In a conference call with the league’s general managers on Monday, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver told the team’s top basketball executives that “time is running out” on the possibility of starting the 2020-21 season before Christmas day and potentially save hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue.
Discussions with the National Basketball Players Association continued through the weekend and into Monday, but the union’s resistance to agree to a December 22 start and a 72-game shortened regular season has left the league fearful that they only have several days left before aOpen training camps around December 1 for a tip before Christmas it is no longer a realistic possibility, sources said.
There is still optimism that a deal can be reached in the lead up to Christmas, but it has dimmed in recent days, sources said.. The executive director of the NBPA, Michele Roberts, and the union leadership have been speaking directly to players about starting the season so quickly after a mid-October finale in the Finals in the Orlando, Florida bubble.
Players want to start in January
Until have now expressed a preference for a mid-January start to the season. The NBA believes there is between $ 500 million and a billion in lost revenue next season and further by not starting the season in December, sources said.
The NBA delayed a deadline until Friday that keeps the option to terminate the collective bargaining agreement open, which would essentially blow up the league’s financial structure that allows for a 50-50 split of basketball-related revenue (BRI) under CBA provisions.
Because the coronavirus pandemic caused a force majeure clause in the collective agreement, both parties have the option to notify 45 days in advance when terminating the agreement, the sources said.
The NBA is looking for ways to increase cash flow to teams, and sources said the league is hopeful to broaden the guidelines on sports betting, heavy alcohol and casinos that could generate eBetween $ 80 million and $ 100 million in revenue, the sources said.
