d players view button shouldering gameplay. So I came up with this solution:
"Button shouldering" will "NOT" be allowed at FRX in the following games:
All capcom 2d fighters, Tekken6, and all snk fighters
(THAT MEANS IF YOU RESET YOUR BUTTONS YOU MUST PUT THE DEFAULT MULTI-BUTTONS ON BLANK!!!) So that mean you won't have your 3xkick button, or 3xpunch button. This applies to snk games also. Any default presets that are NOT like the arcade set up are not allowed. If you don't have a 3x punch or kick button in the arcade then you won't use it at FRX! We are trying to make it as close to arcade type tournament as possible and NO button mapping the traditional way to play capcom and snk games IMO. I don't care where you put them on your controler/joystick but you should only have the following buttons input's for the following games:
Capcom games that are on consoles will have only 6 button inputs allowed on your controller/joystick and they are:
1. Jab punch=light punch
2. Strong punch=medium punch
3. Fierce punch=hard punch
4. Short kick=light kick
5. forward kick=medium kick
6. roundhouse kick=hard punch
SNK-Playmore games on console inputs that are allowed:
1. Light punch
2. Heavy punch
3. Light kick
4. Heavy kick
"Button Shouldering/mapping" "Will" be allowed for SC4.
Tournament game list:
STREETFIGHTER FOUR
PS3
Winner keeps the same character. The loser can choose a new character.
All characters are tournament legal!
***Capcom vs SNK 2***
Version: PS2
Roll Cancelling is allowed.
No EX Grooves allowed.
You may not use the same character twice on one team.
Ultimate Rugal, Super Akuma, Evil Ryu, and Evil Iori are not allowed in tournament play.
Switching the order of your characters during the loading screen is only allowed on your first match.
After winning, you must pick the same characters, same order.
***Marvel vs Capcom 2***
Game version: US Dreamcast
You may not use any glitch that prevent the game from being played. This includes game freezing, game resetting, player freezing, etc.
Deadbody infinites are allowed to gain a positional advantage, but not to delay the game.
Button switching during the loading screen is allowed (e.g. Holding ASSIST 1 to switch your first assist with the point).
You may not use the same character twice on one team.
Winner keeps the same team, while the loser can switch teams.
***Tekken 5DR***
PS3
If the players do not agree on a stage within 15 seconds the match judge will enforce blind random stage select.
***Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike***
Ps2 English version
Winning player must keep the same character, but can change super art's. The losing player can choose a new character.
Gill is banned in tournament play shawty!
The in-game judgment feature "WILL NOT" determine the outcome of draw games. You will have to play another 2/3 match to determine a "TRUE" winner!
***Guilty Gear AC Singles***
PS2 - American GGXX:AC copy (All bugs removed)
No ex, gold, shadow, or any other alternate characters allowed.
Button mapping for RC, Burst etc allowed.
Winner keeps the same character and the losers can change characters.
***Super Street Fighter II Turbo***(*)
Arcade Cab
Turbo speed 3!
Winner keeps the same character. The loser can choose a new character. "Akuma" is not allowed in tournament play.
***KOF98 UM***
PS2
Winner keep the same team and order. Loser can change everything. More rules will be posted later. No Non-arcade characters are allowed in tournament play!
***Super Smash Brothers Brawl "Regular brawl"***
***Super Smash Brothers Brawl "Regular Brawl"***
Nintindo Wii
[SIZE="4"]General Tournament Rules[/SIZE]
Double Elimination Bracket Best 2 out of 3 matches
Winners Finals= 3/5 matches
Losers Final= 3/5
Grand Finals=3/5, the player from the losers must win 2 sets of 3/5
3 Stock, 6 MINUTE TIME LIMIT for singles
All items OFF (including Smash Balls)
Doubles Team Attack is ON, LIFE stealing is allowed.
BYOC: (BRING. YOUR. OWN. CONTROLLER.) NO WIIMOTES OR CLASSIC CONTROLLERS!!! Gamecube controllers only!!!
All decisions made by tournament officials are final.
Controller mods of ANY kind (short-hop mod, L-trigger mod, etc), except for cosmetic changes (paint job, different colored plastic), are banned. Tournament staff may randomly inspect any controller at their discretion. If you are caught using a banned controller you will be immediately disqualified from the tournament.
Stage List:
Starter
Battlefield, Final Destination, Smashville, Yoshi's Island
Counter
Brinstar, Castle Siege, Delfino, Frigate Orpheon, Lylat Cruise, Halberd, Pokémon Stadium 1
Banned STAGES
75m, Big Blue, Bridge of Eldin, Corneria, Distant Planet, Flat Zone 2, Green Hill Zone, Hanenbow, Hyrule Temple, Jungle Japes, Luigi's Mansion, Mario Bros., Mushroomy Kingdom I, Mushroomy Kingdom II, New Pork City, Norfair, Pictochat, Pirate Ship, Rainbow Cruise, Rumble Falls, Shadow Moses, Spear Pillar, The Summit, Wario Ware, Green Greens, Mario Circuit, Onett, Pokémon Stadium 2, Port Town Aero Dive, Skyworld, Yoshi's Island (Pipes)
- At the beginning of a set, each player may strike 2 stages from the available 11. Of these, only 1 can be from the 4 Neutrals listed above. You may however choose to strike 2 counterpick stages.
- 1st match, characters are chosen with double blind picks. After that, advanced slob picks- Loser of 1st match pick stages, the winner of the 1st match picks character, then loser of 1st match picks character. Continue this as necessary until the set reaches completion. Standard sets are best of 3, finals or semi-fianls are left to the discretion of the tournament host, although best of 5 is recommended for time constraints.
- All forms of stalling are banned. Stalling- The act of deliberately avoiding any and all conflict so that one may make the game unplayable. This includes MK infinite cape, excessive edge stalling, or any form of stalling under the stage (DK spin, sonic charge B, snake infinite down B teching, etc).
- Any suicide KOs on the final stock resulting in sudden death will result in a loss for the user of this tactic. If it would be a suicide KO and the match screen shows a decisive winner, go with that instead. A Bowsercide final KO results in a win for the Bowser player.
- If the timer runs out, the victor is determined first by stock and then by percentage. In the event of a sudden death, both players are to suicide IMMEDIATELY. No fighting with bombs @ 300. At the results screen, regardless of what the screen says, the player with the higher DAMAGE TAKEN is the loser. No exceptions. In the result of a tie, the match will be discarded and played over, same characters and stage. For teams, if this should ever happen, add the damage taken instead for both teams.
- Any action that can prevent the game from continuing (i.e., freezing, disappearing characters, game reset, etc.) will result in a forfeit of that match for the player that initiated the action. You are responsible for knowing your own character, and must be wary about accidentally triggering one of these effects.
Super Smash Brothers Melee
Wii
Rules:
•4 stock
•2/3 sets
•3/5 finals
•8 minute time limit
•Items off
•Ties broken by lives, then %
•First stage agreed upon or random
•Dave’s Stupid Rule (DSR): No stage may be used twice in a single set if the counter-picking player has already won on that stage.
•Double Blind character pick can be called at anytime.
•Stage Knock Out: Each person may choose one stage to be disabled for the entire set, it must be chosen at the beginning of the set, after initial characters are chosen.
•Advanced Slob Picks: Loser may choose the next stage or select to go random. The winner may then change their character, followed by the loser.
•Bring your own controller
•Controller Mods, Glitches (IC Freeze Glitch, Mewtwo Soul Stunner, etc), and tactics used to stall a match (wall-bombing, rising pound), are banned.
•Team Attack will be ON
•Life stealing allowed
• Wobbling is BANNED
The Mages DQ Rule is applicable when a player is late for a match and it goes as follows:
2 Minutes Late – Warning
4 Minutes Late – Loss of first match of set
6 Minutes Late – Loss of set
- Singles Stages on random – Final Destination, Dream Land 64, Fountain of Dreams, Battlefield, Yoshi’s Story And Pokemon Stadium.
- Singles Stages Banned - Hyrule Temple, Yoshi 64, Fourside, Icicle Mountain, Flatzone, Venom, Brinstar Depths, Big Blue, Great Bay, Onnett, Princess Peach's Castle, Great bay, Yoshi's island (pipes), Mushroom Kingdom 1/2
All other levels open for counter picks.
***Soul Calibur 4***
PS3
Standard Tournament Rules
US Version
NO Bonus Chars Allowed
No Custom Chars
Random Stage Select ONLY
Winner keeps the same character. The loser can choose a new character.
Default Damage
Default Time
Buttom Mapping Allowed
Camera altering glitches banned
Console exclusive characters and AGOL BANNED!!
StreetFighter Alpha2
Arcade cabinet
Winner keeps the same character. The loser can choose a new character. Evil ryu is playable.
***StreetFighter Alpha3***(*):
Aracde Cab
M-ism and L-Ism are banned from tournament play.
Classic Mode is allowed.
Winner keeps the same character. The loser can choose a new character.
Sam Showdown 2
MVS supergun
Winner keeps the same character. The loser can choose a new character.
TvC
Wii
Winner keeps the same character's team/order. The loser can choose a new character's/teams.
**Special Event** HD remix tournament to qualify for the SE 5 man HD remix team at EVO2k9!! Only players between Md/Virgina-Puerto Rico and as far as Louisiana can compete in this event to earn a spot on the SE team! As stated by INKBLOT each team has a team leader and the SE team leader is Jason Wilson "Dreamtr" : Nashville, Tn. The rest of the spots are up for grabs! You have to be willing to attend EVO2k9 to compete in this tournament!!!!! Akuma is allowed since he will be allowed at EVO2k9. Winner keeps the same character. The loser can choose a new character. The top eight will play in a round robin to determind who will get the 2 spots for the SE team!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you are playing in multiple games you need to notify a organizer when you are about to play in another game, so they can skip your match on the brackets and come back to you after you completed the other tournament match.
Also once the tournament starts you are responsible for knowing when your next match will come up. If you have to go for a food or bathroom break, then "PLEASE" notify the judge at your station or "me" that you will be gone for a few minutes. The judge should beable to tell you when your next game will be and how long you have before your next match up. Just act like you have been to a tournament before people and everything will run smoothly.
Anyone that get's out of line inside or outside of the hotel will force me to call the police on you. Keep that "B.S." online or at home. I don't care where you keep it just don't bring that drama to FRXII. Act like you have some home training people. I don't want to break up any more arguements over dumb stuff!
I have 60 rooms reserved for people/groups that are attending FRXII. We need these rooms sold for that weekend since the hotel was nice enough to hold those rooms at a reduced rate for everyone attending FRXII. So if you are reserving a ROOM at the hotel for FINAL ROUND, MAKE SURE YOU TELL THE HOTEL STAFF YOU ARE WITH THE FINAL ROUND GROUP We have a discounted rate set up for you guys, just like we did last year. When you call up the hotel, don't just say you want to reserve a room, say you want to reserve a room for FINAL ROUND. The 2 queen size beds in 1 room are $69.00 when you tell them your with the Finalround group. If you have 3 people that would be only $23.00 each day for the hotel room.
I'm working on a tv sponsership, but if anyone is willing to bring a tv+system I WILL PAY for your badge! You can never have too many tv's+systems imo at a console tournament! Make sure they aren't TV's with lag. You maybe use to playing on them, but if they have lag I can't use them due to everyone will complain playing on them! We will test them out before we give you the badge.
I can't wait to see you guy's again. I'm already hyped! Better practice up and tighten up your skills because FRXII will be here before you know it shawty.
Anyone that plans on entering the SSBM and SSBB "regular" tournament needs to make sure they sign up no later than Friday morning. I'm trying to start SSBM tournament at 1pm sharpe on Friday march 14, 2009 if everyone is sign up on thursday night! I want to make the brackets on thursday night. That's why I need the Melee and regular brawl players to sign up on thursday night or friday morning.
If your coming to FR12 please rock one of these avatars and hit Str[e]ak up with the positive rep points for his great work!
Sports talk
Who is the next Micheal Jordan:
Celts sign Marbury in time to play Friday:
The Boston Celtics signed Stephon Marbury Friday after the guard cleared waivers, and the club hoped to have the New York Knicks castoff in uniform for Friday night's game against the Indiana Pacers.
"We are very excited to have a player of Stephon's caliber joining our team," Celtics general manager Danny Ainge said in a statment. "Our entire organization is confident in the belief that Stephon can play an important role in helping us to win another championship."
Marbury, a former All-Star guard who alienated Knicks management, teammates and fans, was signed after having his physical at the Celtics' suburban practice facility early Friday.
He agreed to a buyout of his $20.8 million contract and was waived by New York on Tuesday. The Celtics were expected to sign him for a pro-rated share of the veteran's $1.3 million minimum.
Marbury, who turned 32 last week, hasn't played a regular-season game in more than a year.
"I believe all systems are go and we will have Stephon on the roster later today," Celtics owner Wyc Grousbeck said in an e-mail to The Associated Press about an hour after Marbury cleared waivers.
Marbury could be seen from the public area of the workout facility wearing a white, long-sleeved T-shirt and sweatpants, jumping up and down as he took the practice court, smiling and chest-bumping with several people wearing Celtics gear. After a few minutes, the automatic shades were lowered.
Marbury is expected to back up Rajon Rondo at point guard, a role Sam Cassell served when the Celtics won their 17th NBA title last season. Eddie House, who is more of a shooter, has been forced into the role this year; Cassell did not play in a game for Boston this year before he was traded to the Sacramento Kings and released last week.
Marbury took a long leave of absence from the Knicks when his father died in December 2007, then had season-ending ankle surgery and has not played since Jan. 11, 2008.
He returned to the Knicks in training camp, but when the sides tried to negotiate a buyout early in the season, Marbury at first refused to surrender any more than $1 million of his $20.8 million salary and the team told him to stay home until a buyout could be completed.
Even before the final breakdown, Marbury was at the center of controversy during his five years in New York, from feuding with coaches to skipping games.
Celts sign Marbury in time to play Friday:
The Boston Celtics signed Stephon Marbury Friday after the guard cleared waivers, and the club hoped to have the New York Knicks castoff in uniform for Friday night's game against the Indiana Pacers.
"We are very excited to have a player of Stephon's caliber joining our team," Celtics general manager Danny Ainge said in a statment. "Our entire organization is confident in the belief that Stephon can play an important role in helping us to win another championship."
Marbury, a former All-Star guard who alienated Knicks management, teammates and fans, was signed after having his physical at the Celtics' suburban practice facility early Friday.
He agreed to a buyout of his $20.8 million contract and was waived by New York on Tuesday. The Celtics were expected to sign him for a pro-rated share of the veteran's $1.3 million minimum.
Marbury, who turned 32 last week, hasn't played a regular-season game in more than a year.
"I believe all systems are go and we will have Stephon on the roster later today," Celtics owner Wyc Grousbeck said in an e-mail to The Associated Press about an hour after Marbury cleared waivers.
Marbury could be seen from the public area of the workout facility wearing a white, long-sleeved T-shirt and sweatpants, jumping up and down as he took the practice court, smiling and chest-bumping with several people wearing Celtics gear. After a few minutes, the automatic shades were lowered.
Marbury is expected to back up Rajon Rondo at point guard, a role Sam Cassell served when the Celtics won their 17th NBA title last season. Eddie House, who is more of a shooter, has been forced into the role this year; Cassell did not play in a game for Boston this year before he was traded to the Sacramento Kings and released last week.
Marbury took a long leave of absence from the Knicks when his father died in December 2007, then had season-ending ankle surgery and has not played since Jan. 11, 2008.
He returned to the Knicks in training camp, but when the sides tried to negotiate a buyout early in the season, Marbury at first refused to surrender any more than $1 million of his $20.8 million salary and the team told him to stay home until a buyout could be completed.
Even before the final breakdown, Marbury was at the center of controversy during his five years in New York, from feuding with coaches to skipping games.
SPORTS NEWS SECTION #2 (Updated as often as possible)
Haynesworth might be D.C.'s stimulus
First, don't get too caught up in the money. It's an easy thing to do when talking about the Washington Redskins' decision to give free-agent defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth a seven-year, $100 million deal -- a package that includes $41 million in guaranteed cash -- and it also would be the wrong thing to do. After all, this isn't merely about finances. It's about what Haynesworth can do to help a team that just finished last in the NFC East, the NFL's toughest division last season.
For all the debate that will linger over the Haynesworth deal, the fact is that he's not going to be like Dana Stubblefield, Deion Sanders or any other high-priced free-agent disaster the Redskins have signed during the reign of owner Daniel Snyder. For one thing, many considered the 6-foot-6, 320-pound Haynesworth the best free agent on the market. Most of Snyder's high-profile bust acquisitions were old, overrated or both. Haynesworth has played in two Pro Bowls and was a key factor in helping his former team, the Tennessee Titans, make two consecutive playoff appearances. The Titans will have a harder time making the postseason next season now that Haynesworth is gone.
If you think that's a reach, just consider that Tennessee was 22-7 the past two seasons (including postseason games) when Haynesworth was on the field and 1-4 when he wasn't. You also can look at his production during that time -- he amassed 14½ sacks in 27 regular-season games, an impressive number for an interior player -- and see how vital he was to a Titans defense that ranked near the top of the NFL in most statistical categories. Haynesworth's ability to consistently beat double-teams made it nearly impossible to run inside on the Titans. His improved pass-rushing skills made it just as easy for his other teammates to pressure quarterbacks.
This is the player the Redskins decided to break the bank for when the unrestricted free-agency period began at 12:01 Friday morning. The Titans weren't willing to compromise their salary cap to hold on to Haynesworth, but it's not like the Redskins were the only team pursuing him. Published reports claim Haynesworth's phone was "exploding" when he officially hit the open market. If the Redskins hadn't been so aggressive in signing him, another franchise would have rewarded him with a jaw-dropping deal.
NFL.com Video
The Titans' Albert Haynesworth shows why he is one of the top defensive tackles in the NFL.
Now, this isn't to say Haynesworth doesn't come without risk. The former Tennessee Vol spent the first five seasons of his NFL career operating as an overweight underachiever, and his stomping on the head of Dallas Cowboys center Andre Gurode -- an act that resulted in Haynesworth's serving a five-game suspension -- is one of the most heinous sights you'll ever see on a football field. Haynesworth's injury history also is a noteworthy red flag. He hasn't played a full campaign during his seven seasons in the league and that can be an ominous sign for a player who turns 28 in June.
But there is another way to assess those concerns. For one thing, Haynesworth became a changed man after that suspension. He attended counseling and surely realized he was throwing away a promising career. As much as people claim he became a Pro Bowl player when he was entering the final year of his rookie contract in 2007, it's safe to assume Haynesworth's improvement had just as much to do with something else: his ability to grow up in a hurry.
As for the injuries, they should be viewed through a different prism as well. It's fair to assume that Haynesworth's poor conditioning contributed to his inability to stay healthy earlier in his career. But people talk about him as if he has barely been able to stay on the field lately. A midseason hamstring injury limited him to 13 games in 2007 and he missed the last two games of the 2008 regular season after his left knee was rolled over in a pile. And Haynesworth still returned to play in the Titans' playoff loss to the Baltimore Ravens.
If you need more evidence of why the Redskins did the right thing here, think about recent history as well. The New York Jets traded for former Carolina defensive tackle Kris Jenkins last offseason and gave a five-year, $35 million deal to a player who had become as much a headache to his own team as to opponents. The Cleveland Browns also decided to sign defensive tackle Shaun Rogers, a fat, lazy underachiever in Detroit, to a six-year, $42 million deal around the same time. Both players wound up making the Pro Bowl -- and Rogers even played hurt for portions of the season.
The point to be made here is that those players got paid because they can be highly disruptive when properly motivated. Haynesworth, by the way, hasn't struggled with motivation in more than two years. He has been more productive than both Jenkins and Rogers during that time and he certainly has been more focused. That's the kind of player that is worth investing heavily in, especially when you're talking about a position where it's hard to find oversized, athletic players in the first place.
So when you start to evaluate the Redskins' decision to pay Haynesworth mind-boggling money, please be sure to view all the dimensions involved in this deal. This isn't merely another example of Snyder's spending money as if he's a first-year college student armed with his daddy's credit card. The Redskins basically did what they had to do to improve a team that desperately needed defensive line help. And right now the smart money says that Haynesworth is more than ready to give that franchise ample return on its investment.
SPORTS NEWS SECTION (Updated as often as possible)
Welcome to the No Benjamins Association
I skipped my annual NBA All-Star Weekend column because I was frantically trying to finish my book. At least that's how I rationalized it. I need to finish this book. I have a deadline. I can't afford to spend that writing time on anything else. But after reflecting for a few days, I came to a sobering conclusion: The book was a convenient excuse. I could have found time to pump out that column. I just didn't want to hand it in.
Barry Gossage/Getty Images
The Suns might have air-mailed Shaq to Cleveland if the Cavs had been willing to take on his contract.
See, it wouldn't have been a typical All-Star Weekend account for me. It would have been about money. You might remember me writing that the NBA was the No Balls Association two years ago. Now it's the No Benjamins Association. Nobody is rolling in Benjamins anymore. Everyone is scared. Money hangs over everything.
That's what I ended up discussing for four solid days in Phoenix. Hands down, it was the most depressing All-Star Weekend I've ever attended. Celebrities were scarce. The parties weren't as good or plentiful. Even the number of groupies seemed lower than usual. It's not as if everyone was drinking Natural Light and eating Hamburger Helper, but still, when you're celebrating a weekend with the No Benjamins Association, you know it. We should have been talking about Kevin Durant's coming-out party, a potentially delicious see-if-you-can-top-this battle between Kobe and LeBron at the game (never happened), whether H-O-R-S-E worked, who might emerge in a wide-open playoff race, even whether the Nate Robinson and Dwight Howard dunk contest "battle" was too contrived … only everything kept coming back to that dark cloud of money.
For once, the league's problems have nothing to do with talent, drugs, racial issues or how the sport is being played. With the country embroiled in its worst economic crisis in 80 years, the NBA is quietly bracing for its own little D-Day … only outsiders don't fully realize or care. Clearly, we wouldn't put this budding debacle on par with the Gulf War, the collapse of American car companies, the real estate quagmire, the implosion of Wall Street, the decline of the American dollar, the shaky footing of previously untouchable media institutions (newspapers, magazines, TV networks, movie studios and publishing companies), or even Vegas and the porn industry caving financially. But All-Star Weekend invariably reflects the state of the league itself: The shop talk at restaurants, hotel bars, parties and even during breaks at the Technology Summit provides a nice feel for how things are going (good and bad). Every 2008 conversation centered around four things: LeBron's evolution as a superstar, the juicy possibility of a Celtics-Lakers Finals, the big Shaq/Kidd trades and the rehabilitation of New Orleans as a tourist attraction.
This season? We talked about money. Constantly. We didn't even know about the line of credit on the horizon; that didn't leak until the Monday after the All-Star Game. (On Thursday, we learned that 12 teams will accept the league's offer to borrow $200 million from JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America, with between $13 million and $20 million available to each team. I found this ironic after learning in Phoenix that David Stern and Jerry Colangelo blew a jaw-dropping $100 million on the entire Redeem Team process from beginning to end. My how times have changed.) We knew about layoffs of employees within the league and various franchises. We knew various local and national sponsors were bailing, most notably car companies and major banks (two staples for the NBA). We knew certain franchises were losing significant wads of money and reacting accordingly. (Details are still trickling out. For instance, after the trade deadline, The Sacramento Bee reported the Kings would have lost $25 million had they not dumped Brad Miller's salary and bought out Mikki Moore, and the newspaper's Kings blog reported team employees were no longer allowed to work overtime or eat dinner in the media room.) Even trade talk -- normally a staple of any All-Star Weekend -- revolved more around themes such as, "They have to cut payroll," "They can't take on any money right now" and "They're too terrified of the tax to do anything."
[+] Enlarge
Sam Forencich/NBAE /Getty Images
Raef LaFrentz's Expiring Contract is one of the most desirable assets in the league.
You know who was mentioned in more "Where do you think he's going?" scenarios than anyone besides Amare Stoudemire? Raef LaFrentz's Expiring Contract. That thing got mentioned so many times it could have hired a PR staff and an agent. Here's the kicker: Raef can't play. He's a basketball invalid. He has been injured since something like 1973. Portland's insurance company repays the Blazers his entire season's salary, making him a cap figure and nothing else. In the No Benjamins Association, that makes him a freaking commodity. Teams wanted to dump clearly superior players on Portland at the deadline just to get Raef's insurance money. Phoenix would have traded Shaq for Raef and Channing Frye's expiring contract in a heartbeat. Jersey supposedly offered Vince Carter and two protected No. 1's for Raef's contract, and Milwaukee supposedly would have given up Richard Jefferson and either Joe Alexander or a future No. 1 for it. Incredibly, the Blazers turned everyone down. And this is a team bankrolled by Paul Allen.
And so we finally crossed the imaginary line between "building a good team while being fiscally responsible" and "being fiscally responsible and not giving a crap about anything else." (In other words, the rest of the league finally caught up to the Grizzlies, Clippers and Suns. Robert Sarver, who knew? We always thought you were heartless, now we know you're a visionary!) Every pre-deadline decision was predicated on fear: fear of the great unknown, fear of a shrinking salary cap (dropping for the second time ever next year) and a dwindling luxury tax threshold (dropping $2.5 million next year), fear of a landscape where middle-class Americans might collectively decide, "I no longer want to buy tickets for sporting events." Sacramento gift-wrapped the two prizes (Brad Miller and John Salmons) in a seven-player deal just to clear money. The Lakers dumped their best 3-point bomber (Vlad Radmanovic) to clear cap space down the road (and they're only trying to win a title). Cleveland passed up Shaq for free (or in this case, Wally Szczerbiak's expiring deal plus Sasha Pavlovic) because it couldn't take on cash. New Orleans tried to give away Tyson Chandler (only its third-best player) for expiring contracts before The Team That Shall Not Be Named vetoed the trade because it "didn't like his physical" (or, as many insiders believe, because co-owner Aubrey McClendon had second thoughts about taking on Chandler's contract since McClendon reportedly lost close to $2 billion in the Wall Street crash).
Noah Graham/NBAE/Getty Images
In past years, teams would've lined up to deal for Amare Stoudemire.
The most important trade for playoff purposes? A seemingly minor three-teamer between Houston (landed Brian Cook and Kyle Lowry), Orlando (landed Rafer Alston) and Memphis (landed a 2009 first-rounder from Orlando). It happened because Memphis is hemorrhaging money and supposedly saved $2 million, even if it meant turning Lowry (who had been outplaying 2008 lottery pick Mike Conley for two solid seasons) into a meaningless pick in one of the worst drafts ever. I'd say the Grizzlies hurled a flaming bag of dog feces at their fans, but they don't have any fans. Still, that trade (as well as the canceled Chandler deal, New Orleans' way of turning the Turd Sandwich into its team's official mascot) reminded me of the shady stuff that happened in the late '70s and early '80s, when the league struggled to find a foothold, franchises hopped around, and every trade happened because of money or because a team wanted to nefariously dump a starter who was snorting enough cocaine to kill a police horse.
How did we get here? The economy turned in August, well after deposits had been sent in for season tickets, courtside seats and luxury suites. The league would love for you to believe that attendance hasn't been affected, but the NBA's official tally counts only total "customers," counted as paid tickets, comps (seats given to celebrities, sponsors, friends of the team or whomever, a number that can be fudged any way you want), discounted tickets and no-shows. The numbers don't reflect any falloffs with parking money, concessions, merchandise and restaurant/bar revenue around arenas. (For instance, at least half the concession stands have been closed for every Clippers home game this season -- except when the Lakers or Celtics were the opponents.) They definitely don't reflect aggressive giveaways like Chicago's recent buy-one-get-one-free promotion or Memphis' Pepsi Family Plan Pack (four tickets, four Pepsis and four hot dogs for $48). When you hear the Grizzlies are averaging 12,600 a game, that's like Amazon.com bragging, "We sold 12,600 books this week" and glossing over the fact that 65 percent of them were bargain books for $3.99 or less. (Amazing but true fact confirmed to me by multiple people: Memphis makes about $300,000 per home game. That's gross, not net. Even more amazing, four or five other teams are within $100,000 of that number.) So, yeah, attendance is "up" 1.9 percent, as this recent Sports Business Daily story would lead you to believe. But not really. Especially when you include Seattle's move to a sold-out arena in Hijack City and how it skewed the overall numbers.
Here's a little game to play during your next NBA outing: Look around for how many suites are dark. (You'll notice them specifically in the corners or behind the baskets.) A dark suite means either that nobody bought it or that somebody did buy it for the season, then made the decision, "Screw it, let's save the $1,200 [or whatever the number is] on food and drink and not give tonight's suite tickets to anyone." (Note: Only a handful of NBA teams control the concessions in their arenas.) That makes the less desirable suites somewhat of a sunk cost -- those companies can't get the money back for the season, but at the very least, they won't lose more money on that purchase. What will happen next season? They just won't buy the suite.
Again, don't trust those attendance numbers. Walk-up sales and short-term packages (12-game packs, eight-game packs and the like) haven't gone into a free fall only because of steep discounts, and the drop-off for the Big Attendance Three (premium season tickets, suites and courtsides) won't be felt until next season. Well, unless you're talking about the Clippers -- the franchise with the worst luck in sports history -- who picked the 2008-09 season, of all years, to offer a "You can change your mind on season tickets up until Opening Night and we'll give you your money back" guarantee. In a related story, they're getting hammered this season. I'd give you the actual drop in revenue net, but the NBA guards that stuff as tightly as the Secret Service guards Obama. As far as we "know," the 2009 Clippers are "averaging" nearly 16,000 paying fans per game. That's about as realistic as Mike Dunleavy claiming he spends $100,000 a year on his wardrobe.
(Sorry, he never claimed that. I just felt like making fun of his wardrobe. The fans in my section at Staples Center finally figured out how Dunleavy dresses for games: like someone who owns a funeral home. No, really, He wears ugly gray suits or light blue suits; they always look as if he bought them at a two-for-one sale; and he always looks like he's going to tell you how sorry he is that your aunt passed away. He even slicks his hair back like an extra on "Six Feet Under." In a way, it's the perfect look for this season. He's the undertaker. In fact, that's what I hope Clippers fans start calling him: The Undertaker. It's perfect.)
Look around during Clippers games, and you can see clouds everywhere. Half the arena is empty most nights, unless they're playing a team with transplant fans in Southern California -- such as when the Staples Center was half-filled with Celtics fans Wednesday -- and there are consistently 12-15 empty courtside seats for every game. And it's not just the Clips. When Boston played in Denver on Monday, the place brimmed with so many Celtics fans that Carmelo Anthony angrily stormed off before Boston's blowout victory even concluded. That has been a recurring theme in general: Fans of popular visiting teams (Boston, New York, Cleveland, the Lakers) overpowering home arenas of unpopular teams. Flick around on any busy NBA night, and you'll see a staggering number of empty seats between the baskets in the first 15 rows in Miami, Memphis, New Jersey, Charlotte, Indiana. … I mean, we're a few weeks away from the NBA adopting Vegas' current policy of closing off as much of the blackjack area as possible so the open tables seem crowded. Section 321, come on down, we need you courtside! And TV cameras, please, don't show any wide-angle shots of the north end of the stadium! The NBA is turning into the WNBA. Just a little.
Yet declining attendance isn't even one of the league's four biggest problems right now. I would rank the top four like this:
1. The 2011 Lockout That Hasn't Happened Yet
Oh, but it's coming. Fading power broker David Falk was the first to play it up publicly; hoping to stir interest in his new book, he happily played the doomsday card in a New York Times feature Sunday. (Sadly, none of the chapters in Falk's book is called, "How I Convinced Elton Brand To Stab The Clippers In The Back And Sign With Philly So People Would Think That I'm Not Washed Up As A Super-Agent, Even Though I Am.") But you know what? That conniving has-been nailed it when he called the NBA's current system "broken." The revenue-sharing system dictates specific thresholds for the cap and tax, which is fine as long as revenue doesn't drop dramatically with teams already tied into unsavory player contracts through 2010, 2011 or, in Philly's case with Brand, 2075 (or maybe it just feels that way to Sixers fans).
Think of the arrangement like this: Let's say my deal with ESPN.com were tied directly to revenue pulled in by the Web site. Let's say ESPN paid me $5 million a year for each of the past four years, and I felt pretty good about staying there with that number. Let's say I hired 10 interns and locked them into deals for $100,000 apiece through 2012 (thinking I could easily make those payments because the total each year was only one-fifth of my salary). Then, let's say ESPN told me this coming December, "We got crushed by the economy and our revenue is way down, so your 2010 salary will be $950,000."
Well, what do I do? I already owe more money than I'm making just in 2010. Because I mistakenly projected what salary numbers I THOUGHT I COULD PAY and never anticipated my revenue would drop that dramatically, basically, I'm screwed. (Hold on, three exclamation points coming.) Welcome to the NBA's world!!! Teams are locked into swollen contracts that suddenly make no sense, whether it's non-franchise players making franchise money (Vince, T-Mac, Shaq, Brand, Baron, Jermaine O'Neal, Dalembert, Okafor, etc.) or overpaid role players making six to 600 times what they should be making (Marko Jaric, Nazr Mohammed, Larry Hughes, Radmanovic, Mo Peterson, etc.). In the irony of ironies, the league finally learned something that fans knew all along -- nobody was buying a ticket to see the likes of Luol Deng, Gerald Wallace or Corey Maggette, much less Tim Thomas or Andres Nocioni. With the cap/tax thresholds slipping, teams can't dodge them by dumping overpaid mistakes like when Phoenix bribed Seattle to take Kurt Thomas' contract and two No. 1 picks last year. Someone In The Know told me that 20 of the 30 NBA teams will lose money this season … and we haven't even come close to hitting rock bottom yet. Just wait until next season.
Which brings us to the Lockout That Hasn't Happened Yet. Unless the players' association agrees to major concessions by the summer of 2011 -- highly doubtful because that would involve applying common sense -- the owners will happily lock out players as soon as the current CBA expires, then play the same devious waiting game from the summer of 1998. David Stern will grow another scruffy beard. The owners will plant their feet in the sand, grab the tug-of-war rope and dig in. Only this time, they KNOW they will win. See, we learned a dirty little secret in the last lockout: An inordinate number of NBA players live paycheck to paycheck. Yes, even the guys making eight figures a year. You can play high-stakes poker with them … and you will win.
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Ned Dishman/Getty Images
David Stern and the owners might settle in for a long lockout in 2011.
Quick tangent: You're asking yourself, "Wait, how can a dude making $8-10 million a year live paycheck to paycheck?" Easy. First, he's only banking 40 percent once the IRS and agents are done with him. Second, he's probably overpaying for multiple houses and luxury cars just to keep up with everyone else. Third, he's buying expensive clothes and dinners, chartering planes, buying expensive TVs, going to casinos, and paying for friends and family at every turn. Fourth, there's a decent chance he's supporting a bunch of people back home -- family and extended family -- and not just that, but he might have gotten roped into funding at least one dumb "investment" by a loser family member. ("Uncle Lenny, I thought you told me this nightclub couldn't miss?") Fifth, he is, um, "dating" frequently -- even if he's married -- and if you "date" frequently, mistakes might happen that lead to hospital bills and child support payments. (If you catch my drift.) And sixth, he's not adding these numbers up in his head because he's thinking, "I don't need to worry about money, I'm making $10 mil a year!" I know it sounds farfetched, but I've heard the Inexplicable Tale Of Financial Woe with NBA stars too many times to count … and that doesn't include stars such as Scottie Pippen who were screwed by their financial advisers. It's a long and inglorious list, and if you don't think we're headed for 15 "Real Sports" segments in the next decade with Bernie Goldberg catching up with Broke Former NBA Superstar X, you're kidding yourself. Remember the lessons of the '99 lockout -- the players HAD to come back. And it wasn't because they missed playing.
Team Stern and the owners know this better than anyone. They will pick the next fight, and again, they will win. When the players' union waves a white flag and the lockout finally ends (2012? 2013?), I predict a raise of the individual salary max (to $24-25 million), a softer salary cap, a restriction on long-term contracts (can't be more than three years unless you're re-signing your own star), the elimination of opt-out clauses and the midlevel exemption, and the rookie age limit rising to 20. That's seven predictions in all … and I bet I'll end up nailing six. Will the league survive a yearlong disappearance? What about two years? We're less than 29 months from starting to find out. If you think it's a good idea to disappear for even six months in shaky economic times, ask any Writers Guild member how that turns out. These wealthy or used-to-be-wealthy owners don't want to keep losing money just to feed their ego by continuing to own a basketball team. They will make other arrangements, the same way they would arrange to sell their favorite yacht because they didn't feel like splurging on gasoline anymore. These guys don't want to fix the system; they want to reinvent it.
(And by the way, nobody loves basketball more than me. I mean, NOBODY. But when an NBA player with two years remaining on his contract for a total of $44 million shows up for the season out of shape, complains most of the year, lets down his teammates and fans again and again, lands in some trade rumors and decides, "Instead of getting traded to a team I don't like, I'm going to announce that I'm getting microfracture surgery four days before the trade deadline and kill any potential trade, and even better, I'll be healed by next spring, just in time to showcase myself for another contract," and successfully pulls this off -- with no repercussions from anybody -- then yes, the system is broken and needs to be fixed. Because that was disgusting. Tracy McGrady, you are officially indefensible for the rest of eternity. Even your cousin Vince wouldn't have done that. And that's saying something.)
2. The fear of trading ultimately hurting the quality of the league
Actually, I shouldn't say that; it depends on what you like. If you're into sloppier basketball with the caveat that more contenders now have a chance to make the conference finals (kind of like what has happened to the NFL in the past few years), you might enjoy the "Anything might happen!" aspect of this spring's playoffs. If you enjoy watching basketball played at its highest possible level, if you enjoy results that make a slight bit of sense and if you enjoy comparing current great teams to past ones … you probably won't enjoy the next three postseasons.
Even though my perfectly coiffed colleague Ric Bucher already tackled this topic, allow me to pile on: Once upon a time, contenders added one in-season piece to push them over the top (think Mychal Thompson, Brian Williams, Clyde Drexler, Pau Gasol, Rasheed Wallace, Jason Kidd, etc.). This season? It swung the opposite way. Detroit got a jump start with its shrewd Iverson-Billups trade, an unapologetic salary dump that conned a surprising number of fans and media members into thinking that (A) the Pistons did it to "shake things up," and (B) it might work. (Important note: Joe Dumars could trade a 2009 Maybach for a 2005 Prius and $25,000 and the media's reaction would be, "What a guy, he loves the environment! It's a shame everyone doesn't think that way!") Every other contender except Orlando had a fixable flaw, thought about fixing it, then said, "Nahhhhh … maybe we can win anyway." Boston never replaced James Posey. Cleveland never landed a quality shooter with size. The Lakers never found Andrew Bynum insurance. Portland seems content to be just a Promising Young Team With a Huge Internet Following for the next 12 years. Utah, San Antonio and Dallas stood pat with expiring contracts to move. And the Hornets nearly committed franchise suicide with a Chandler trade that seemed curious considering they have attendance triggers tied to their current lease.
(Note: Any conspiracy theorist -- here I am! -- could argue the Hornets intentionally antagonized their fans in a last-ditch attempt to shed the lease. They need to average about 15,000 fans to activate the lease through 2014, and they're a few hundred over this season … but that number would have dropped after the Chandler trade, right? Would you put a ploy that devious past the likes of George Shinn? Me neither.)
Even Amare's brief appearance on the bargain rack had an unprecedented conclusion. Here was the perfect storm for a panic trade -- the Suns struggling with a bad coaching hire, their fans turning on an unhappy Amare, the franchise basically announcing, "We're going broke, we will take 60 cents on the dollar for our best player" -- and nobody took advantage. In three-plus decades of following the league, I can't remember a fire sale for a player of Amare's caliber being greeted with such dramatic disinterest. This guy will average a 29-9 if you run with him and he's happy. Any takers? Any? Nope. That's the NBA in 2009 -- you're better off with LaFrentz's basketball corpse than a four-time All-Star.
3. Lousy officiating
This has nothing to do with the economy, obviously. But what the hell? Seriously, what the hell? HOW COULD THE REFEREES BE THIS CONSISTENTLY BAD??? THEY ARE KILLING THE PRODUCT! THEY ARE KILLING IT!!!! I CAN'T STOP USING CAPS!!!! How are we enabling such staggering incompetence on a day-to-day basis?
A great example: I knew we were in trouble before Wednesday's Clips-Celts game when I saw Bennett Salvatore, Courtney Kirkland and Leroy Richardson, or as they're more commonly known, "The Three Stooges." I told my wife, "These guys will find a way to decide this game, you watch." She didn't care; she was more interested in devouring the bag of Sour Patch Kids we had just purchased. But sure enough, with the Celts somehow leading by just one (they were awful all night) and only 35 seconds to play, Rajon Rondo missed a free throw that ricocheted to Mardy Collins, only Big Baby Davis somehow swiped the ball away as Richardson's whistle blew. The Boston bench exploded, thinking it was an undeserved foul, only Richardson had blown his whistle for a Clippers timeout. One problem: Collins never had the ball. He fumbled the easy rebound to Davis even as the Clippers were signalling for time. Richardson granted the timeout because he's inept at his job and didn't make sure Collins, you know, actually secured the rebound. Did you know you can call timeouts when you don't have the basketball? Me neither. As a kicker, the Clips scored the winning basket on their free possession.
These screw-ups seem to happen four times a week. The league claims to care and made a big stink about hiring Ronald Johnson this past summer to clean things up. Nope. It's still a mess. Three weeks ago, the Lakers and Celtics played the highest-rated regular-season cable game in 13 seasons. Guess which crew the NBA assigned to that beauty? That's right, Leon Wood, Monty McCutchen and Jim Capers Jr. (only because Lloyd Christmas and Harry Dunne were unavailable). So TNT's record audience was treated to a comically choppy slopfest in which Boston's best player (Kevin Garnett) fouled out on a touch foul 35 feet from the basket with five minutes to play. The NBA: Where Amazingly Bad Officiating Happens. When will someone take responsibility and admit that something is seriously, drastically, undeniably wrong? Why can't Stern announce in June, "Our best three referees right now are Steve Javie, Mark Wunderlich and Joey Crawford, and we want the best championship series possible, so those guys will be handling every 2009 Finals game because we care about the quality of our sport?" For a league that claimed to take the Donaghy scandal so seriously, we haven't seen any inclination that it did. Not even a hint. Not a whiff. It makes me want to commit a flagrant foul 2 on myself. But I digress.
4. The dawning of NBA Franchise Hot Potato.
Ohhhhhhhh, it's coming.
I became obsessed with this topic over All-Star Weekend and solicited input from as many people in the know as I could. Franchise Hot Potato hinges on five factors in all, although only three need to be in play. You need a team with a dwindling fan base and/or bailing sponsors and suite/courtside customers. (I count 11: Indiana, Memphis, Milwaukee, Sacramento, New Jersey, New Orleans, Miami, Orlando, Minnesota, Charlotte and Philly.) You need a team trapped in an aging stadium that can't drum up local money for a new one. (I count three: Sacramento, Jersey and Milwaukee.) You need an owner who purchased his team because he was worth a ton of money ON PAPER … only now, he's worth significantly less and might even be worth $10 for all we know. (Consensus candidates for this list: Phoenix, Hijack City, Jersey, Memphis, Indiana, Atlanta, Milwaukee, Charlotte … and, surprisingly, Sacramento and Cleveland.) You need cities with NBA-ready, modern arenas either finished or about to be finished that would love nothing more than stealing a team. (Definitely Kansas City, Anaheim, San Jose, Louisville, Tulsa and Pittsburgh; possibly Columbus, St. Louis; and just for fun, let's throw in Montreal and London.) And you need a struggling team that can actually extricate itself from its lease.
The last "need" is easier said than done, as the Grizzlies would tell you -- owner Michael Heisley would leave treadmarks fleeing Memphis if he weren't tied to FedEx Forum through 2015. Then again, Hijack City owners McClendon and Clay Bennett showed us a nice blueprint for weaseling out of a lease in Seattle last year, a strategy best described as, "make up selfish reasons to leave, make your move, leave a trail of broken hearts, bastardize the integrity of the league, then make everything OK by just paying everyone off because the city will be greedy enough to accept a cash settlement right away over fighting you in court for the next six years." Thank you, fellas. You guys will be remembered as the Lewis and Clark of Scumbag NBA Owners.
Looking at the next 15 months only, the consensus of people in the know was that multiple NBA franchises (guesses ranged from three to eight) will move cities, get sold to new owners or throw themselves on the mercy of the league (meaning the NBA would effectively take over operations of that franchise, kinda like what happens in the MLS or WNBA). Nobody believes the league will contract or merge two franchises, simply because Stern is stubborn that way; that would be an undeniable sign of weakness in his eyes. (If you don't believe me, I have five words for you: Season 13 of the WNBA.) On the other hand, he's the one who opened the door for 21st-century franchise relocation with his callous handling of Seattle's situation. The other 29 NBA cities learned an ominous lesson from SonicsGate: If you don't heed every arena-related wish of your team, no matter how insane or unrealistic those wishes are, then it might move and the commissioner's office will not protect you. As long as we have cities like K.C. and Anaheim waiting with open arms, teams will keep moving. And they will.
(Important Note No. 2: I already planted this seed to my friend Jason Whitlock, but it's worth mentioning again … I am fine with the Kings moving back to Kansas City because Sacramento stole them in the first place. It's like if I left the Sports Gal for Megan Fox, stayed with her for 15 years, then the Sports Gal stole me back and we spent the rest of our lives together. You couldn't blame the Sports Gal for this, right? Hold on … lemme enjoy this scenario for a few more seconds … hold on … hold on … OK. Also, I like the thought of Pittsburgh landing the Nets or Grizzlies for some reason. Did you know Pittsburgh's team in the ABL (circa 1962) was named "The Pittsburgh Rens" after Pittsburgh's annual renaissance festival? You're not gonna believe this, but they went under. Then their next team was called the Pittsburgh Pipers (ABA, late-'60s) and they went under. Regardless of what you think about Pittsburgh as an NBA city, at least admit it can come up with phenomenally dumb nicknames. Keep your fingers crossed for the Nets to become the Pittsburgh Ironmen (What? They already tried that one?) or the Pittsburgh Coal.)
So that's the climate for the No Benjamins Association right now: Murky, unpredictable and not so lucrative. And you wonder why I didn't want to write about All-Star Weekend. Looking at the big picture, the league won't struggle even 1/10th as much as the NHL in years to come -- of all the wildest predictions I heard in Phoenix, the craziest came from a connected executive who predicted that fifteen NHL teams would go under within the next two years (and was dead serious) -- and Major League Baseball is about to get creamed beyond belief. Other than the NFL, the NBA will emerge from this financial quagmire in the best shape of any professional sport; not just because its billion-dollar deals with Disney and Turner (inked fortuitously in the summer of 2007) run through the 2015-16 season but because the Lockout That Hasn't Happened Yet will ultimately solve every major league issue except its stupefyingly dreadful officiating.
One last thought: For most of the decade, Stern and his team kept thinking, "We're going global, we're going global" and never anticipated their American foundation could crumble. But it might -- at least to some degree -- and even if the league ultimately lands in a more econonically feasible place, we might see some things in the next three or four years that we never imagined. You know, just like we're seeing with every other business in this country. Maybe the NBA really is America's game.
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