Yesterday was a critical meeting in labor negotiations. Surprise, surprise…there was no progress. Therefore the rest of the preseason was called off and if there is no deal by Monday, the first two weeks of the regular season are gone. However, there doesn’t rule out a full 82-game slate because the entire years can be delayed by two weeks if need be. Wishful thinking, I know.
The NBA has canceled the remainder of the preseason and will wipe out the first two weeks of the regular season if there is no labor agreement by Monday.
Commissioner David Stern and deputy commissioner Adam Silver made the announcement after owners and players met for about four hours Tuesday but came no closer to an agreement — despite a 50-50 split of basketball-related income being discussed as a way to break the stalemate and save the season.
“We were not able to make the progress that we hoped we could make and we were not able to continue the negotiations,” Stern said.
No further meetings are scheduled. “Today was not the day to get this done. We were not able to get close enough to close the gap,” union president Derek Fisher said Tuesday, speaking ahead of Stern.
Source: ESPN.com.
