Commissioner Stern holds court

Earl K. Sneed, Mavs.com
Commissioner Stern holds court

Thursday evening, Commissioner David J. Stern addressed the world with his "State of the NBA" address, saying that there's no better time to be a fan of the game of basketball. The Inside Report breaks down what the league's head man had to say.

Since 1984, Commissioner Stern has governed the highest level of basketball, growing the game globally and bringing its fan base closer than it has ever gotten to the league's superstars. With the game's most-storied rivalry on display in the NBA Finals, the Draft just three weeks away and free-agency looming, Stern says the sport has reached a new high.

"This is about as good a time as any to be an NBA fan," Stern said when he addressed the media before Game 1 of the Finals.

On the agenda for the league's fourth commissioner were the usual hot topics -- the summer of free agency, financial concerns for each franchise and the entertainment value of games. But Stern made it clear to the Association's worldwide audience that when it comes to cost-efficient entertainment, no one does it as well as the Dallas Mavericks and owner Mark Cuban.

"Our teams have been working hard to have family nights that include not only tickets but hot dogs, soda and the like. And we're working very hard to make our games affordable to groups. I know in Dallas, that's a $2 ticket, sometimes a $5 ticket -- certainly a $10 ticket. We have (affordable ticket prices) all over the NBA."

After giving the Mavericks' front office a shout-out, Stern went on to reassure fans in their various hometowns that pending free agents will not be collectively meeting and consulting with each other in what has been rumored as a "free-agent summit."

"There is no free-agent summit...Our players talk to each other all the time," the commissioner explained. "They were talking to each other on Team USA (national team). They talk to each other when they have their meeting -- I think they have a meeting every year around our draft. I've been assured at the highest level that there is no summit. But I would expect our players to talk to one another and we don't have a problem with that. If some kind of tampering is implicated, I will have a later and different view. But we're not expecting that."

And while media members and the league's faithful followers await July 1 and the start of the free-agent frenzy, Stern has his eyes on the Collective Bargaining Agreement. The current agreement between the Board of Governors and Players Association -- which introduced the current salary cap and revenue sharing plan -- runs to an end in the summer of 2011.

"I would say it's No. 1 on our agenda," Stern said. "I'm not sure we'll get it done this summer, but we have until July 1, 2011. It's going to be a very high priority."

For all of your news on the Dallas Mavericks this offseason, visit Mavs.com. Follow Earl K. Sneed on Twitter at www.twitter.com/EarlKSneed.