David Stern

David Joel Stern (September 22, 1942 – January 1, 2020) was an American lawyer and sports executive who served as commissioner of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1984 to 2014. A graduate of Rutgers University and Columbia Law School, Stern joined the NBA as general counsel in 1978 before ascending to executive vice president and then commissioner, succeeding Larry O'Brien. During his three-decade tenure, Stern transformed the NBA from a league with modest revenues and domestic focus into a global powerhouse, increasing annual revenue from approximately $118 million to over $5 billion through lucrative television contracts, international expansion, and merchandising. Key initiatives under Stern included the introduction of a salary cap in 1984 to promote competitive balance, a draft lottery in 1985 to deter tanking, rigorous anti-drug policies, and the launch of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) in 1996. He aggressively marketed star players like Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson, fostering international outreach via preseason games, academies, and partnerships abroad, which elevated basketball's worldwide popularity. Stern's leadership, however, drew criticism for contentious labor negotiations leading to lockouts in 1998–99 and 2011, the handling of the Tim Donaghy referee betting scandal in 2007, the forced relocation of the Seattle SuperSonics to Oklahoma City in 2008, and a veto of the Chris Paul trade to the Los Angeles Lakers in 2011 to protect smaller-market interests.