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 General Basketball WiretapAdam Silver Likely Replacement For GranikAs NBA commissioner David Stern stood at the podium in a room at the New York Marriott East Side last week giving a talk on the league's community service and charitable efforts, Adam Silver sat in the front row and watched one of the sporting world's best speakers. Aside from deputy commissioner Russ Granik, who will step down following the season, no one knows Stern like Silver. He has been in the room for every important NBA announcement for at least a decade and knows what it will take to be the next commissioner of the NBA. Although that title won't be his anytime soon -- Stern, who at 63 is the oldest commissioner of the four major sports, has promised the owners he will be at the helm through the 2009-10 season -- Silver is now likely the next in line. That's if he sticks around. Given his success, he has often been coveted by those who have negotiated with him. Like Stern, Silver has a vast amount of experience for his age. Stern was working for the NBA for almost 18 years before he became the commissioner at the age of 41. Silver, 43, first started at the NBA in 1992 and became president and chief operating officer of NBA entertainment five years later. "He studies and understands every issue and his people skills are extraordinary," Stern said. Read the Full Story Discuss Send Feedback Deputy Commissioner To Step DownNBA Commissioner David Stern today announced that Russ Granik will be stepping down as NBA Deputy Commissioner and COO at the conclusion of the 2005-06 season, after a 30-year career in the league office, the last 22 as the second-in-command. The announcement was made in conjunction with the annual meeting of the NBA Board of Governors, taking place October 25 and 26 in New York City. After this season, Granik will serve as a senior advisor to the Commissioner and continue to be the league's principal representative with USA Basketball and Chairman of the Board of the Basketball Hall of Fame. "Russ and I have worked together on a daily basis for 29 years, and everyone in the NBA family is well aware of the enormity of his contributions to the success and growth of the league during that time. For over two decades, Russ has been responsible for the day-to-day operation of the league," said Stern. "Among his many contributions, Russ was the NBA." Read the Full Story Discuss Send Feedback NBA Considers League-Wide Standard For Team PhysicalsThe NBA is considering a league-wide standard for physical exams following the death of Atlanta Hawks center Jason Collier. Individual team doctors from each of the NBA's 30 franchises currently determine the physical exams for their players. "The medical protocols employed by our teams have traditionally been left to the best practices of team physicians," NBA spokesman Tim Frank said. "However, in light of recent events that have occurred not just in the NBA but in other sports as well, we think it is prudent to follow up with our teams to find out what the norms are across the league." All players get physicals before training camp, and some teams use echocardiograms to detect heart problems. But not all teams use the tests and the league has no standard for physicals, the USA Today reported Thursday. The 28-year-old Collier died Saturday after he had difficulty breathing at home. His agent, Richard Howell, said Collier may have had an enlarged heart. General Basketball, Atlanta Hawks, New York Knicks, Chicago Bulls Read the Full Story Discuss Send Feedback Oct 2005 Archive
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