Joe ... I don't think it "killed" pro baseball. I think it caused a decline in revenues, and probably showed a loss on at least two of the multiple sets of books they keep
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I don't think basketball's problems are as much related to labor problems as the owners and their shills want people to believe, either. The so-called stars of today couldn't carry Jordan's jockstrap when it comes to marketing. There's a whole lot of reasons for that.
The league's made some mistakes - no doubt about it. They have teams in places with no "natural" hockey fan base. Still, I think that predicting the death of pro hockey is very premature.
And by the way - the "real" pros? I love my football just as much as anyone, but there is nothing more real about football than there is about any sport - even non-sports like golf. Football has been the most effectively marketed of any of the sports, I'll give you that.
Look at all the hoopla surrounding the Superbowl. How many of them have been actual good football games? 10 out of 39?