On 25th Dec. the shortened version of the 2011/12 NBA season will finally tip off. While outlooks were already very grim owners and players finally made a new deal. And the winners are: the owners! They managed to change their share of Basketball-Related Income from 43 percent in the previous labor deal to a 49 percent to 51 percent band in the new deal. This is a significant shift in power which earns the owners about 1 billion dollars. And this sum could increase up to 2 billion dollars if the deal holds the entire 10 years.
While the new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) includes several changes on salary caps, free agency and player contracts, the new balance of power is the central feature of this deal. The owner clearly won the stare down and the players probably thought that they would lose more from a lost season. And that would probably be true. Not so much in primary indicators like salaries or sponsorship contract, but with all the intangible losses that would have come along with a lost season. All (aging) superstars like Lebron James, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett or Tim Duncan would have lost stats, a chance to win a championship and a ton of prestige. One of the central figures in the talks, Derek Fisher (president of the players union National Basketball Players Association (NBPA)), is well beyond his prime and a canceled season could have been the end of his career.
So the players had the feeling that a continued lockout would cost them the most. The owners might be happy now, but I wonder what the longtime effects of the lockout will be. My perception is that the owners have not exactly improved their image and there is certainly a damaged good called NBA right now. Maybe the lockout is forgotten in 2 or 3 years, but in my opinion it will have longer lasting effects. A lot of small market teams could be in trouble soon.
So maybe the owner have won for now, but this win could come back to haunt them...
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