The National Basketball Players Association and the NBA announced on Wednesday night that they have agreed on terms for a tentative seven-year labor collective bargaining agreement.
While the deal hasn't been fully finalized, the pending ratification by players and owners is expected to get done within the next few days.
Both sides have agreed to extend their mutual deadline to opt out of the existing CBA — which was Thursday at 11:59 p.m. ET, to Jan. 13, 2017 — in order to give them enough time to carefully review all terms and hold the separate votes required to ratify the seven-year deal, which contains an opt-out clause for both parties after the sixth year.
“It's amazing. I'm excited,” union president Chris Paul of the L.A. Clippers told ESPN. “I'm happy for our fans, the owners involved. It's a great thing.”
While both sides have begun to share some of the specific details within their respective groups, there are a few new provisions that have leaked out about the new deal and what it's set to include.
What to expect:
One addition is a “designated veteran” provision that could allow teams to add up to five guaranteed years onto an existing deal, making contract extensions more that much more attractive to retain a player's loyalties.
This can be particularly beneficial for players such as Paul George, DeMarcus Cousins, and Russell Westbrook, all of whom could add five more years to their remaining contract year this July.
A second change is that currently slotted values fixed in the CBA will be increased by as much as 50 percent. This will include the rookie-scale contract system and many salary cap exceptions such as the mid-level, bi-annual, and tax payer exception.
Third, a new “two-way” contract also will be introduced that will allow teams to carry a 16th and 17th roster spot. While teams will still only be allowed to have 13 active players prior to a game, it will allow them to retain rights to two players that will go back and forth from the D-League — thing that most teams already do by default as part of a farm system.
These new deals will pay players one rate for time spent in the D-League and an NBA rate if they are brought to their corresponding NBA team.
The fourth major change is an”over 38″ rule – an increase from the existing “over 36” rule which limits the length of a contract by the time they turn that age, a rule that matters most to players like Paul, LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony, each of whom would look for that last big contract in the next few years.
“A player like a LeBron James, I'm not saying LeBron James, but like LeBron James who's got 10 years of experience in the league with the new rules in place and the creation of what's now gonna be called the “over 38” contract instead of “over 36″ contracts, he can now sign a five-year deal well in excess of $200 million,” said David Aldridge of NBA.com. “First year salary of $36 million, five-year deal for $210 million, give or take a buck… Those players can now get those types of deals.”
The core revenue structure and salary cap system are virtually the same, with players sharing in a “band” of revenue between 49 and 51 percent of all Basketball Related Income. Since there are no major economic changes, it’s unlikely the new deal will include an amnesty clause.
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