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Orlando, Fla. • NBA commissioner David Stern's eventual retirement and deputy commissioner Adam Silver's rise as his likely successor. The Kings' ability to stay in Sacramento; the Hornets' expected sale and long-term stability in New Orleans. "World-class palaces" the league has either already added or soon will in cities such as Orlando and Brooklyn, and the modern transformation of Madison Square Garden. That and more highlighted Stern's annual All-Star weekend media interview Saturday at the Amway Center.
The commissioner still has not set a date for stepping down. But the 69-year-old Stern will have a discussion "very soon" with owners to inform them about the length of his remaining commitment to the league. In addition, Stern acknowledged he definitely won't be in charge in six years, when owners and players can opt out of a collective bargaining agreement signed last December.
While Silver has long been the heir apparent to Stern, the commissioner moved his likely successor further into the spotlight Saturday.
"One of the things that a good CEO does — and I try to be a good CEO — is provide his board with a spectacular choice for its successor," Stern said. "And I think I've done that, and that's Adam. … If I were doing it myself, he would be the commissioner. But as I said before, the board will make that decision."
Stern then joked about intentionally trying to lower Silver's future salary at the same time he listed the deputy commissioner's virtues as a "first-rate, top-of-the-class executive."
"Not just sports executive," Stern said. "But if you wanted to be a little broader, you could see media and sports executive. If you wanted to go broader, you could go international."
As for the uncertain state of the Kings, Stern said several times "life is a negotiation" and ended his news conference smiling as he made the same statement.
Stern said the city of Sacramento and the Kings' owners have "stepped up," though, and he was even-keeled after a brief meeting Saturday with Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson, who has played a key role in the effort to keep the Kings.
"We all consider ourselves to have a March 1 deadline to either come up with a financing plan and a critical path to the construction of the [Kings' new] arena or not," Stern said.
If Sacramento's plans fall through, Seattle has suddenly become a likely candidate for the Kings' potential relocation. Stern said it's hard to envision the NBA soon returning to Seattle unless an existing franchise is ready to move.
"What I'm working hard to do, in a perverse kind of way from Seattle's perspective, is to sell New Orleans to stay in New Orleans, and get a building for Sacramento that will enable the Kings to stay in Sacramento," Stern said. "I can't say for sure it's a pathway. But I will say that the only way to have a team these days is to have a world-class building."
Briefly
Stern said there is a lead group ready to soon buy the Hornets and keep the team in New Orleans. A second group is positioned as a fallback option. … Stern said the NBA will not consider rewarding teams such as the Magic with a top-five NBA draft lottery pick if they lose All-Stars such as Dwight Howard to free agency and receive nothing in return. "We have a system that has a draft that basically tells a player where he's going to play … so that our players could play for seven years [with] the team they didn't choose. And we think that's a system, but not a prison," Stern said. … The NBA is attempting to hold regular-season games in London next season and is in discussions about bringing preseason games to China.
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