When thinking of the NBA Lockout, most fans concern ends at, "Damn, I wanna watch basketball this fall." Certainly thats understandable and I too am mainly concerned about when I'll be able to watch the Rockets again. However, the effects of the NBA Lockout touch way more than just John Doe sitting on his couch on a Thursday night watching the TNT doubleheader.
The Players:
Big time, superstar players like Kobe and LeBron won't feel the effects; they've made enough money from playing and sponserships that they'll be able to coast until a new CBA is signed. What about the others? What about the rookies that haven't made any NBA money? Will their agent be able to take care of them or will they have to get temporary jobs? Eventually the rookies will get their money, but long term, which type of players will this effect most? It's not the superstars; big-time money, even if it's a little less, will still be available for them. I don't believe it'll be the 12-15th guys on the team either because I think the veteran minimum will stay the same. So then who does it effect? It will effect the 6th man, the role players, and the guys living off that mid-level-exception. I wouldn't be suprised if the mid-level-exception goes away all-together, but even if some version of it remains, I expect the money teams use for role players to get slashed in half. Current contracts will surely be honored, but it'll be interesting to see the type of money role players get when new contracts are signed.
The Staff:
Executives, sales staff, and other high level jobs may be safe but what about everyone else? What about the scouts and trainers? What about the office assistants? The concession stand companies? The bar owners who host watch parties? The security guards and ushers? This lockout will effect a lot of people besides the players that you see on TV. Depending on how long this thing goes, will those people be forced to get new jobs altogether?
TV/Non-Season Games:
The NBA's TV Partners (TNT & ABC/ESPN) will lose a lot of ad revenue money. How much? According to Adweek, as much as $1.25 billion if the entire season is missed. I don't think the entire season will be missed, but even still, those companies will lose more than a few bucks, and that figure doesn't even include all the local TV money. Seriously, does anyone ever watch Fox Sports Houston if the Rockets, Astros, or college football isn't on? Even if they lose just a month or two, the ad revenue lost from not having NBA games could be very damaging. Also lost will be NBA Summer League games and Pre-Season games overseas, what about all the people in those local economies? Players will lose money, but that's just the start of it.
What's Next?
What we need to watch now is, who will find work in other places? Will those role players decide to stay in Europe? Will the ushers and security guards go find similar jobs with other companies? Will laid off sales staff go sale something else? The NBA will eventually come to a new agreement and after initial hard feelings, the fans will comeback. In the meantime, the lockout hurricane will leave many victims stranded. Hopefully they can find higher ground.