David Stern said what about legalized gambling?

Via Ian Thomsen of SI.com:

From my point of view, that is the big question created by the Tim Donaghy scandal, and with this groundbreaking interview, Stern moved closer than any major commissioner in modern times to an acceptance of legalized betting on his games.

Stern made no commitment to legalized gambling on NBA games in our wide-ranging conversation last week at league headquarters in New York. He did, however, open a dialogue that could ultimately lead to a new relationship between the NBA and legalized sports betting. It's important to grasp the context as detailed below, but for the first time he referred to nationally legalized gambling on the NBA as a "possibility" that "may be a huge opportunity."

And the exact quote from the commish:

"Gambling, however it may have moved closer to the line [of becoming acceptable], is still viewed on the threat side," Stern said. "Although we understand fully why, buried within that threat there may be a huge opportunity as well."

I'm not sure what to make of these comments, but they're making some waves. Doesn't it matter more what our members of Congress and state lawmakers think about legalized sports betting? Stern, along with team owners, can back it all they want, but this will ultimately come down to legislation. And lets be fair, Congress needs to fix college football's BCS before it handles gambling on NBA games.