History shows locked out sports fail to regain fan’s trust

Have you ever watched a movie with a great ending that was just bound to set up a sequel?

Take “Rocky” for example.

The underdog fighter gives it his all, but comes up a tad bit short. In the process, he gets the girl, then the screen rolls to black and the credits are played.

Did anyone ever really think it’d end at that?

Heck no. Of course, there’d be a second, a third, a fourth, a fifth and … you get the picture.

Last time I checked, the old man was still fighting on the big screen. I understand Mick has passed, but the plot remains the same with ole Rocky Balboa triumphantly scoring a win in his bitterly old age, then incoherently shouting for Adrian.

Good times.

The NBA season ended exactly that way this past season (not like Rocky’s last movie, but rather the movie’s first sequel), leaving fans incredibly enthused by the plot, but ultimately wanting more.

The old, beaten up Dallas Mavericks won the championship.

In the process, they beat the villains, King James, Lord Wade and Bozo Bosh, otherwise known as the Miami Heat.

Yes, I did call him Bozo Bosh. What else am I supposed to call him? He’s the court jester to King James’ throne.

Aside from the Heat and Mavs, there were old favorites like the Lakers and Celtics trying to hang onto their former glory.

Likewise, new favorites were emerging like the Chicago Bulls and Oklahoma City Thunder. Both were starved for the success of the NBA’s elite and were about to make their presence felt and taste greatness.

Heck, even the New York Knicks were relevant again with Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire and the New Jersey (soon to be Brooklyn) Nets had just traded for All-Star point guard Deron Williams.

If all of those storylines aren’t enough, let’s talk about Dwight Howard.

Will he be in Orlando past 2012? Or will he continue to follow the exact same career path as Shaq and bolt to a bigger market? I hear the Lakers would be interested if Howard comes calling.

I bet Brooklyn would be interested, too. Imagine how good D-Will and D-12 would be on the same team?

Speaking of player drama, will our local star Chris Paul be a Hornet past this season?

If he is, who will the Bees surround him with to make him happy? If he’s not, can the team sustain itself in small market New Orleans?

There is just so much to talk about and any basketball fan left last season just starved for more.

But unlike “Rocky”, this movie won’t have a sequel, not a good one, anyway.

This sequel will be more like the second “Sandlot” movie or the fourth and fifth “Home Alone’s”.

Did you even know there was a second “Sandlot”? Blasphemy, I know!

Basketball’s sequel will be clouded not on the court, but off it thanks to the league’s current work stoppage.

I’m not here to pick a side in the issue (although I side with the owners).

I’m here to just beg and plead to anyone willing to listen that the issues get fixed so we can play some basketball.

Like all negotiations, the root of the evil is money.

The players want more. Inflation trends upward, so salaries should, as well is the logic behind the argument of those in sneakers and jersey tops.

The problem with that is the owner’s rebuttal, profit.

The league claims only a handful of teams make more money than they spend each year. The reason for that, they claim, is because of the player’s inflated salaries (which players want to make more inflated in future years).

In previous seasons, the NBA players pocketed 57 percent of revenue the league generated with the owners taking in the remaining 43 percent.

Through negotiating, the gap has been closed to a 53-47 split.

The owners want it to go all the way down to 50-50. The players say it will never happen.

I couldn’t care less either way.

Do you know what I want?

Basketball.

I grew up through Major League Baseball’s prolonged work stoppage in the 1994-95 seasons.

At the time, the sport was incredibly popular, stride for stride with the NFL.

Since then, what has happened?

Ratings have plummeted progressively for a full decade and a half.

Attendance has slowly followed suit and fewer people are going to the ballpark than ever before.

And the sport has now firmly been replaced by football as our nation’s pastime.

If basketball strikes for an extended period, one can only expect similar results to occur.

So my message to the NBA players and owners is simple: Shut up and play.

Negotiate in the offseason. Negotiate during the season. Heck, negotiate at halftime of games.

But just shut up and play.

Your sport has all of the momentum in the world right now and throwing it in the trash would just be business suicide.

History shows if you don’t strike when the iron’s hot, it may never be hot again.

You only have so many years left to ride LeBron James’ marketability.

I don’t know about you guys, but I’d rather see James and the rest of the league’s stars in uniform tops than in business suits any day.

Give me basketball.

Don’t force me to give myself a new favorite sport to watch.