Remember all that optimism emanating out of the NBA and the National Basketball Players Associations? All those signs that pointed to the avoidance of a lockout in 2017? All the certainty that the two sides would hash out a new collective bargaining agreement before one of them opted out once allowed on December 15?
Yeah, all that good stuff is withstanding some hits, per NBA.com’s David Aldridge:
Told NBA, Players' Association met today & progress made in talks. No word if either side thinking about opt out before Thursday deadline.
— David Aldridge (@davidaldridgedc) December 13, 2016
Though this isn’t a reason to jump for joy, this is no time to panic, either. The NBA and the Players Association could always decide just to extend their window to negotiate without either party opting out.
And we have to believe that’s what will happen if a deal isn’t reached. Nothing too negative has come crawling out of the woodwork in recent weeks or months. Everything we have heard has toed the line of overwhelmingly positive.
It’s hard to think all that goodwill has been squandered, and that any disagreements, however extensive, will somehow morph into a full-fledged lockout after this season.
At the same time, this goodwill is clearly being tested. Once deadlines start to pass without the completion of a new CBA, things will get slightly more tense. More attention will be paid to the deal’s absence. Rumors, both real and manufactured, will turn the once harmonious narrative upside down.
Here, then, is to hoping the NBA and its players strike an agreement over the next couple days, or that they have it in themselves to broker a window of extension, killing all overblown skepticism and concern where it stands.
