Basketball Politics

Due to the NBA lockout 48 preseason games have been cancelled so far. The NBA contract between players and owners expired at the end of the 2010-11 season. This means that new agreements have to be formed for both parties. However, players and owners cannot seem to reach upon an agreement before the start of the season. The reason why an agreement has not been reached comes down to money. Owners are not putting forth the pay players are asking. Instead they are proposing a hard salary cap and that players basketball related income(BRI) be sliced by 57- 46 percent while the owners BRI proposal goes up by 48 percent. If we analyzing this issue through and Marxist lens we can argue that everything down to sports is shaped by an economic system in society. The idea here is that the power of the ruling class stretches so far to what we consider some of the most basic things in life, like enjoying a basketball game. The owners in other words are those who create the politics of basketball. Even the players whom earn millions themselves arent part of the ruling class that decide whether the agreement is suitable for the continuance of the season. What i find most disturbing about this issue is the obvious position of the ruling class and the people like us the fans. Ultimately we the fans are the ones missing out on the basketball season because of the decisions that are made for us. These decisions extend from the most complex like capitalistic ideologies down to decisions on sports.