No free agency now, may be no NBA games later

The first casualty of the NBA lockout arrived quickly, when free agency did not open as usual on July 1.

Games eventually could be lost, too, if owners and players can't make progress whenever they start talking again.

Hall of Famer and TV analyst Charles Barkley says he doesn't think "they're going to play at all next season."

The last lockout reduced the 1998-99 season to 50 games, and players say they're prepared to hang in as long as necessary this time, rather than agree to the financial changes owners are seeking.

Teams normally would have been contacting free agents Friday. Instead, they couldn't contact players at all, and the league removed players' images from its official website.

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