The first two weeks of the NBA season have been canceled after owners and players were unable to reach a new labor deal and end the lockout, NBA Commissioner David Stern announced.
Top negotiators for both sides met for more than seven hours Monday, returning to bargaining about 14 hours after ending talks Sunday night.
Stern said both sides are "very far apart on virtually all issues...We just have a gulf that separates us.''
The cancelation is a major economic blow to the country's 29 NBA arenas and its workers are bracing for a huge loss of revenue.
Between 400 and 600 ticket-takers, ushers and custodians, and 700 food service workers would be impacted.
Back in the Bay Area it is also a huge blow to a young and developing team like the Golden State Warriors who need all the practice time they can get.
Star point guard Stephan Curry was not shy to display his displeasure with the news.
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“I‘m kind of shocked,” Curry told Yahoo Sports Mark Spears. “We’ve been on the right track, and I’ve been hopeful. But to see this is even more frustrating.
“I know what’s at stake when they cancel games. I’m prepared for what’s to come. When you get to this point, the best thing to do is reconvene, not waste time, and figure out a way to get back on the floor.”
Unlike several other players who say they will go overseas to play, Curry said he will stay in the states and work on finishing his adegree at Davidson College.
According to several reports, the NBA lockout talks held on Sunday were mostly about system issues and not about the revenue split between players and teams.
Basketball fans point out that all the money they're spending on games is going somewhere else to someone else.
Stern, Deputy Commissioner Adam Silver, owners Peter Holt of San Antonio, Glen Taylor of Minnesota and James Dolan of New York, and senior vice president and deputy general counsel Dan Rube met with union executive director Billy Hunter, president Derek Fisher of the Lakers and vice president Maurice Evans of the Wizards, and attorneys Jeffrey Kessler and Ron Klempner.
Owners locked out the players July 1 when they couldn't reach a deal before the expiration of the old collective bargaining agreement. Opening night was scheduled for Nov. 1.
