According to a report that was issued by ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski on Saturday morning, Michele Roberts plans to seek a new contract as the executive director of the National Basketball Players Association — a position she has held in good standing for nearly four years.
Roberts plans to send a formal letter of her intentions to the union's executive committee in the near future, sources said.
Wojnarowski reports that Roberts had only planned on serving out her original contract, which expires in September. However, the former trial attorney has since reconsidered, deciding to opt for a new contract instead.
Roberts had strongly considered staying in the NBPA's executive director role for only the length of her original contract — and expressed that to the union's senior membership — but has recently decided to pursue a longer tenure, sources said.
Roberts, who grew up in a South Bronx housing project, now has several notes of merit to her credit. She was the first female head of a sports labor union. And in 2014, she was named one of ESPNW's Impact 25.
“I’m not going to say I was proud to be poor – nobody believes that,” Roberts told Sean Gregory of TIME in 2014. “But I’m proud that my background guided my life.”
A lot of people, including loads of NBA players, relate to Roberts and her inspiring story — and for good reason. This is a woman who has worked her way up from humble beginnings.
“She could identify with us,” Roger Mason Jr. said of Roberts after her hiring in 2014.
Roberts and NBPA president Chris Paul have developed a solid working relationship throughout her tenure. In fact, Paul had a hand in Roberts' hiring in 2014.
As her contract is currently constructed, Roberts earns an annual salary of $1.2 million, which includes several potential bonuses.
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