It's not looking good for the NBA. Many players, though no superstars, have signed contracts in other countries and won't play in the NBA even if the season resumes in time. That says to me that they are not optimistic about having a season at all. I've been thinking about who would benefit from the lockout and I can't come up with any winners. Instead I'll focus on the top 5 biggest losers if the season isn't played at all.
5. Kobe Bryant- He's cemented his legacy as one of the greatest of all-time, but he's getting old and this season may be his last to make a run at MJ and 6 rings.
4. the Dallas Mavericks- Another aging superstar with aging teammates who may not be able to defend their title.
3. Kevin Durant- He's emerged as the next big thing and with his Summer League games has shown he is the premiere scorer in the league. A year off will set him back from grabbing that torch from Kobe.
2. The Miami Heat- Their not 4, not 5, not 6, not 7, will be looking extremely bleak with a season off, especially considering they are now in their prime. This Heat team desperately needs a season to forget the memories of the Finals debaucle. LeBron and Wade will be leading the new "Redeem Team."
1. The Fans- No basketball is terrible for the game, the players, the owners and most of all the fans. We're the only reason the league exists in the first place and it is us that makes it possible for billionaires and millionaires to argue over money.

The first two weeks of the season are gone, and more time could still be lost, maybe the entire season. This leaves one huge question lingering in my mind: If the whole season is wasted how will they proceed with the 2012 NBA Draft? Do all the players who were drafted this year just got back into talent pool since they never signed with their teams and are still eligible for the draft? How do they decide the draft lottery and general order of picks? Does Cleveland get another #1 pick? So many questions, so few answers

I honestly don't know how it works out for the players that were drafted this year (if there is no season).  I would assume that the teams that drafted them have the rights to sign them to contracts.
 
There is one big winner if there is no season, and that is Lebron James.  If there is no season for him to participate in, then no one can criticize him for anything.

I was discussing this with my friend the other night and he said that the year off will help LeBron because by the time next season starts everyone will have moved on from the decision because he'll be out of the spotlight for a year.

Yeah it could go either way though. I feel like LeBron was s o hated on that now people will feel sorry for him. He suffered that Finals collapse last year so I think he'll be rooted for again.

There is going to be so much Lebron talk when the NBA finally comes back.

I feel like LeBron got hated on so severely, by myself included, that now it's not fun to hate him. It's just piling on someone who doesn't really deserve to be that hated. Hate is an emotion that needs to be reserved for people who really move you. Personally, I respect almost every athlete that I "hate," and all of them are champions. That's not the case for LeBron.

Yeah we all got to "witness" his suffering last year and now we can move on and go back to hating people who deserve, it like Kobe.
"This is gunna be easy." -LeBron after the "decision."
"No one said this would be easy." -LeBron 2 months later