On Monday, the NBA agreed to an extended television rights deal with ESPN/ABC and TNT. The new agreement, which will come into effect after next season, will generate about $2.66 billion in revenue, more than doubling the value of the last deal.
The increased revenue for the league, along with the skyrocketing values for NBA franchises (the Los Angeles Clippers recently sold for over $2 billion), provoked a strong reaction from Cleveland Cavaliers forward Lebron James.
After the deal was announced, James was quoted as saying, among other things, that a new collective bargaining agreement needs to be worked out “sooner rather than later.” James added that unlike in previous negotiations, claims by team owners that they are losing money “aren’t going to fly with us.”
Oklahoma City superstar Kevin Durant echoed the same sentiment. “That’s a lot of money,” he said Tuesday, “I don’t see how owners can say they losing money now.” Comments like these from the league’s two best and most prominent players are undoubtedly troubling for those hoping to avoid a repeat of the 2011 and 1998 lockouts, which resulted in shortened regular seasons.
Their arguments suggest that players won’t back down when the time comes to negotiate, making this situation one to monitor for NBA fans going forward.
