Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, June 11, 1993 TAG: 9306110038
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: PHOENIX LENGTH: Medium
Stern said the league doesn't plan to prohibit such activities, but "because we're saying that you have the right to do something doesn't necessarily make it, on an ongoing basis, the right thing to do."
In a recent book, entertainment executive Richard Esquinas said he won $1.25 million in golf bets from the Chicago Bulls star during a 10-day period. Jordan has said he played golf with Esquinas, but he said their bets were for far less than the author claimed.
Jordan also gambled in Atlantic City, N.J., where casinos are legal, the night before Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals against New York.
"We are having ongoing dialogue with Michael," Stern said. "We're wrestling even more with the issue of how a properly run professional sports league should address the entire issue" of players gambling.
"We are satisfied that there's no hint that any of our players gambled on NBA games," he said.
Stern said he hasn't talked with Esquinas but plans to do so.
At a news conference Thursday, the day after Chicago's 100-92 victory over Phoenix in Game 1 of the NBA Finals, Stern addressed other issues:
He said the league's competition committee would consider changes in the draft lottery in October, although "substantial revision" is not certain. Orlando won the lottery for the second consecutive year, even though it had the best record among non-playoff teams.
He defended the 9 p.m. starting times of five of the seven scheduled games of the NBA Finals and said the opener received an outstanding 16.8 television rating. "Without being too flip, last night's game started at 6 o'clock for those of us who were here in Phoenix," he said, but "we're sensitive to the subject because we would like our games to be available to the largest number of people."
He praised Drazen Petrovic, killed Monday in a car crash in Germany, for adding "a lot to our league by virtue of his enthusiasm and personality" and for highlighting the "global" nature of the game. The Croatian played for the Portland Trail Blazers and the New Jersey Nets.
Keywords:
BASKETBALL
by CNB