NBA lockout talks were scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. ET on Saturday. Instead, negotiations didn’t start until 5 p.m., thanks to the owners’ pre-session meeting -- where bargaining issues and revenue sharing were discussed -- running long. While no reports have surfaced as to the tone of the owners’ meeting, the fact that it had been unscheduled until Friday and ran six hours might indicate there is some bargaining going on with the league’s caucus.
NBA Lockout Talks Start Late, Feature Hardliners Michael Jordan, Paul Allen
Three owners joined the evening talks with the league's labor committee, according to reports: the Miami Heat's Micky Arison, the Charlotte Bobcats' Michael Jordan and the Portland Trail Blazers' Paul Allen. All three have been in the news recently. Allen famously delivered a death stare that broke off talks on Oct. 20, the last time federal mediator George Cohen was in the room. (He's back on Saturday.) Arison was fined $500,000 by commissioner David Stern this week after a series of tweets indicating the owner's willingness to sign a deal and start the season. Finally, on Friday it was reported that Jordan is leading a cabal of 10-14 hardliners who don't like the 50-50 revenue split on the table.
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