NBA Can Look to Other Leagues for Precedents

For those who still believe that the FBI probe of Tim Donaghy's possible involvement in a pointshaving betting scandal that included games he may have officiated in is going to tarnish the league, it's useful to think again. Not one entity that puts up money for the league — whether it is the government, cable television, or NBA corporate partners — has bailed on David Stern and company.
This notion will tell you far more about the state of the NBA than what Stern had to say at a Tuesday news conference. On Monday, the city of Orlando had a chance to express its dismay with the league. But — four days after the FBI probe story broke — the Orlando City Council voted 6–1 to go ahead and spend $1.1 billion on a new arena for the Orlando Magic. The measure now goes to the Orange County commissioners for final approval.
Not one city with a basketball team has said a word about looking into NBA business practices, or has threatened to rework arena leases. These are cities that have put up money to build modernday edifices that provide NBA owners with opportunities to
make tens of millions of dollars from revenues generated from luxury suites, club seats, restaurants, and team stores. Oklahoma City, Kansas City, Louisville, and Las Vegas city officials all want their own NBA teams despite all of the documented problems with the league. New Orleans owner George Shinn just sold 25% of his franchise to Louisiana investors, and a Michigan-based group is looking to buy the Portland Trail Blazers.
Neither the Walt Disney Company nor Time Warner is about ready to rip up newly signed cable and broadband deals with the league. As well, ESPN and TNT are ready to distribute NBA games for the next eight years. It is unlikely that corporations that buy marketing partnerships, suites, club seats, and other tickets are just going to stop spending on the NBA product either.
The Donaghy scandal won't destroy the NBA's credibility where it counts, with the money people who finance the league. This is also despite the fact that the NBA has gone through a series of serious public relations nightmares since 2003, including the arrests of 10 players on various charges that year, and the Detroit and Indiana brawl that ended up in the crowd in 2004.