Old ball returns

New Year's celebrations might be louder than usual in NBA locker rooms today. When the curtain closes on 2006, so does the brief run of the league's new basketball. The new year brings the return of the old ball, the leather one players said never should have been replaced.

Players criticized the performance of the microfiber composite ball from the moment training camps opened. The NBA stood by the product, but players' complaints that it cut their skin followed by the filing of an unfair labor practice charge forced commissioner David Stern to put the new balls back on the rack.

There's no guarantee the leather ball is the one that will be tossed up to open the 2007-08 season.

"It really depends on what the best product is for the game," said Dan Touhey, vice president of marketing for Spalding. "We certainly feel ... that the composite balls are here to stay."

-- The Associated Press