Partner Jerome S. Fortinsky (New York-Litigation) and Associate David Hambrick (New York-Litigation) co-authored an article titled "Forces that led to one NBA 'dream team' could create another" in Street & Smith's SportsBusiness Journal.

The article points out that in the public debate about why top National Basketball Association (NBA) stars like Carmelo Anthony and Amar'e Stoudemire are so eager to join forces, one factor has been widely overlooked: the impact of U.S. antitrust and labor laws on the maximum salaries players can earn. Protected by a line of Supreme Court decisions guarding collective bargaining from antitrust scrutiny, NBA team owners have continued to negotiate for and obtain caps on both individual salaries and team payroll. For superstars capable of commanding maximum salaries, the effect of these caps is to prevent them from auctioning their services to the highest bidder. Because any team wanting to sign these players will have to pay the maximum, the caps effectively remove salary as a consideration in determining where these superstars will play, motivating them to join forces. The situation is full of irony. The Supreme Court decisions, originally intended to protect the bargaining position of labor unions and their members, now limit the opportunity of some employee-athletes to get paid what they could command in a fully competitive market. Meanwhile, the salary restrictions, originally promoted as a means to preserve competitive balance, make it possible for superstars to join forces on powerhouse “dream teams.”

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