Stern: NBA CBA talks not going well

After a nearly three-hour meeting between the NBA and its players' union Monday, commissioner David Stern said talks are not going well.

"I don't feel optimistic," he said. "I don't feel optimistic about the players' willingness to engage in a serious way."

When asked if the players are bargaining in good faith, Stern shrugged and said, "I would say not."

It was the strongest language that Stern has directed toward the players during collective bargaining. And it was significantly more dire than what Derek Fisher, the NBA Players Association president, had to say to reporters.

"There's a lot of discussion and ideas, but we're having a hard time breaking through to what the bottom line is," said Fisher, who spoke to reporters before Stern. "I think it was important, though, to restart this process."

Monday was the 32nd day of the lockout. Though staff members from the union and league met 10 days ago, Monday's meeting at a hotel in midtown Manhattan was the first significant one since the lockout began July 1.

At stake in the negotiations is how to split about $4.3 billion in revenue. Owners have asked for a hard salary cap and a 50-50 split of revenue; players want to continue the soft cap, which gives them 57 percent of the revenue. The union has estimated that the two sides are $7 billion apart on a 10-year deal.

Fisher, who plays for the Lakers and flew in from Los Angeles for the meeting, said the two sides essentially are "in the same place" that they were 30 days ago. He said the league and the union are looking to schedule a session later this month in which they can sit down for two or three consecutive days.

The 2011-12 season is scheduled to start Nov. 1. The last time the NBA had a major labor dispute, the 1998-99 season did not start until February and was shortened to 50 games from 82.