Could labor issues overshadow NBA All-Star week?
NEW YORK — The NFL’s party week was briefly interrupted by a sobering message about the league’s labor situation. Now it could be the NBA’s turn. The league’s collective bargaining agreement also will expire in 2011, and management and the players’ association will meet next weekend during the All-Star events in Dallas as they try to negotiate a new one. Indications are it won’t be easy. CBSSports.com, citing a person familiar with the document, reported that the first proposal the league sent the union last week called for a reduction of the players’ share of the basketball-related income from 57 percent to below 50, as well as reductions in the length and amount of maximum value contracts, and elements of a “hard” salary cap to replace the current system that forces teams exceeding the cap to pay a luxury tax. On Sunday, union vice president Adonal Foyle called the proposal “ludicrous” and said it “has gone too far.” “(The NBA) wants a hard cap, (the agreement) basically will create
