The Lockout & the Raptors: Players approve CBA, Owners too! (1944)

[Bendit]

For all the allegations of the owners not bargaining in 'good faith' one could say the same about the players. There are plenty of these types of comments out there:



Quote via Washington Post via HoopsHype.com.

When it really comes down to it this reduction to 50% is about 100 mill./yr overall which makes it about 3.5 mill./team divided pro rata amongst 15 players is not much really (to remove a contentious issue). I can only assume the players want to hold backthe final move to 50% in exchange for some of the other system issues listed above in another note.

[Apollo]

I think they're not willing to do it out of principle. They are taking the negotiations personal and they think it's a sign of weakness to come down that much. Maybe they're also fearful of negotiations in seven to ten years if that agree to 50/50 now.

[Apollo]

MLE Update

Yes, the sides have agreed that the maximum mid-level exception should be $5 million, but the owners want it to max out at $15 million over three years (no annual raises), while the union wants the maximum mid-level to be for four years, with 7 or 8 percent annual raises depending on the length of the contract.

Source: Sheridanhoops.com

[Apollo]

Union wants players coming off rookie deals to be UFAs

Restricted free agency: The union went into these talks asking that the waiting time for a team to match an offer to a restricted free agent be reduced from 7 days. The owners have acquiesced, and the window for matching will be reduced to 3 or 4 days. The union also is asking that restricted free agency be removed for players coming off their rookie scale contracts, which would allow first-round picks to become unrestricted after four years instead of five, which is the case for second-round picks.

Source: Sheridanhoops.com

[Apollo]

Union wants contract matching percentage in trades raised by 100%

Under the old system, the salaries of players being traded had to be within 125 percent of each other (if both trading teams were over the salary cap). This rule will be loosened considerably, although a final formula has not been agreed to. The players want the percentage to rise to 225 percent (whereby, for instance, a player making $1 million could be traded for a player making $2.25 million), while the owners have indicated a willingness to allow the percentage to rise to 140 or 150 percent — although teams paying the luxury tax would have a tighter restraint.

Source: Sheridanhoops.com

My opinion, they want this because then it's easier for teams who can spend more to spend more.

[Apollo]

Remember the "Stretch Exception"

The “stretch exception”: Under this proposal, a team could waive any player and stretch out the remainder of the money he is owed, reducing the salary cap number for that waived player. For instance, if an underperforming player had three years left on his contract and was waived under the stretch exception, his remaining unpaid salary would be stretched out over a period as long as seven years. (Example: A player owed $21 million for three years who is waived under the stretch exception would still be paid his $21 million, but the cap cost would be spread over seven years, meaning he would count $3 million annually against the cap instead of $7 million.) In theory, this would free up more money to be paid to players who were worthy of the increased salary. (Also, an additional pile of money would be freed up through the amnesty clause, a one-time opportunity when this deal gets done for each team to waive one player without his salary counting against the salary cap or the luxury tax. This clause would be especially helpful to Orlando, which could remove Gilbert Arenas and the $62.4 million he is owed over the next three years, and Portland, which could do the same with Brandon Roy’s $49 million in guaranteed money over the next three seasons.)

Source: Sheridanhoops.com

[Apollo]

Maximum Raises

There has been little movement here, with the owners asking that maximum raises be 4 1/2 percent for Bird players and 3 percent for others. The union wants to keep the current system of 10.5 percent raises for Bird players, with the caveat that the maximum raises would drop to 9 percent for a player signing a four- or five-year contract. For non-Bird players the union is asking for maximum raises of 8 percent in two- and three-year contracts, and 7 percent for players receiving four- or five-year deals.

Source: Sheridanhoops.com

[Apollo]

Escrow tax

The owners want to change things to have an NHL-style system with an unlimited escrow tax withheld, while the union wants to keep something resembling the present system in place.

Source: Sheridanhoops.com

[Apollo]

Word on the Bird

The owners are continuing to ask that tax-paying teams be prohibited from using the mid-level exception or the so-called Early Bird exception.

Source: Sheridanhoops.com

[Apollo]

Players Win on Max Contracts Issue

The old system will remain, with the hard cap on individual salaries remaining roughly 25 percent of the cap for players with 1-6 years of service, 30 percent for players with 7-9 years, and 35 percent for players with 10 or more years of experience.

Source: Sheridanhoops.com

[Apollo]

League to cancel two more weeks today

Hearing that NBA will cancel two more weeks of games tomorrow. In other words, Christmas is still on...for now

Source: Twitter @FisolaNYDN

[mcHAPPY]

Further to Apollo's post:

According to the Daily News' source, this latest cancellation would total at least 102 games and run through Nov. 28.

The source told the Daily News that the NBA will announce the latest cancellation of games on Tuesday.

At present, the league's annual slate of Christmas Day games remain a possibility, however no new talks between the owners and players union are scheduled.

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/71...cording-report

[slaw]

I understand not wanting to go into the bear pit if you are too far apart cause it's pointless but it is not good that there are no talks planned. Maybe if you had some talks you end up with Kobe and Buss and Ariss and Wade going for a beer at 3:00 in the morning and having a come to Jesus moment. That's how most of these things get settled in the end anyway - the recent NFL lockout for one. Both sides should be in a room trying to do a deal indefinitely.

[mcHAPPY]

I understand not wanting to go into the bear pit if you are too far apart cause it's pointless but it is not good that there are no talks planned. Maybe if you had some talks you end up with Kobe and Buss and Ariss and Wade going for a beer at 3:00 in the morning and having a come to Jesus moment. That's how most of these things get settled in the end anyway - the recent NFL lockout for one. Both sides should be in a room trying to do a deal indefinitely.

I would tend to agree.

Unfortunately, the problem appears to be, as of last Thursday, neither side was willing to budge from their respective most recently negotiated position.

It is a staring contest and each side is waiting for the other to blink.

[heinz57]

They need to get in a room together soon..

and settle this old fashioned kumite style.



ya.... im bored