NBA Agreement Reached, but Opposition Remains

The NBA and its Players Assn. announced they had reached agreement on a labor deal Wednesday night and embarked upon the next step--selling it to the union membership.

The union is under an eleventh-hour siege by an opposition group of players and agents, spearheaded by David Falk, the representative for Michael Jordan, Patrick Ewing and Alonzo Mourning.

Jordan, Ewing and 15 other players filed papers with the National Labor Relations Board to block the agreement by decertifying the union. If 98 more players--representing 30% of the membership--back the move by Friday, the NLRB could order a vote by the membership.

However, in conference calls among 20 of the 27 player representatives Wednesday, sentiment reportedly was running in favor of ratification.

The player representatives are scheduled to meet in Chicago to vote Friday, with 21 votes needed to ratify.

The league’s owners will meet the same day in New York, needing only a majority.

The deal would raise the salary cap from the present $16 million to almost $24 million but imposes a luxury tax (potentially growing to 100%) for raises above 10% and closes the other loopholes in the current “slot” system.

The opposition contends this amounts to a “hard” cap, with little concession in return by the owners--since eight teams are already above $24 million and more are locked into raises that will get them there soon.

“I have been told that much of the strategy of the NBA is to prevent someone like Shaquille from maximizing his market potential,” said Leonard Armato, the agent for Shaquille O’Neal.

Less controversially, the sides agreed on a “rookie cap.” Rookies will be limited to three-year contracts and can then become unrestricted free agents. Their salaries would be determined by the salary of the players drafted in that position for the previous seven years, plus 20%.

This would end the runaway inflation in rookie salaries, capped by Glenn Robinson’s $68-million, 10-year deal. Neither the union members nor the agents have opposed this.

Meanwhile, Commissioner David Stern released a statement, lashing out at the opposition personally, accusing it of petty motives.

“A disgruntled lawyer, whose firm was terminated by the players association, filed the NLRB petition,” Stern said, “and Marc Fleisher, the self-proclaimed spokesman for the [agents] group, represents very few NBA players and seems interested only in ousting the union leadership that replaced his father.

“I do not think that the rhetoric of a few people will keep owners and players, who have cooperated in making past agreements work, from considering the current one on its own merits.”

Stern’s “disgruntled lawyer” is Jeffrey Kessler.

Marc Fleisher’s father, Larry, once headed the NBA Players Assn.

The opposition has accused the union of withholding information about labor negotiations from players, then trying to railroad the deal through.

The player-reps were briefed for the first time Wednesday in a series of conference calls. “It was very productive,” union president Buck Williams said. “We assured them we weren’t operating in a vacuum.”

Williams said agents involved in the decertification drive have a “hidden agenda in terms of not being comfortable with the deal itself and with the rookie salary cap.”

Williams and fellow union board member Dikembe Mutombo are also represented by Falk. Williams said he was “very disappointed” in his agent.

“David has represented me for 14 years,” said Williams. “He didn’t call to tell me that he was getting involved in this. I thought it was very poor taste.”