Internal negotiating teams for the NBA and the NBPA
"are scheduled to meet Monday or Tuesday in Manhattan,"
according to Mike Wise of the N.Y. TIMES. Both sides "were
encouraged after Friday's 10-hour bargaining session, in
which the players and owners made compromises on key
economic issues" (N.Y. TIMES, 11/23). NBA Commissioner
David Stern on Friday said, "I'm optimistic that there will
be a deal, but the question is: After how much more damage?
... There's still a pretty good gap between us, and that's
going to be a real problem." NBPA outside counsel Jeffrey
Kessler: "I don't want to give the impression we're close to
a deal, because it's clear to me the owners are going to
have to change their positions (on some issues)" (WASHINGTON
POST, 11/22). Kessler also said that a "demand" by the NBA
to "restrict free agent signings is a potential deal-
breaker." Under the proposal, a team would "forfeit the
right to re-sign its own players under the Larry Bird
exception anytime it signs a player off another team's
roster." Kessler: "It's a deal-killer that has been buried
in their proposal for a long time" (CHAR. OBSERVER, 11/23).
DETAILS FROM FRIDAY: During Friday's session, players
reportedly lowered their "demand" on BRI from 60% to 57% and
owners reportedly increased their offer from 50% to 52%
(ATLANTA CONSTITUTION, 11/23). In N.Y., Mitch Lawrence also
had the split at 57% and 52%, respectively, and noted the
two sides are now $600M apart over the six-year deal (N.Y.
DAILY NEWS, 11/21). NEWSDAY's Greg Logan had the owners
offering 53%, with the players at 58%. Logan added that the
owners "agreed to limit player contributions to an escrow
fund on the back end of the deal." One source: "The issue
of how escrow would work has been substantially resolved."
The players would put up to 10% of their salary in escrow
and if salary costs exceeded the agreed-upon percentage
split, the "excess would be refunded to the owners from the
account" (NEWSDAY, 11/23). USA TODAY's Roscoe Nance writes
that unresolved issues remain: a possible maximum salary;
the rookie wage scale and whether teams would hold first
refusal rights and the amount of the maximum annual raises
for players (USA TODAY, 11/23). In San Antonio, Glenn
Rogers wrote that despite the talks on Friday, there were
"some troubling signs Saturday" as the "mood of some players
after a teleconference" with NBPA Exec Dir Billy Hunter
"seemed bleak." As far as making concessions on the percent
of BRI, "some insiders say the league owners told" NBA
Commissioner David Stern they "would not pay more than" 52%.
Others say Stern can go to 54% (EXPRESS-NEWS, 11/22).
A TIMELINE: Hawks C/NBPA VP Dikembe Mutombo: "We won't
be playing Dec. 15 like I've been reading, but I think we'll
be playing the fifth of January" (ATLANTA CONSTITUTION,
11/23). USA TODAY's Roscoe Nance writes that a "likely
scenario" would have a deal by the first week of December
and the season beginning the first week of January (USA
TODAY, 11/23). ESPN's David Aldridge: "Most arenas keep
open dates in April for playoff games for both basketball
and hockey. So there is some room at the end of April. And
what they're talking about doing now is extending the
regular season until the end of April, starting on January
1, playing 15 games a month and trying to get a 60-game
regular season in. They can't extend the Finals past the
end of June, because NBC does not want the Finals [being]
broadcast during the 4th of July" ("SportsCenter," 11/20).
FAN APATHY: In L.A., Mark Heisler writes under the
header, "Fans Love This Game But Don't Miss It." Heisler
writes that once the league returns, "there'll be a price to
pay. The NBA can look forward to soft attendance, at least
in the near term. In places like the [L.A.] Sports Arena,
where attendance was already soft, it could disappear
altogether" (L.A. TIMES, 11/23). In N.Y., Selena Roberts
examines public reaction under the header, "And The Winner
Is: Apathy." Roberts: "Suddenly the sport that boasts the
slogan 'I Love This Game' has left fans asking themselves
this question: What's to love?" (N.Y. TIMES, 11/23).
