About two dozen owners and players were in Manhattan on Friday for a collective bargaining negotiating session. In a meeting that lasted nearly 5 hours and included such superstars as LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Carmelo Anthony, little progress was made. But hope springs eternal as they’re scheduled to come together again on Saturday morning at 10:00 AM EST.
It’s crucial that a contract is agreed upon over the next week or so if the goal is to not miss the start of regular season games. The league would need three to four weeks to draft an agreement, sign free agents, hold training camps and play a few preseason games before starting the season.
Thursday, the owners dropped their insistence on a hard salary cap but the split of future BRI (Basketball related income) doesn’t seem close to being settled. Today’s session was heated, with reports coming out that at one point Dwyane Wade yelled at David Stern
Other players in attendance for today’s session included union President, Derek Fisher,Paul Pierce, Baron Davis, Ray Allen, Eric Gordan, Elton Brand, Ben Gordon and Andre Iguodala.
The owners were represented by nine of their 11 committee members including including Cavs owner Dan Gilbert and Suns owner Robert Sarver. Heat owner Micky Arison attended even though he’s not on the committee.
Curtsy to CBS Sports
Photos via Twitter
