By Jay Scott Smith / theGrio
After a week of secret meetings, and more of 15 hours of negotiations on Friday into Saturday, the NBA owners and players finally reached a deal on a new collective bargaining agreement the sides announced. The deal ends the 149-day lockout and sets up a 66-game season starting on Christmas Day.
“We’ve reached a tentative understanding,” said NBA commissioner David Stern. “(The deal) is subject to a variety of approvals and very complex machinations. We’re optimistic that will all come to pass and the NBA season will begin Dec. 25
The settlement came seemingly out of nowhere, with the announcement of the deal coming at 3:37 a.m. on Saturday morning. The two sides had been negotiating since last Tuesday in New York.
“It was a rollercoaster ride,” Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry said. “I followed every negotiating session and got my hopes up many times.”
The settlement does not mean that the lockout is officially over, as a final version still needs to be ratified by the owners and Player’s Association.
There are still numerous smaller issues that need to be worked out, including the minimum draft age and drug testing, but those things that are not serious enough to block the deal. There is also the matter of the players’ union being formed, since they dissolved to begin to file federal antitrust lawsuits against the league.
An abbreviated training camp and a free agency period is set to begin on Dec. 9. This could set off a feeding frenzy that would be even wilder than the NFL’s quick post-lockout turnaround in August.
“We thought it was in both of our interest to try to reach a resolution and save the game and to be able to provide the mind of superb entertainment the NBA historically has provided,” Player’s Association Director Billy Hunter said.
The season itself will begin with a Christmas Day triple-header — Celtics vs. Knicks at Madison Square Garden; an NBA Finals rematch between the Heat and NBA Champion Mavericks in Dallas; and the Bulls face the Lakers in the late game
