"As the NFL's owners and players dig in for what looks to be an ugly, contentious and very public labor dispute, the NBA is warming in the bullpen.

As a result, the landscape of two of the most popular sports in North America could change dramatically within months - provided they reach any sort of agreement at all.

The NBA is in the unenviable position of going second. Negotiations have already broken down in the NFL, where a lockout seems inevitable beginning March 4. That means by the time the NBA's labor contract expires on July 1, the NFL could already be four months into a lockout and could have turned the public off to all talk of revenue sharing.

Antawn Jamison was around for the NBA's last lockout during the 1998-99 season and believes the NFL going first could affect the NBA's public perception.

''I remember after the last [lockout] how we had to just go over and beyond to get the public back in our favor,'' Jamison said. ''You've got billionaires and millionaires fighting over money, there's a recession going on and a lot of that doesn't make sense. We can't get a perception that we're not talking and they're not trying to budge.''

To be clear, Jamison believes the NBA will have a lockout this summer.

''For how long is the question,'' he said.

The difference, at least on the surface, between the NBA and the NFL is that all the owners in the NFL are making money. Lots and lots of money. Part of the current problem is deciding how to divide the nearly $9 billion in revenue."