A league source told Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld that September 15 is the last possible date for the league to reach an agreement before games start getting lost.
It leaves a very very short time for the NBA to reach a deal and get itself going again. It probably makes the meeting this week between the high-level negotiators all the more important. Because, if this source is correct, we are two weeks from this lockout getting very, very real.
This is about the point the NFL began making movement toward its labor deal that saved its 2011 season. These deals tend to get done when deadlines are near and when losing games is a reality.
So far in the NBA negotiations there has not been much urgency. The offseason was just beginning when the league officially entered the lockout. There was no risk and no need to hurry. That has changed now as we are a month away from training camps opening and the realistic belief that part of the season will be lost.
Talk has not been positive when it comes to the labor negotiations. There has been little sign that a deal will be made soon or even that progress will be made at the meeting this week. It seems inevitable that training camps will be delayed, preseason games lost and then…
Who knows what the Doom’s Day is for the regular season.
Kyler reports the September 15 deadline is for training camps and preseason games. The preseason represents the first time owners will beging losing (or gaining, depending on your team and perspective) revenue. Kyler reports that losing even one preseason game would hurt the revenue of the entire preseason. It is also the point that season ticket holders could start asking for refunds and the machinery of the lockout really begins to work against the players.
All fans can do is watch, wait and hope.
