David Stern never liked the Spurs

[MarHill]

I got the thread title from Adrian Wojnarowski's column about Duncan from last night's game:

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/nba--tim-duncan-goes-old-school-on-clippers-in-spurs--game-1-victory.html;_ylt=Almx.OvZcDRkOXVvHr1LhGu8vLYF


I don't get that if its true about Stern. What has the Spurs done to make him don't like them? I do understand that Spurs are not box office. And yes..sports is entertainment.

But, professional sports is not pro wrestling either. The best teams should be able to compete for titles and win them as well.

I don't get it. I hope someone can provide a reasonable, rational argument for this.

:flag:

[The Reckoning]

read the SI article.

[MarHill]

SI Article on Duncan? If so, I read that. I didn't find anything in that article about why Stern hates the Spurs. If I missed it.....please let me know.

[Dingle Barry]

Television ratings.

[The Reckoning]

they have a terrible media market.

the players prefer to stay community-oriented with no big endorsement deals. they just play ball and thats it. no drama or superstardom whatsoever. i can see why a commissioner hates that idea because unfortunately its not very entertaining to the masses.

[FkLA]

He doesnt hate the Spurs, he just hates San Antonio. Put this team and their same personalities in a big market and their classiness and professionalism would be marketed to death. A clean cut, internationally diverse, successful organization in NY/LA is probably Sterns wet dream.

[TampaDude]

He doesnt hate the Spurs, he just hates San Antonio. Put this team and their same personalities in a big market and their classiness and professionalism would be marketed to death. A clean cut, internationally diverse, successful organization in NY/LA is probably Sterns wet dream.

^ this

[spurs_fan_in_exile]

Pissing Stern off when they win is half the fun of being a Spurs fan. Like when Mahoney would get one over on Harris in the Police Academy movies.

[TampaDude]

Pissing Stern off when they win is half the fun of being a Spurs fan. Like when Mahoney would get one over on Harris in the Police Academy movies.

:lol :toast

[spursfan1000]

Fuck stern tbh

[Basketball Power]

He doesnt hate the Spurs, he just hates San Antonio. Put this team and their same personalities in a big market and their classiness and professionalism would be marketed to death. A clean cut, internationally diverse, successful organization in NY/LA is probably Sterns wet dream.

This x100000


His wet dream would be to have the spurs in NYC and Knicks in SA

[ShoogarBear]

Pissing Stern off when they win is half the fun of being a Spurs fan. Like when Mahoney would get one over on Harris in the Police Academy movies.

I bet you know how to do sound effects with your voice.

[easjer]

I bet you know how to do sound effects with your voice.

Good guess.

[Sean Cagney]

NOBODY likes David Stern so lol...... He gets booed at the draft and when their team wins a title he still gets booed at the end of the game whe he presents the trophy.

[Solid D]

"The Spurs are a team for the ages. They put on a display of basketball that puts them in the pantheon of the greatest teams in the history of the NBA." - David Stern, June 14, 2007

[SA210]

"The Spurs are a team for the ages. They put on a display of basketball that puts them in the pantheon of the greatest teams in the history of the NBA." - David Stern, June 14, 2007

Doesn't he have to say that?

[Solid D]

Doesn't he have to say that?

No.

[SA210]

Yes he does have to. To "appear" to be fair and un-biased, he says those things. Everyone knows he doesn't want San Antonio in the Finals. He runs a business and wants his ratings.

[easjer]

Just because he says nice things at certain points doesn't mean he likes them. I can muster up some nice things to say about the Lakers or the Heat, but I loathe them. It's hard to argue with things like 4 championships in 9 years, highest winning percentage of any team in sports, etc. Not that it matters much what Stern personally thinks of the Spurs unless you are a fellow member of the tinfoil hat club.

[Solid D]

Well, I'm not arguing whether Stern wants the Spurs in the NBA Finals. I do know from interviews I've heard that he admires the Spurs, their management team and ownership group. He spent a good deal of time with Peter Holt in the off-season since Holt was the chief owners' representative. I don't recall him being at odds that often with Holt, although things didn't always go smoothly in negotiations.

If you generally wish to infer that hate = anything leading to lower ratings in 4-7 games and lower revenues for mktg and merch during a fraction of a season (the NBA Finals and surrounding days), then fine. No argument. I seriously doubt Stern hates how the Spurs provide a blueprint for success for NBA franchises to model.

[Duncan2177]

Stern is a idiot

[Marcus Bryant]

There remains a natural bias in pro sports towards larger markets, but the NBA has been rather aggressive in enabling its smaller market franchises to be competitive. The Spurs are exhibit A in that regard. If Stern truly had it in for the small market franchise SA and OKC wouldn't be in the position they are in currently in the playoffs.

The largest markets will always be a draw for players in pro sports - the difference is that Stern saw that a league with greater parity would make or a more entertaining product at home and abroad. Sure, Stern would prefer at the end of the day that the large market teams are successful year in and year out, but the ability of a franchise like the Spurs to enjoy a long period of success, rather than a short one is not necessarily in spite of his design.

[lefty]

He doesnt hate the Spurs, he just hates San Antonio. Put this team and their same personalities in a big market and their classiness and professionalism would be marketed to death. A clean cut, internationally diverse, successful organization in NY/LA is probably Sterns wet dream.

Dan Patrick said the exact same thing during the 2007 Finals

[Russ]

1. Stern is probably the best pro sports commissioner in modern history (with the possible exception of Pete Rozelle).

2. There is absolutely no evidence that Stern hates the Spurs-- it's just an assumption people make because they think Stern should hate the Spurs for all the old reasons that people cite.

In fact, thanks in part to Stern, the rules favor small markets in the NBA more than in any other major sport.

[Dr. John R. Brinkley]

Wojo loves to suck off the Spurs, which is cool as a Spurs fan, and obviously helps him maintain elite media access with the FO...but his conspiracy theory about Stern using Chris Paul as a pawn to undo San Antonio is ridiculous and makes me question Wojo a little bit more from here on out. It's laughable that Stern has a San Antonio-centric motivation to his moves. Isn't it far more likely that he maneuvered Chris Paul to LA because it's LA and a big market?

[DMC]

Pop doesn't talk to the media. In the past, he's skipped media day and so did the team. He paid the fine. He's never played the NBA drama game. He employs intentional fouling, slows the game, doesn't do anything to get ratings except win. He does not push the NBA logo across the globe, and the Spurs organization doesn't toe the "have to get a free agent superstar to win" line. That shits on Stern's merchandising. No one new is buying Spurs gear because Boris Diaw and Jax joined, just Spurs fans. Pop doesn't even talk to Stern during the trophy presentation, remains in the background and has little to do with any of it. That's not the pomp and circumstance that sells merchandise.

[greyforest]

stern only gives a shit about money, not sports

thats why the nba isn't very much like a sports league

[widowmaker]

they have a terrible media market.

the players prefer to stay community-oriented with no big endorsement deals. they just play ball and thats it. no drama or superstardom whatsoever. i can see why a commissioner hates that idea because unfortunately its not very entertaining to the masses.

And not profitable if u have money invested in advertisement.

[NickiRasgo]

Saw him a while ago watching the game.

[Nathan Explosion]

Stern once said that his dream Finals was Lakers vs Lakers. So yeah, that tells you all you need to know about how he thinks.