The 50-50 split David Stern mentioned during the press conference following Tuesday’s labor meetings was actually an off the record deal. The offer was made by Stern to union attorney Jeffrey Kessler, president Derek Fisher, Kobe Bryant and Kevin Garnett. The offer, a straight 50-50 split of all basketball-related income.
According to multiple sources, the offer was for a guarantee of 49 percent of the BRI with a max of 51 percent. Still, union representatives took the offer back to the group. A short time later, they countered with a proposal for a guarantee of 51 percent of the BRI with a cap at 53 percent. That offer, sources said, was rejected.
Why would David Stern drop that information into the public? Not just for the fans, it’s believed he wanted to get the “role players” attention. The ones who are most likely to be affected early from missing paychecks. Guys making less than $5 million a season.
