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Amid the revelation that nearly three-quarters of NBA teams are projected to lose money this season, the NBA will submit a revised collective-bargaining proposal to the NBA's Players Association "within the next couple of weeks," NBA Commissioner David Stern said Friday.
Speaking after the NBA's Board of Governors meeting, Stern said the league is projected to lose $300 million this season after losing $340 million last season.
NBA deputy commissioner Adam Silver dropped a staggering figure. "Roughly 22 teams are projected to lose money this season; eight teams to be profitable," he said.
He also said some teams would do better financially if they weren't playing.
"While that is true, (that) some teams in the short term will do better if they are not paying players salaries for that season, our goal still is to not have a work stoppage and to get a deal done for next season," he said.
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The current collective-bargaining agreement expires July 1 and not only are there concerns of a work stoppage, there is a fear the NBA will lose games next season due to a lockout.
With the league stating more than $300 million in losses, Silver said, "The goal remains the same: To create a system in which all 30 teams can compete for a championship and if well managed have the opportunity to make a profit. … We need a new system, and the current system is broken and is unsustainable."
The NBA enjoyed a spectacular season on and off the court, with higher TV ratings, attendance and merchandise sales this season than last season.
According to the NBA:
• ABC, ESPN and TNT had their most-viewed seasons with double-digit increases. ABC was up 38%, ESPN 28% and TNT 42%.
• Web traffic at NBA.com had a 35% increase in page views compared to last season, including a 140% increase in videos viewed.
• Attendance was up 1% compared to last season.
• Merchandise sales were up more than 20% compared to last season.
"It's nice to lose less each year, but it doesn't seem to be a quick path to profitability, and that's where we want to head," Stern said.
Under the current agreement, players receive 57% of basketball-related income and the league gets 43%. The league has said it would like a swing of nearly $800 million going from the players to the league. In that scenario, players would receive nearly 40% of basketball-related income and the league 60%.
The NBA's first proposal for a new CBA was rejected by the players in early 2010. That proposal called for a hard salary cap, a reduction in existing salaries, less guaranteed money and shorter contracts.
The players union submitted a counterproposal in July but the league never responded. The league hopes the revised proposal jumpstarts negotiations and leads to a new collective-bargaining agreement before July 1 or at least without a prolonged lockout.
Even though the league is intent on finding a long-term profitable business model that is different than the current model, which the players think is working fine, Stern expressed optimism.
"A, I'm an internal optimist. And B, I am hoping that the proposal will indicate to the players when (San Antonio Spurs owner) Peter Holt and the committee finish with it, that there's some modicum off flexibility in our approach, and we are trying to engage the union in a dialogue," Stern said. "And you know, we are now going to see whether we can meet after we get this revised proposal out as often as possible."
Stern and Silver declined to say how the revised proposal will different from the original one.
"There are other ways to reach the same goal, and that is a system in which all 30 teams can compete, and, if they are well managed, to make a profit," Silver said. "We have never suggested to the union that there's only one way to accomplish that end. And so, we have gone back to ownership. … We have heard what they (the players union) have said about certain issues. And so, we have gone back and said, are there other ways to approach this same goal?
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