NBA Commissioner David Stern hints at Season Loss in case of no breakthrough on Tuesday
NBA Commissioner David Stern has warned that the entire NBA season will be in danger if the NBA labour dispute is not resolved by next week. Stern made those comments after George Cohen, head of a federal mediating agency, was agreed upon by both sides as mediator in the dispute.
The NBA and its players have been warring over a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), and the overhaul in the financial system of the league it will entail. The players want to retain major elements of the previous CBA while the owners want drastic changes, mostly at the cost of NBA players.
Stern has made it clear that time is running out in the dispute, and both sides should get serious about finding a solution soon if there is to be basketball this coming season.
"Each side is going to meet with the mediator on Monday, and if there's a breakthrough, it's going to come on Tuesday," Stern said in an interview for NBA TV. "And if not, I think that the season is really going to potentially escape from us, because we aren't making any progress”
The players and owners have met extensively over the past month or so to try and find a compromise, but it doesn’t seem forthcoming. Stern said he was in favour of settling matters through dialogue, but the negotiation process was almost exhausted because the meetings simply were not producing any progress.
“... How many times does it pay to keep meeting, and to have the same things thrown back at you? We're ready to sit down and make a deal. I don't believe that the union is.”
The Commissioner though expressed faith in the mediator, George Cohen, who is a presidential appointee. Cohen is renowned for his work in ending the labour dispute of Major League Soccer and Stern is optimistic he can help settle matters in the NBA as well.
He said he was hopeful that after talking to the mediator, the National Basketball Players Association would come to the next meeting ready to make the sacrifices that he deems necessary for a deal.
“Hopefully by Tuesday, aided by the mediator, they'll be ready to make a deal. Certainly I'll bring my owners ready to make a deal."
The NBA lockout began on July 1st and is into its 4th month now. During the lockout players cannot contact team owners, coaches and other staff, whereas all NBA sanctioned games are also cancelled. The causalities of the lockout so far include the Vegas Summer League, the training camps, the NBA pre-season and 100 NBA regular season games.
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