1) Loss of momentum: Coming off the most successful and most watched season since Michael Jordan was with the Bulls (he never played with the Wizards, just pretend with me), the owners' choice of committing this self-imposed hari-kari is a huge momentum killer. If the owners contend that they're losing money as severely as they say they are, no matter what new CBA becomes, the owners will still be in a world of hurt as many fans will reject the league's return out of spite. If you'll recall, they did this during the last lockout and I'll bet their new bitterness will have even more vitriol.

2) Alternate choices: Without the NBA, many hoops fans will simply latch onto or try watching other sports. Take me for example. I've not followed the NFL since the Raiders and Rams jettisoned away from Los Angeles, but with a huge hole in my sports watching universe, why wouldn't I give football another try? Heck, I hear soccer is really great to watch, too. Never mind, I think I myself would watch paint dry while being assaulted by angry badgers (or Angry Birds. Great game, eh?) then force myself to watch "the beautiful game." It's about as beautiful as a frat boy's toilet after an all-night bender.

3) Capping salary: Does Brad Pitt deserve upwards of $20 million per film? Does J.K Rowling deserve mega-jillions for writing about teen wizards? Who knows and who cares? Pitt's agent hasn't forced the studios to pay him such colossal salaries. Rowling's publisher (and movie producers) certainly thinks she's been worth every penny. This is America; if someone agrees to pay you a salary, no matter how high it may be, take it! Not only are the owners asking the players to give back some of the salary that has already been contractually promised to them, they're also proposing a hard cap on what the players can earn in the future. If you think about how much money someone like Dwayne Wade generates for the NBA (and the Heat) both domestically and internationally, then he, much like Jordan before him, actually makes far less than he deserves. Reasonable spending, not capped salaries make sense. Figure that one out (cheap) owners.

4) "The Last Dance" never completed: Kevin Garnett, Grant Hill and Steve Nash. All first-ballot Hall of Famers may retire if the season is lost (Hill's contract is up and Nash's and Garnett's end in 2012). They're all battling nagging injuries (Hill to a lesser degree) and perhaps it's simply not worth grinding it out after a year away from the hardwood. A lost season could prevent Hill from joining the Lakers for a final push for the championship, Nash to be traded to the Knicks to finally make a valiant run to the Finals (the poor guy owns the record for the most playoff games without playing in the big dance), or Garnett and his lion's heart, pushing his Celtics past the Heat for a deep playoff run. Don't these three deserve that shot? Don't the fans merit the chance to cheer them on during their (potential) "last dance"?

5) The revenge of LeBron: This summer he finally got it! Despite the harsh condemnation of his lack of a low post game (seriously, I have more of one than he does. Not that I could score on a 9th grader, but still.), he finally reached out to Hakeem Olajuwon to work on how to dominate the post. Do you remember how much it helped Kobe and Dwight Howard? If Bron Bron can produce the same results, he'll be unstoppable (until the 4th quarter when he plays hot potato with any pass thrown to him). Without the season, he'll lose his shot at showing the world he can indeed back down someone as minuscule in size as J.J. Barea (I can't believe he panicked on that very mismatch when the Heat needed a score in the Finals). We need to hear his "Redemption Song."

6) "International Injury Fest": Oh great, owners. Force the players to play overseas. Yeah, I know it voids their contract if they get hurt and/or suffer an injury that renders them unable to play again. But do you really want that? Cool, New Jersey! Deron Williams is off your payroll because he severely broke his wrist driving into the lane, but whoops, he was your best player, so have fun with that. I'm also sure OKC fans are excited about Kevin Durant blowing out an ACL as he trips over fireworks thrown onto the court (have you seen those international games? Some irrational fans pull crazy bush-league antics like that).

7) Halftime Antics: Ok, admittedly, this one is a bit selfish on my part. I grew up watching Lakers games at the Great Western Forum. I loved the fact that the main halftime entertainment was waiting to see how impressively drunk (a certain actor whose name rhymes with Mickelson) was when he came back from the VIP lounge. But now at half time, I have jugglers, magicians and even a flying gorilla doing nasty dunks after bouncing off a trampoline. I want my mindless halftime fun back! No season means no gorilla dunking. C'mon, we live in a world where turning on the news means finding out about riots, earthquakes, drunk drivers and how my 5 year old will surely be "sexting" unless I check her cell phone records (why the hell did my wife get her an iPhone?). I'm not the only one who enjoys this. I may be the only one who needs it (my own personal issue), but all the fans lose out on this guilty pleasure.

Hey, if it sounds like I'm on the player's side, I am. The NBPA offered to extend the CBA while the final details were hammered out and that would have meant NBA enjoyment for all. The owners rejected that proposal; some owners even bragged they'd make more money if no season was played. Is that "not negotiating in good faith" as the owners claim the players are doing?

I'm going to be really bummed if the only season that plays out is on my copy of NBA 2K12. In the words of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, "No matter how far a divide may be, a bridge can be built if honesty, courageousness and the desire to see gorillas dunking at halftime is the common thread." Okay, he didn't say that, but he would have.