New York • When David Stern became NBA commissioner in February 1984, Frank Layden still coached the Jazz and the organization was associated as much with New Orleans as it was with Utah.
Twenty-eight years later, Stern continues to run the show. The Jazz still haven’t won an NBA championship, though, and the question of whether small-market teams such as Utah can even compete for a title is more relevant than ever, with all-world talent including LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony forming superteams while Orlando’s Dwight Howard dictates his future destination.
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Asked Monday about the viability of small-market franchises in a star-powered league, Stern didn’t hesitate. He highlighted Oklahoma City’s ascension and San Antonio’s constant presence. He praised fans’ annual devotion to Portland. And he said Utah’s ability to quickly retool after trading face-of-the-franchise guard Deron Williams last February — all while keeping EnergySolutions Arena packed — is unassailable proof the NBA belongs in Salt Lake City.
Factor in a recharged league strengthened by a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA), and the longtime commissioner was as enthusiastic as ever about the state of the NBA and small-market organizations such as the Jazz, which continually vie for talent and prestige as they compete with big-city franchises such as the New York Knicks, Los Angeles Lakers and Clippers.
"What we’ve spent a lot of time doing is trying to craft collective bargaining agreements and processes that allow teams in small markets to contend. And I think the Jazz make the point, really," said Stern, during an exclusive, wide-ranging interview with The Salt Lake Tribune at the league office.
He added: "There’s no reason why a small town, in quotes, like Salt Lake City can’t be a valued … [and] major contributor to the history and the current fabric of the NBA."
After narrowly avoiding a nuclear winter caused by the 2011 NBA lockout, Stern said three key facets of the new CBA should keep teams like the Jazz viable for the foreseeable future: an enhanced luxury tax, the reduced length of guaranteed contracts and increased revenue sharing.
A little more than two months after a bitter work stoppage ended, Stern is focused on helping the league find stability at the same time it attempts to grow everything from its digital presence to its worldwide reach. Small markets are still on the radar, though, and the commissioner said the most attractive aspects of the CBA are still to come.
"It’s feeling very good to me. It will have a significant impact on the value of our franchises," said Stern, who acknowledged he thought the 2011-12 campaign was going to be completely erased midway through a lengthy season-saving bargaining session that bridged Nov. 25-26.
Stern is equally sold on a new-era Jazz franchise run by CEO Greg Miller.
The commissioner was "very close" with former owner Larry Miller, Greg’s father. And Stern spoke with respect when describing how Larry many times avoided the temptation of selling Utah for a tremendous profit, choosing instead to keep the team in Salt Lake City with full understanding about what the "only game in town" meant to the community.
High-capital outside interest in the Jazz peaked just before Larry opened the Delta Center — now ESA — in 1991. Before the arena was built, Stern advised Larry the amount of money he would receive in return for selling Utah to the highest bidder was "staggering."
Larry’s response: No. We’re staying here.
"And he built it. … And I was there with my hardhat when we put up the high-beam," said Stern, who added that potential outside buyers emerged even after the Delta Center became a fixture in downtown Salt Lake City.
With Larry’s wife, Gail, still watching over the organization, Greg has vowed to keep the Jazz in town as long as the team is not a financial drain on the family’s other business interests. The new CBA should only improve Utah’s bottom line.
In Greg, Stern sees a young but evolving CEO who has taken what he learned from his father and eagerly embraced a wide-open future.
"He is so interested in learning everything about how his franchise runs, which he knows, and how others run and what’s going on around the league. … He’s building up the same respect that Larry did. And like Larry, he listens first," Stern said. "Larry ... didn’t speak before everybody. And I think Greg is very much in that mode."
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