Stern, NBA union mum after 6-hour talks

The NBA and its players union met for six hours Wednesday in a midtown Manhattan hotel. Though neither side would say whether substantive progress was made toward ending the league's nearly two-month lockout, Commissioner David Stern did release a nugget of good news.

"There's clearly enough time," Stern said when asked if he thought a deal could be reached in order for the season to open as scheduled on Nov. 1.

There may be enough time, but both the league and the union know that they are, as they say during the NBA draft, "on the clock."

"Both sides are feeling a sense of urgency," NBA Players Association president Derek Fisher said. "We're very focused on getting a deal done."

The meeting, which started at 10 a.m. and ended at 4 p.m., was the first since Aug. 1. Representing the NBA were Stern, deputy Commissioner Adam Silver and San Antonio Spurs owner Peter Holt. Lakers guard Fisher, NBPA executive director Billy Hunter and union lawyer Ron Kempner were there to negotiate for the union.

After the last meeting, Stern accused the union of not negotiating in good faith. After this meeting, however, there were very little fireworks or even substantial information as both sides said they had agreed to keep the negotiations private. The NBA did file two claims against the NBPA -- an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board and a lawsuit in federal district court.

Both sides declined to say whether any progress was made Wednesday.

The two sides expect to meet multiple times during the month of September, but both declined to say where or when those meetings would be. Stern said that there was no set timetable for when a deal had to be reached before it threatened the regular season.

Said Stern: "We don't have deadlines in mind. We just have meetings and discussions in mind."