NBA Cancels All-Star Game

In yet another sign that the NBA season may never begin, the league canceled its All-Star game Tuesday.

Philadelphia Mayor Edward Rendell said that commissioner David Stern telephoned him with the news and was to make the announcement later today at a news conference in New York. The game had been scheduled for Feb. 14 in Philadelphia.

"That's the only landmark left," NBA deputy commissioner Russ Granik told USA Today. "I hope the players haven't been convinced that the owners would never cancel the whole season."

The league was negotiating with Philadelphia, through the mayor's office, to find ways of softening the impact on hotels, which blocked off rooms for the weekend, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

The league booked $3 million worth of rooms. The hotels could have earned that much in food and beverage sales.

Meanwhile, agents David Falk and Arn Tellem announced Monday that an exhibition game involving locked out NBA players is set for Dec. 19 in Atlantic City, N.J., with the proceeds going to charity and to players in financial need.

But Falk's most famous client, Michael Jordan, won't be playing.

"Michael has said he won't make a decision about returning to professional basketball or retiring until the lockout is over," said Curtis Polk, president of Falk's sports management company.

"We did talk to Michael about the game, obviously, and Michael feels he needs to stand by his earlier statement that he'll wait for a resolution of the lockout before he makes that decision. He wouldn't want to send the fans a sort of mixed message by his participatin in this game."

Jordan's absence didn't stop the Atlantic City organizers from pricing their game extravagantly. Tickets will cost from $25 to $1,000 for courtside seats, and organizers hope to raise at least $1 million.

None of the players will be paid, and no criteria have been established for determining which players will share in the proceeds.

"If you look at people who play professional sports, not a lot of them are financially secure," union president Patrick Ewing said. "They make a lot of money, and they also spend a lot of money."

"Me, I'm financially secure, but there a lot of others who aren't. Our objective is to help these people. No matter how much money they've made throughout their careers, if they're in need now, then it's up to us to try and help them," Ewing said.

Allan Houston will play in exhibition game Dec. 19. (AP)

Thirteen players are committed to play, and organizers hope to have a total of 16 players who were members of the four Dream teams - the 1992 and 1996 Olympic teams and the 1994 and 1998 World Championship teams.

Ewing, Karl Malone, Penny Hardaway, Tim Hardaway, Allan Houston, Reggie Miller, Alonzo Mourning, Tom Gugliotta, Gary Payton, Dominique Wilkins, Vin Baker, Glen Rice and Mitch Richmond have committed.

Among those who have not are Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Charles Barkley, Scottie Pippen, Isiah Thomas, Shaquille O'Neal, Hakeem Olajuwon, Grant Hill and John Stockton.

Derrick Coleman and Larry Johnson, members of the 1994 World Championship team, were not invited.

Jay Larkin, executive producer of Showtime, would not reveal how much the cable network was paying for the broadcast rights.

Polk said the largest expense would be insurance, with every player covered for $20 million against a career-ending injury.

"We would rather have the players participating in NBA games," Granik said. "That's why the owners have made a proposal to the union that guarantees players' salaries will continue to grow and remain the highest in pro sports."

Mourning said they're not asking for the fans' sympathy and added that few people realize how many financial obligations players have. The lockout, now 23 weeks old, has caused the first two months of the season to be scrapped. No new negotiations are planned.

"The average life expectancy of a player is four or five years, and in that time we try to make as much money as we can in as short a period of time to try to build a strong financial base for the rest of our lives," Mourning said.

"We do have a lot of expenses. Everybody's hands are out and you try to help as many people as you can. And thi game right here is a way to support the guys who are struggling financially at this time," he said.

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