In recounting the twists and turns of his career, Falk critiques N.B.A. owners, other agents, former clients and even his mentor, Donald Dell, who gave Falk his start at ProServ in 1974.

Nothing is as striking, however, as his bleak assessment of the N.B.A.’s economic system. Falk’s view matters more than most. Throughout the 1980s and ’90s, he was the N.B.A.’s top power broker, as the adviser to Jordan, Ewing, Alonzo Mourning, Dikembe Mutombo and a host of other stars. He sold his agency, FAME, for $100 million in 1998, but he reopened it in 2007 as a boutique agency.

Falk despairs over the current state of the agent industry, saying “there’s rampant cheating going on” and “the quality of the representation is low.” He blames the union, which certifies agents but provides almost no oversight. A union spokesman declined to comment.

While Falk is no longer the most active agent, he remains highly influential. He is still close to Jordan  now a minority owner of the Charlotte Bobcats  and represents a handful of stars, including Mutombo, Elton Brand and Mike Bibby. (His client list also includes Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski and the former Georgetown coach John Thompson.)

Sometimes a foe of Stern, Falk is also an unabashed admirer, calling him “the greatest commissioner in the history of professional sports.” Falk does not seem nearly as impressed with Billy Hunter, the executive director of the National Basketball Players Association. The two have had a tense relationship. Falk foresees a rout in the next round of negotiations.

In a joint appearance during All-Star weekend, Stern and Hunter acknowledged the dire state of the economy and its effect on the N.B.A. Stern said publicly for the first time that the salary cap  which is tied to league revenue  would probably decline next season. Privately, league officials are bracing for a major decline in the cap in the 2010-11 season. Stern and Hunter said they had begun preliminary talks for a new labor deal.

Their conciliatory tone sounded promising, but Falk seemed skeptical. In his view, the union botched negotiations in 1998, which led to the three-month lockout, the only labor stoppage in league history. The union tried to stave off a luxury tax and maximum player salaries but ultimately had to accept both in order to strike a deal in January 1999 and save the season.