No Lockout!!!

[Headache in a Suitcase]

NEW YORK -- NBA owners and players agreed to a new collective bargaining agreement Tuesday, averting the possibility of a lockout.

The league called a 5 p.m. ET news conference in San Antonio prior to Game 6 of the NBA Finals, with commissioner David Stern and union director Billy Hunter announcing their agreement, ESPN Insider Chad Ford has confirmed.

The deal came on the fourth consecutive day of talks between the sides. The league's old seven-year agreement is due to expire on June 30.


The league and its players' association on Monday night were close to agreeing on a new CBA that would institute a new 19-year-old age minimum, reduce contract lengths and raise the salary cap, according to sources close to both negotiating committee.

The potential agreement would run for six years and would allow the two sides to avoid a July 1 lockout.

The two negotiating committees were to meet again on Tuesday morning in New York, NBA spokesperson Tim Frank said. Union spokesperson Dan Wasserman declined comment on the story.

A source close to the NBA negotiating committee and a source close to the union's negotiation committee claim that all of the major issues between the sides had been agreed to in principle as of Monday night, and the purpose of Tuesday's meeting was to work out some of the finer points of the agreement that weren't addressed during a lengthy, breakthrough negotiation session Friday.

The players now have the opportunity to ratify the new agreement during a summer meeting on June 28. It might take several more weeks for the final agreement to get drafted, possibly delaying the start of the free agent period scheduled to start July 1.

Chad Ford covers the NBA for ESPN Insider and contributed to this report. Information from The Associated Press was also used in this report.

Oh... did some of you think I meant the hockey lockout was over? nope... sorry.

 

[boosterjuice]

So let me get this straight. It takes the NBA a whole 2 seconds to make an agreement and it's been almost a year and the NHL still hasn't come to an agreement yet?

Congrats to the NBA. Whoever is running things obviously has some common sense.

 

[randhail]

So let me get this straight. It takes the NBA a whole 2 seconds to make an agreement and it's been almost a year and the NHL still hasn't come to an agreement yet?

Congrats to the NBA. Whoever is running things obviously has some common sense.

Stern and Hunter saw what happened to the NHL as it faded into bolivian (to quote Mike Tyson) and realized that a lockout was the last thing the NBA could endure. Good for them getting the 19 year-old age limit put in their. Not sure if it will have a huge effect on things but it's a step in the right direction.

 

[Hewson]

It would have been interesting if the NBA and NHL were both embroiled in lockouts come the fall....U2, Ringling Bros and the Ice Capades would have been the only events at most arenas.

 

[trevster2k]

The NBA issues weren't as volatile as the NHL issues. Plus the NBA is more healthy financially than the NHL.

They already have a salary cap and just tweaked it. Tweaked age limit and tweaked contract length. NHL had huge problems the moment they mentioned salary cap to the union. Although, it is ridiculous how the NHL/NHLPA are still negotiating week after week despite reports that the salary cap issue has been settled. They must take really long lunches.

 

[phanan]

I personally wouldn't have cared if this thread had been about the NBA or the NHL...