Carmelo Anthony says split of BRI just one of the issues in CBA talks – NBA Update
New York Knicks star forward Carmelo Anthony revealed in a recent interview that the split of basketball revenue in the NBA, BRI, is not the only issue under focus in the NBA labour dispute. The league and the players have been
on the table for over more than a year, but failed to come close to an agreement, resulting in the current NBA lockout.
Carmelo was in Puerto Rico where he talked about various issues. The New York Knicks super star was asked by a reporter about playing abroad during the lockout and Carmelo said the standard answer, that he was open to a move. However
of much more interest to the NBA fans were the comments the small forward made with regards to the lockout and the negotiations going on for a new CBA.
Melo believed the players shouldn’t have to take a cut and said there are other issues that need to be resolved first, like identifying the franchises that are actually suffering losses and finding ways of helping them turnaround
the situation.
“If you ask me, I’d say 57 percent of existing players is fair. But honestly, the problem goes beyond profit percentages. You also have to define what are the teams that really are making a loss and if there are plans on the agenda
to improve their situation. There are a number of variables being considered in negotiations, rather than percentages of profits. “
The BRI percentage remains the core issue for the league though, as David Stern and the owners are determined to heavily change the landscape and take a majority share of profits. The players have proposed to cut down their share
from 57 percent to 54 percent but the owners want much more drastic change.
The league has set an agenda to change what constitutes the BRI so as to bring in equal to the Net profit rather than the net revenue and it then wants a bigger slice from that smaller pie. Their proposals would allegedly see the
share of the players in terms of the current BRI go down from 57 to around 40 percent.
The National Basketball Players Association has thus far vehemently opposed such changes while they are also pushing for other “system” changes to be reversed. The players union does not agree to a hard salary cap or the non-guaranteed
contacts.
The NBPA have also urged the franchises to come up with a formula for revenue sharing, something that has helped the NFL become more sustainable in the current economic environment. If large markets keep all their profits for themselves
it is hard to see how smaller teams can compete. However David Stern so far refuses to discuss any meaningful issues.
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