NBA owners are meeting Tuesday to discuss the league’s revenue sharing program, reports Henry Abbott of ESPN/TrueHoop. Revenue sharing reform is on what league officials have described as a “separate but parallel track” from NBA lockout talks. As such, the players’ union is not directly involved in negotiating a more robust revenue sharing program, but reforms to that system inform and are informed by the ongoing battle over a new collective bargaining agreement between the players and owners.
NBA Lockout: Owners Discuss Revenue Sharing Reform, Says Report
Lockout talks stalled again Thursday, as owners were unwilling to negotiate so-called “system issues” without the union first agreeing to a 50-50 split of revenue. In the previous agreement, players earned 57 percent of the league’s basketball-related income.
Players have pushed for stronger revenue sharing, something also sought by a swath of hardline small market owners who blame the league’s imbalance on big-spending teams in larger markets. Union director Billy Hunter has frequently called into question the owners’ unity, citing differences of opinion on the need and fairness of robust revenue sharing.
A report from the New York Times last week suggested that in the revenue sharing reforms proposed, the L.A. Lakers and New York Knicks would pay in $50 million and $30 million respectively, and small market teams would take up to $15 million in shared revenue annually.
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