Las Vegas ? It’s hard to argue with David Stern when he says he knows what is good for the NBA. He’s quick to point that out himself when he tells you how much league revenues have soared since he took over.

When Stern starts talking about Las Vegas, though, you’d swear he was still stuck in the days of the two-handed set shot.

Stern came to Sin City on Friday to toss it a bone, albeit a big one at that. Eighteen months from now, Las Vegas will host the 2007 NBA All-Star game, the first non-NBA city ever chosen for the league’s midseason showcase.

That gave city leaders an occasion to round up some showgirls and giddily celebrate the coup. The smiles became forced, though, when the questioning turned to whether the NBA would actually allow Las Vegas to have a team.

Stern said he didn’t want to ruin the moment. Then he went ahead and did it anyway.

“It’s not about a moral crusade about gambling,” Stern said. “It’s just about betting on basketball games.”

Meaning?

“Most fans happen to like to cheer for their teams to win, not just to cover point spreads,” Stern said. “It changes the relationship, potentially, of the fans with the team.”

Say what?

Apparently Stern clings to the misconception that most people in Las Vegas can’t make it through the day without betting on sports. He doesn’t seem to understand that this is a city of some 2 million, most of whom are about as likely to place a wager as they are to get free NBA All-Star tickets.

They’re soccer moms, Little League dads, businessmen, casino workers and kids who want a team of their own to root for. If they had a team, they’d back it just like they did the UNLV Runnin’ Rebels when they were the closest thing to an NBA team in the early 1990s.

Besides, what’s the difference between cheering for your team to cover the over and cheering for it to score 100 points so everyone can get a free taco?

Give Stern credit for originality, though. At least he didn’t trot out the old excuse that gamblers might somehow be able to come up with enough money to bribe multimillionaires to throw games.

The NFL loves that one, but the truth is that sports betting scandals are about as passe as tri-colored basketballs. They went out about the time Wilt Chamberlain came in.

Stern allowed Las Vegas to get around the betting issue for the All-Star game by agreeing not to take bets on the game. It wasn’t much of a concession since serious gamblers seldom wager money on games that players don’t take seriously.

That doesn’t mean the best players in the league won’t be able to bet on the NBA while in town for the game. They can, just like they can bet with a few clicks of the mouse in a hotel room in Philadelphia or San Francisco.

“It’s not about players betting because they won’t,” Stern said, well, rather sternly.

So what is the NBA really afraid of when it comes to one of its teams relocating to Las Vegas?

Maybe that Sin City is too much fun.