LONDON — Commissioner David Stern said Knicks owner James Dolan would be in big trouble if he miked an opponent’s locker room to “eavesdrop,’’ but it’s not against league rules to do so on the court.
During a press conference before the Knicks faced the Pistons yesterday, Stern said he encourages more microphones on the court — as long as it’s only on the court.
Stern also said there was no clear evidence Dolan miked the court, because he was ticked at the league’s suspension of Carmelo Anthony for his Kevin Garnett confrontations. The Post — and others — have reported it was motivated by the suspension. However, Stern said no Knicks official has publicly admitted to it on the record. The umbrella microphones were courtside for Friday’s Bulls game and Sunday’s Hornets game at the Garden. There was no evidence of any eavesdropping devices yesterday at the O2 Arena.
“If a team does something to eavesdrop on the players, then they would be sanctioned because it would be against our rules,’’ Stern said. “But there’s a difference between eavesdropping such as putting microphones in the locker room or the huddle other than the one the league does, and putting mikes around the court to pick up the sounds of the game.’’
Stern added he thinks the NBA is going good in its use of oncourt mikes.
“We mike players, we mike coaches, we mike our huddles,’’ Stern added. “We do nothing but aim microphones on the court. I’d like to see the audio of our games be a little more robust. Anything that is really being said on the court is subject to being picked up.”