David Stern addressed the media about the state of the NBA.

While the 149-day lockout certainly soured some fans, Stern painted a rosy picture of his league.

"It's been a pretty good start to the season," he said. "I was asked how we measured and one measure is attendance, another is ratings, locally and nationally, and another is merchandising. And in all areas we're doing robustly.”

Two years after losing LeBron James, Cavalier owner Dan Gilbert said he thinks his team will have a better chance to keep rookies Kyrie Irving and Tristan Thompson when they reach free agency.

“The draft picks we have now, as far as organization goes, we’re here from the beginning,” he said. “People forget we were not here from the beginning of the previous era. We came in Year 3 (for James). We weren’t able to establish a foundation and a relationship at the beginning. It’s a whole different thing now and I really think it will be very different when this core of guys comes up for a contract.

“Who knows exactly who will be here and who won’t, based on what happens in the NBA. (If) we keep doing the right things in the organization, keep making the arena and the franchise a great place for players to play and we start winning, things will take care of themselves.”

Gilbert, a key figure in collective bargaining negotiations, admitted to favoring a franchise tag that would restrict or prohibit players from entering free agency.

“That certainly was discussed. I think it probably would’ve been a good thing overall for the NBA,” he said. “Unfortunately, it wasn’t part of the agreement. But I think we did get some things that will make it better for the small market and mid-market teams.”