Lebron Will Consider Europe According To A Person Close To James

[Guest]

Basketball is a bit different than baseball. I dont really watch baseball anymore, so I don't have a lot of insight regarding the sport. However, I will say that the Yankees have historically dominated baseball. They are also the biggest market for pro baseball and have the most money to spend. St. Louis is a major city, and one that loves baseball. So, they might not be as big a market as BOS or NY, but you can't write 'em off like they aren't a big market. Teams could still compete, but the smaller (in terms of revenue) teams would have to put forth extra effort to field a competitive team. Can you imagine what RFA or FA would be like without a salary cap ?

Baseball still remains competitive and has been rising in revenue and attendance ever since 1998 in spite of these steroids scandals. Of course big market teams remain competitive, but other teams are also competitive. Look at Oakland, Tampa, Minnesota, Milwaukee...sure money helps but that isn't everything. You also need to look at baseball from Free Agency on and not the entirety. Free Agency began in 1975, in that period of time the Yankees have won 6 championships with the next best team Cinncinati (big market?) at 3. In contrast, look at the NBA in that same period of time (the whole time this is with a salary cap). Since 1975, the Lakers won 8 championships, Bulls 6, and Celtics 5.

[AHF]

Baseball still remains competitive and has been rising in revenue and attendance ever since 1998 in spite of these steroids scandals. Of course big market teams remain competitive, but other teams are also competitive. Look at Oakland, Tampa, Minnesota, Milwaukee...sure money helps but that isn't everything. You also need to look at baseball from Free Agency on and not the entirety. Free Agency began in 1975, in that period of time the Yankees have won 6 championships with the next best team Cinncinati (big market?) at 3. In contrast, look at the NBA in that same period of time (the whole time this is with a salary cap). Since 1975, the Lakers won 8 championships, Bulls 6, and Celtics 5.

The big difference between the two sports in my mind is that basketball is much more star driven than baseball. In baseball, you can have a team like the Marlins that is very competitive. That would be impossible in basketball. The effects of a capless system on baseball are simply smaller than in basketball because a team can be dominant in basketball by picking up two superstars and surrounding them with good role players. Signing ARod (baseball's biggest superstar) and several other star players doesn't even necessarily get you in the playoffs. Signing Shaq in his prime makes you an instant contender.

In my opinion, a capless system would have more trouble operating competitively in basketball than in baseball.