Stern Bounces Ideas Around for Better NBA Image

<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">NBA commissioner David Stern spent yesterday making one public appearance after another, flying from the Senate hearing on steroids in Washington to a National Braille Press gala last night at the TD Banknorth Garden. The Boston event honored Stern along with world-class blind climber Erik Weihenmayer and drew a contingent of Celtics past and present. At a time when Stern, the NBA, and the Celtics are increasingly concerned about the image projected by players, the gala provided an opportunity to foster good relations between the players and community, and highlight the Celtics' charitable efforts. Just the kind of positive publicity Stern likes to generate.

As part of the new collective bargaining agreement, the NBA and its players' union devised several new initiatives designed to improve the athletes' accessibility and professionalism. Players will be required to attend pregame autograph sessions and participate in pregame giveaways of T-shirts, hats, and wristbands. Inactive players will greet fans and community groups on game nights. The league increased the players' minimum number of community relations appearances from 10 to 12. Players must make themselves available to the media for at least 15 minutes after practice. And among other new rules, there will be a dress code Stern expects to include sport coats and collared shirts, and exclude bluejeans. When it was mentioned that some of the league's most highly regarded players, such as Tim Duncan, dress more casually, Stern said, ''Well, the job description has changed."

''We're working on a job description," said Stern. ''It's to help the players understand what the job is. The job is not only to go to practice and win games. The job is representing the NBA to all constituencies. Community relations. Public relations. Sponsor relations . . . Maybe for a variety of reasons we pulled back too much. Or maybe we got spoiled by a generation of players who did these things as a matter of course and as we got younger we moved away from them. So, we have to slowly remind ourselves [what to do].</div>

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<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">On high school scouting ...

NBA scouts have been waiting for definitive word on whether they may scout high-school games this year after the league and the players union agreed to a new 19-year-old age minimum for league.

Stern said they should cancel those plans. "We're going to be, in the strongest possible ways, discouraging our teams from being represented in high school gymnasiums," Stern said. "We haven't announced anything yet because we want to make sure that we can do something meaningful. We're having some difficulty finding out who's working for whom, but its our intention to get them (NBA scouts) substantially out of high school gyms."

There appear to be two issues. One is finding a way to prevent teams from using "beards" -- AAU coaches or other go-betweens -- to serve as their unofficial representatives at high school games. The other is to come up with a ruling on prep schools.

After players have completed their high school eligibility, they may be drafted after spending a year at prep school. But the league does not want to be seen as supporting prep schools at the expense of the NCAA; the NBA would prefer that the best young players spend their teen years at college.

On expansion ...

Although the league has aggressively marketed itself overseas, expansion to Europe remains a back-burner issue, mainly because Europe lacks the mandatory NBA-style arenas. But maybe not for long. Stern pointed out that London and Berlin are developing such stadia, and that Paris and Madrid are considering plans to build them. "We're open to someday focusing on that," said Stern. "But it is not an active plan."

The commissioner shot down speculation that the NBA might eventually run a European league. On the contrary, he said, he continues to be more interested in aiding the Euroleague than taking over its operation. "We'll be announcing sites and teams next month for the 2006 [NBA] exhibition games that will be played in Europe," Stern said. "We're go to be doing that in conjunction with the Euroleague, and that's a cooperative venture."

On making NBA rules more international-friendly ...

Following the conclusion of the recent European championships in Serbia, Stern was surprised to hear that several NBA experts have changed their views on the international rules -- specifically in their growing appreciation for the international game's wider trapezoidal lane that forces big men to be more active around the basket. Consequently, Stern expects serious talk will filter through the league about changing the shape of NBA courts in order to conform with the international rules. "I think it will certainly be discussed, and if it's discussed it's going be discussed with more respect than it has been historically," Stern said. "I don't know if it's a good idea or not. I'm a traditionalist, I like our game, I like the way it is, so I'm not saying I think it's a good idea. But I like hearing basketball people saying, 'You know, that trapezoid changes the game and those guys are trained in that game.'"

On a new dress code ...

The NBA will implement a uniform dress code for players wearing street clothes this year. "We were encouraged by the teams and coaches to do it," Stern said. "We're going to have a dress code regarding the way players are attired when they come to work. Players who are injured and sitting on the bench are going to be more attired like the coaches, the way the coaches dress -- basically a jacket over business-casual."

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