Half of the major professional sports leagues  in the United States are shut down.

The NFL is north of triple digits in days locked out and on Thursday night at midnight, it was the NBA‘s turn to lock out its players.

No communication with players. No trades. No free agent movement. No end in sight.

The last lockout reduced the 1998-99 season to just a 50-game schedule, and many believe there is a strong chance the entire 2011-12 season will be wiped out.

Forty-one yearly Thrashers home games are gone forever, and forty-one home Hawks games could be gone next year.

Joe Johnson will not make his $18-million plus salary, and your average Joe at STATS restaurant near Philips Arena will not make his $18,000 waiting tables.

“It would leave a huge hole,” says STATS Assistant GM Aaron Buggs. On game nights, STATS can see a 20 percent growth in business.
“Thrashers games did not generate huge crowds, but hockey fans are faithful. They would show up before and after a game. At least they were stopping by,” says Buggs.

The NBA's summer league in Las Vegas already has been canceled, preseason games in Europe were never scheduled, and players might have to decide if they want to risk playing in this summer's Olympic qualifying tournaments without the NBA's help in securing insurance in case of injury.

Training camps usually open the last week of September and the regular season about a month later.

When does college football start?

I need something to watch. Average Joe needs the tables and the paychecks that come with it.