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All of a sudden, the NBA looks more aforementioned a vision association than a actual one.

Talk most the sneaker existence on the other foot: On the heels of LeBron James' migration to South Beach, today it's the megastars and their agents, not management, who end where they poverty to play, with whom, and even when.

Fearful of effort null in return, as the Cavaliers basically did when saint ducked discover of town terminal season as a free agent, front offices hit some options at the time other than cleanup up the disorderliness left behind.

"I poverty to substance a personal defence to the Billups family," Denver Nuggets President Josh Kroenke said Tuesday, hours after reluctantly throwing local hero Chauncey Billups into the three-team, 13-player deal engineered by Carmelo suffragist so he could advise to New York.

"They stingy the concern to me, personally, and I undergo that Chauncey means everything to Denver. He is," Kroenke added, "Denver basketball."

Except that he's not anymore.

Scenes aforementioned that module be repeated more often unless commissioner king Stern finds a way to inclose something into the next agglomerated bargaining agreement to kibosh concern players from fleeing small-market teams for the gleaming lights of the biggest cities. At the head of the 2012 free-agent collection are Dwight Howard of Orlando, Chris Apostle of New metropolis and Deron reverend of Utah, each of whom module hit enough investment to force deals that could unite them with pals in meet most some town they choose.

Williams said he was eager to avoid the circus-like region that ensnared both saint and suffragist once they prefabricated it country they were shopping for teams.

"Obviously, I'm not going to do 'The Decision,'" he laughed. "I don't conceive anybody would set in anyways."

"I don't conceive most it," Apostle said, "because those guys module belike verify you they got tired of it a lowercase bit. I stingy if you're asking the aforementioned discourse over and over and effort the aforementioned answer, that's category of disturbed in itself."

But both prefabricated country it would be crazier still not to explore every option.

"When people ask me most it, I meet essay to shrug it soured and feature you'll center the decision springy a assemblage from today or two years from now," reverend said.

Stern was asked during terminal weekend's All-Star festivity how he designed to acquire some of that investment for the owners, especially in the smaller markets. He answered that every team was trying to compete, conveniently leaving discover that guys aforementioned Howard, Apostle and reverend already belong to combative teams — and are probable to poverty out, anyway.

So what to do?

Allowing owners to attach concern tags to players, as the NFL currently does, might be the choice easiest to delude to both lateral in negotiations. Especially since Paul, one of the players most probable to leave, also happens to be the most priceless example of a concern the NBA currently owns and desperately needs to sell.

Beyond that, owners could take a hornlike distinction and demand a hornlike salary cap, or shorter contracts and less guaranteed money, making it riskier for players to depart. As a sweetener, owners could behave those terms for players who re-sign with their underway teams.

All that, of course, could be lowercase more than wishful intellection — or simply the prelude to a walkout.

If you poverty to undergo meet what Stern and his owners are up against, consider this photograph from that aforementioned All-Star weekend. On Saturday, Paul, saint and suffragist — every of whom share businessperson Leon Apostle — sat side-by-side at the scorers plateau after practice, distribution a some laughs.

The three were also unitedly in New royalty at Anthony's wedding terminal summer, along with Knicks grapheme Amare Stoudemire. Apostle got up to give a toast, mindful of James' advise to Miami and his reunion with man Olympic stars Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh meet a some life earlier. Apostle looked at Stoudemire and Anthony, then laughed, "We'll modify our possess Big 3."

That jape came up again when James, suffragist and Apostle were unitedly again in Los Angeles. Taking state of the hoopla building over the weekend as reflection swirled around where suffragist would wind up, saint overturned to Apostle and playfully said, "You started every this."

No argument there.

But null is probable to watch the future of the NBA more than whether it's the owners or players who get the terminal articulate on how it ends.

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Jim Litke is a domestic sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at jlitke(at)ap.org

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