European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - September 29, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Head of Aba Union lockout of alternative games by Ken Peters los Angeles a the head of the Aba players Union says he would not be surprised if the league stages a lockout because of the salary Cap. And the players would be prepared to stage alternative games. There is no current labor contract in the Aba and owners reportedly Are considering a lockout if none is reached by thanksgiving. They want to make the league s salary Cap less flexible a move opposed by the players. Charles Grantham head of the play ers Union said tuesday the current labor standoffs in major league baseball and the nil Are a result of the climate of owners believing salary Caps Are a Panacea for their  it s contagious with three or four sports going through it at the same time with the salary Cap he said claiming owners want salary Caps despite the fact that pro sports Are expanding domestically and beginning to make inroads into vast global expansion. Is there a want for the salary Cap or is there a need for the salary Cap Grantham in los Angeles for meetings said by Telephone. When you Start looking at that kind of environment in football baseball hockey and basketball it does t Surprise me that owners would be floating the Rumor of a potential lockout. Our discussions with our player reps clearly made them aware of this possibility some time ago. I would not be sur prised if a lockout were to occur based on their behaviour at this Point. If they lock the players out i Don t think we would have much difficulty putting on alternative  Grantham does t believe there would be any Lack of demand for such games noting basketball is More popular inter nationally than baseball hockey or foot Ball. Asked where alternative basketball games might be played he said every  the stars and stripes september 29,1994 the last agreement Between the league and its players expired after the 1993-94 season and there have been no negotiating sessions since july. The Aba Board of governors will meet oct. 5 in new York with the regular season to begin nov. 4. Clock ticking Down for nil settlement Toronto a National hockey league com missioner Gary Bettman seems resigned to the fact that the Start of the season will be postponed. Players Are not giving him any reason to think  gave the players Union a new proposal Dur ing eight hours of negotiations tuesday but Union Boss Bob Goodenow described it As unacceptable we still have a lot of work to do and i am getting concerned that time is getting Short said Bettman be fore he headed Back to new York to await a Call from Goodenow to see if and when talks will resume. As time re riches on i will be More and More concerned. We have some wide Rivers to Cross. Are they so wide and so deep that they Are incapable of being crossed i Hope not and i think not but the More time we spend together and the less Progress we make my level of concern rises. It is not impossible but i do riot want to hold out too much optimism Bettman has said he will decide Friday whether to postpone the Start of the season which is scheduled for saturday.  the nil s new proposal deals with a tax plan to help finance Small Market teams. Goodenow called it a variation on an old theme. Los Angeles Kings defens Eman Marty Mcsorley warned that the players Are ready and willing to stay put the whole season if owners do not Budge on the Issue of taxing salaries. We re prepared to shut it Down he said in reference to the season. Players interviewed at exhibition game Sites were Dis enchanted by the recent developments. It s Tough to anticipate what will happen saturday but right now we re a Little disappointed said goal tender John Vanbiesbrouc team representative for the Florida panthers. It does t look like much Prog Ress. We put together a lucrative package to answer their concerns about the lower Market teams and they did t like it. Unfortunately we could t get past this bump. They want to fight and there s not much we can do about it. Penguins Luc Robitaille shoots As goalie arturs irbe blocks net in nil exhibition won by Host Sharks 6-5 tuesday night. Lem there May be two or More schools of thought on How to approach it. And those Are the gaps we Are try ing to  Goodenow said it s becoming clearer to players that Bettman s ultimate goal is to Cap salaries despite what the commissioner says. The real focal Point now is a system that really acts As a Cap on salaries especially for the top payroll teams in the league Goodenow said. The problems with that Are significant.  players have proposed a 5 per cent tax on salaries and revenues with the proceeds being pooled to help Small Market teams. We do not think that their proposal makes sense or works to accomplish the objectives we have Bettman said. I m the player rep and the team is Well notified and Weill be  tuesday s session brought the total to 15 hours the amount of time the nil and no la have worked this week toward negotiating a collective agreement to replace one that expired sept. 15, 1993. At one Point during tuesday s talks Bettman and Goodenow went off by themselves for two hours of what both described As a candid conversation about their respective positions. But despite the efforts the chances of a settlement appear All but hopeless. We understand where we Are tin the big issues and it May Well be there arc some fund mental Dis agreements on How to approach some of those issues Bettman said. If we both acknowledge the same prob oh/0 of cafe basketball assistant Dies Columbus Ohio a Ohio state assistant basketball coach Ken Turner who had a heart at tack while jogging a week ago died wednesday at Grant medical Center. He was 48. The Cincinnati native had joined the staff of head coach Randy Ayers on june 24 after spending four years As an assistant at Kansas state. Turner had been listed in critical condition since he was admitted sept. 21. He collapsed while jogging near his Home in suburban West Turner i am personally tremendously saddened by this loss Ayers said through sports information director Steve Snapp. In the Short period of time he was on our staff Ken impressed us All with his tremendous enthusiasm and love of coaching. He was an extremely positive person who touched an amazing number of people in the Short time that he was Here. He was More than Acoach he was a  athletic director Andy Geiger called Turner death a terrible  in his three months As a Buckeye he had a tremendously positive Impact on All of us. We have lost a Good Friend and we Are All deeply sad  Turner played basketball at southwestern state University in Weatherford okla., and be came an assistant coach there after graduating in1972. He also has been an assistant at the University of Cincinnati Oklahoma Christian Oklahoma state Mississippi and South Alabama. Turner is survived by his wife Margaret and children Kenneth ii 14, and Anndra 10. 0ii246850ii000504"