When Power Corrupts: The NBPA

I was always taught to never bite the hand that feeds you and it's a life lesson that's ingrained into my being.  When leagues are battling against unions in sports, the league usually wins but if the union isn't strong then the league can impose its will with much more force and that's what the NBA's Players union experienced during the summer of 2011.  During the last NBA lockout, The Hardwood Nation broke away from the media glossed lockout coverage and delivered the following truths to fans of the NBA all around the world:

1. The NBA Lockout was owner imposed
2. NBA Players never asked for more money
3. The owners wanted to crush the will of the NBA's Superstars
4. Union Director Billy Hunter and President Derek Fisher were at odds 

The tension between Union Director Billy Hunter and Union President Derek Fisher could be seen for miles.  Once strong allies, the pressure of delivering the best deal to their players grew on both but it was Fisher who caved first.  After months of tense negotiating sessions, it was Derek Fisher, who according to reports, was ready to deliver an owner friendly side deal to end the lockout and make himself out as the hero while Hunter fought for the principle in the matter and wanted to hold the owners to the agreement that they fought so hard to secure in 1998.  Mainstream media (ESPN) delivered to its fans NBA friendly lockout coverage due to the two entities being business partners.  During 2007 the NBA signed a contract with both ESPN and TNT that would pay the league $930 million a year through the 2015/16 season.  At the time of the signing, NBA Commissioner stated the following:

"I consider this to be a wonderful vote of confidence by our very sophisticated network partners who are making such a substantial and long-term commitment," NBA commissioner David Stern said.

The truth was never going to properly be told, there was too much money involved to keep it under wraps.  The NBA owners wanted the infighting in the union to continue because they knew that they could easily defeat a fracture union and it continues.  

After denying reports of tension, Union President Derek Fisher finally displayed his true colors by accusing Union Director of wrong doing and hired an independent firm to investigate Hunter.  Fisher also went as far as to threaten legal action against anyone in the media who spoke out against him i.e. Jason Whitlock of Foxsports.com.  So wait, you accuse someone of wrong doing but when your motives are called out you threaten legal action.......ok?

It was April 15th when Fisher hired the services of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison to investigate the Union's business practices in hope that he would find illegal wrong doing on the part of Hunter so that he could be ousted.  Nine long months later Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, released their finding to the world.  

Our first objective was to identify potential criminal wrongdoing.  After an 
exhaustive review of tens of thousands of pages of  documents, including years of Union 
financial records and emails, and after evaluating statements made by more than three dozen 
witnesses, we conclude that the evidence does not show that Mr. Hunter embezzled or stole 
money from the NBPA.  

But our inquiry was not confined to criminal misconduct.  We have 
concluded that, at times, Mr. Hunter took actions that were inconsistent with his fiduciary 
obligations to the NBPA, displayed poor judgment, paid little attention to the appearance of  
impropriety that his conduct could foreseeably create and did not properly manage conflicts of 
interest.  We cannot say that he alone was responsible in all instances for these missteps, for we 
believe that the NBPA lacked important systemic controls involving basic principles of corporate 
governance, including the management of self-dealing transactions, and that other Union 
representatives did not always satisfy their own responsibilities.  Yet as the chief executive 
officer of the Union, Mr. Hunter stands responsible for ensuring that such controls be put in 
place.  In this important task he failed.



Never told the Union’s Executive Committee or Player Representatives 
that his current employment contract, which was executed in 2010, was 

not properly approved under the Union’s By-Laws, even though by at least 

November 2011 outside counsel to the Union had told Mr. Hunter that the 

necessary approval had not occurred and remained necessary; 

Obtained the Union’s agreement to pay him $1.3 million for accrued but 

allegedly unused vacation time (146 days) without adequate independent 

review of underlying records and without securing independent advice for 

the Union on its obligation to make the payment; 

Involved family and friends in Union business as employees or vendors 

without full disclosure and the disinterested approval of the Union’s 

officers and directors; and 

Created an atmosphere at the NBPA that discouraged  challenges to his 

authority, including by allowing the Union’s former General Counsel, 

Gary Hall, to stop former Secretary-Treasurer Pat Garrity from speaking 

freely about conflicts of interest to the Executive Committee.

Considered what would have been a risky investment  of millions of 

dollars in ISN Bank, a failing financial institution, without disclosure to 

the Executive Committee that his son Todd was then  a director of the 

bank, and spent more than $80,000 in due diligence  expenses before 

abandoning the transaction; 

Approved a payment by the Union of approximately $28,000 to cover 

personal legal fees incurred by Charles Smith, the  former Executive 

Director of the National Basketball Retired Players Association 

(“NBRPA”); 

Made questionable choices when charging travel expenses to the Union, 

which at a minimum create the appearance that he has taken undue 

advantage of the discretion he possesses to travel  to destinations of his 

choosing; 

Pursued speculative and, for the Union, atypical business ventures as 

potential investments; 

Spent Union funds on luxury gifts for Executive Committee members, 

including nearly $22,000 for a watch he gave to Derek Fisher in 

June 2010; 

Failed to observe principles of proper governance at the Union, including 

by neglecting to ensure that the NBPA’s By-Laws were followed and 

appropriate systems were put in place to safeguard against possible misuse 

of Union funds, conflicts and similar risks; and 

Ran the NBPA Foundation (the “Foundation”), a separate entity through 
which the Union supports various charitable organizations, without regard 

for its by-laws or governance standards applicable to non-profit entities. 

It took 9 long months and $4 million spent by the NBPA for the conclusion that Billy Hunter didn't commit anything criminal, hired his son's law firm to receive  the "family discount" on the Union's end and used $22,000 to buy former partner and one time friend Derek Fisher a luxury watch.  This seems to be much to do about nothing and it's ridiculous in its core.  Make no mistake about this was an unnecessary power struggle, one that didn't have to happen.  

If anyone has done anything shady here it's Derek Fisher.  Does one remember when Fisher played for the Dallas Mavericks for a grand total of 9 games earlier this season before abruptly walking away?  Any player on the Players Union must be an active player in the league for any given season....translation....Fisher used the Mavericks to maintain his position of power on the NBPA Executive Committee for another season to finish his unwarranted his on Billy Hunter.

Maurice Evans, 34, was the Executive Vice President of the NBPA and third on the totem pole behind Hunter and Fisher.  He was perhaps Hunter's greatest supporter on the executive committee and he recently spoke with Jason Whitlock about the apparent power struggle and the desire of Derek Fisher to see Hunter relieved.  Evans also touched on why he thinks he's not currently employed in the league after 9 years of being a reliable role player.  

“I give (Derek) a round of applause for being able to pull off this stunt and pull the wool over everyone’s eyes,” Evans said. “If he wants the union that bad — let him and Ron Klempner and Jamie Wior — they can have it....Without a doubt, I know me not being in the league has something to do with my support of Billy Hunter.....I’m fully comfortable not playing in the NBA ever again....They excommunicated your boy,” Evans said. “They took my tickets, took my little status as executive vice president.”

Evans didn't hold back the punches and even went for the jugular of Derek Fisher and how he used the Mavericks as I mentioned earlier.  

“They were able to circumvent (the system) by putting him on a team for a day and a half so he could be reinstated as president,” Evans claimed. “I don’t know who (are) the powers that be to put that in place, but D. Fish was only on the Mavericks this year so they could pull this stunt off, so they could get Billy Hunter out of office.”

Once the NBA Lockout of 2011 had ended, The NBPA executive committee voted 8-0 to have Derek Fisher removed from his position of power as many worried about his relationship with David Stern.  If Fisher was voted out, how was he able to maintain his position, shouldn't that be investigated as well?

“Of course (the players) have questions about Derek,” Evans said. “But Derek has done a great job of being on the offensive and only pointing the finger at Mr. Hunter. (Derek) has been busy throwing darts and throwing dirt at (Hunter) that nobody has ever taken the time to stop and ask what is Derek’s motive. What really went on in Dallas that he left to go and say now all of sudden he has family issues, he misses his family?  Now all of sudden what really happened? We voted him out 8-0 as president and yet he still stayed on, didn’t blink twice and came back with Paul-Weiss, and now they’re running the union.”

The members of the NBPA will meet Saturday afternoon and determine the fate of Hunter without Hunter being there to defend himself.  Last week Hunter wasn't allowed to enter his office in New York and was escorted away.  This is a mess and there's wrong doing on both sides.  Derek Fisher should not be allowed to have the final say in the fate of Hunter and Fisher himself should be held accountable to attempting to throw the NBPA under the bus during the Lockout of 2011 and also for this witch hunt. Using treacherous tactics and wasting $4 million of the NBPA's money to find no illegal wrong doing is absurd and a complete misuse of time and resources.  If Hunter is indeed removed later today, Fisher must be removed as well and the entire NBPA must be reformed as a more stable and united core because if not the owners will run rough shot over the NBPA again and the results could prove disastrous for the game that we love.  

Presentation to NBPA Mid Winter Meeting 2013

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Billy Hunter addresses the tentative NBA agreement via email to players

From: "G. William Hunter"
To: undisclosed-recipients:;
Subject: SETTLEMENT

TO: NBPA BOARD OF DIRECTORS

FROM: G. WILLIAM HUNTER

RE: SETTLEMENT

As you have no doubt heard, early this morning, we reached a tentative agreement to settle the Anthony lawsuit. My best wishes and congratulations to all the players and everyone involved in this action.

The settlement will be conditioned on reforming a union and executing a CBA by December 9. Training camps are tentatively scheduled to open and free agent signings are tentatively scheduled to begin on December 9, with the season opening on Christmas day.

We will be sending out formal correspondence in the coming days describing the terms of the agreement and the upcoming processes, but for now, you should have a quick understanding of why we reached this agreement. I have prepared a quick list that sets forth all the changes that the owners agreed to as part of the settlement since a week ago Monday, the day the player reps voted to disclaim the NBPA's status as the players' collective bargaining representative.

We will follow later with an overview of the general gains players achieved in this settlement.

The parties settled the litigation because the owners either gave in or sufficiently compromised on all of the open issues:

1. BRI Split - Players receive a 49-51 band of BRI, with the expectation that players will receive 51% of BRI by year 6. The split is set on a base case of 50%, with the players receiving 60.5% of every incremental dollar beyond the targeted amount, which is based on the mid-point of the agreed upon projections, or a symmetrical reduction in our share if revenues fall short of the targeted amount. The players' share this first season (2011-12) will be 51.2% of BRI.

2. System

a. Mid-Level Exception for Non-Taxpayers: The Mid-Level Exception's contract length is 4 years, every year.

b. Player Options: Player options are allowed for all players, as per the prior CBA. Owners dropped their demand to eliminate player options for high-paid players.

c. Escrow: 10% max withholding, 1% New Benefits Pool, system adjustments as necessary to avoid forecasted overage. Owners dropped their demand for unlimited escrow, carry over, true up, or banking.

d. Qualifying Offers: Beginning in 2012-13, players defined as "starters" - 41 games started or 2000 minutes, average over prior 2 seasons - will receive substantially higher qualifying offers. A first-round pick will receive the greater of his existing qualifying offer or the qualifying offer amount made to the 9th pick of the draft ($4.67 million for the 2010-11 draft class). A second-round pick or undrafted player will receive the qualifying offer amount made to the 21st pick. A first-round pick drafted 1-14 who is not a "starter" receives the amount offered to the 15th pick.

e. Max Salary: A player finishing his rookie scale contract will be eligible to receive a maximum salary equal to 30% of the Cap (up from 25%) if he signs with his prior team and is either: 1st, 2nd or 3rd team All-NBA 2 times; an All-Star starter 2 times; or 1-time MVP.

f. Minimum Salary: The owners dropped their demand to reduce the minimum salary scale by 12%. The current amounts will not be reduced.

g. Rookie Scale: The owners dropped their demand to cut the rookie wage scale. The current amounts will not be reduced.

h. Extend-and-Trade: The owners dropped their demand to eliminate extend-and-trades. As with sign-and-trades, players moving pursuant to an extend-and-trade may not receive Bird annual increases or one year longer maximum contract length.

i. Annual Increases: Annual increases will be set at 7.5% for Bird players and 4.5% for non-Bird players.

j. Taxpayers' Use of Mid-Level Exception & Sign-and-Trade: The owners agreed to a $4 million "apron" above the tax threshold. Teams may go above the tax threshold by $4 million to use the entire $5 million mid-level exception, or acquire a player via sign-and-trade. Teams above the $4 million apron may use a $3 million/3-year mid-level exception every year.

k. Cliff: No change to prior proposal to reduce the cliff by 50%.

The above points will be incorporated into a litigation settlement agreement early this week. The NBPA will then re-form as a union, and negotiations may take place on various other CBA issues. The players will then vote to ratify a new CBA.

I will update you on further logistics over the next few days. Thank you everyone for your support and best regards.

G.W.H. 

 

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The Closer has returned

The Closer has returned and he is angry, check out his latest piece about the current state of the NBA Lockout of 2011.

Out of Hibernation: The Closer returns!

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A Nuclear Winter: The NBA Lockout of 2011

      "We are about to go into the nuclear winter of the NBA."   David Stern

After the news surfaced yesterday afternoon that the players had rejected the latest proposal from the NBA and was headed towards a dissolution of the Players Union, NBA Commissioner David Stern took to the airwaves with an 11 minute interview on ESPN, the worldwide leader in sports.  Quite frankly, Stern can take to the air whenever he desires based on the fact that ESPN, Turner Sports, and ABC Sports are all partners of the NBA, not the players, but the NBA entity.  During the "winter" months, a significant chunk of their programming is dedicated to the coverage of the NBA, use NBATV as an example which is owned by Turner Sports, the majority of their NBA coverage now is based on the greatest playoff games which can't feature any current player in the NBA due to the lockout, can you say plan b.  Knowing that the media outlets mentioned above are partners, wouldn't one come to the conclusion that since Stern
is the head of the snake, then they are all promoting his message and not the message of the soon to be defunct Players Union?  

David Stern

The NBA ran a massive media public relations fest in the days leading up to yesterday, spreading the owners side of the story and forcing the will of David Stern onto mindless viewers.  Headlines showered the Internet in bold lettering stating that the players had rejected the latest proposal but I implore you to take a moment and think of this.  During negotiations there's the two entities and they are supported by their lawyers, a proposal is created and brought to the table by both sides, both sides can accept or reject said proposal, both sides can modify said proposal until an agreement between both sides is reached.  I question why it is that the media always broadcasts when the players have rejected a deal but never when the owners have rejected a deal.....take a second and let that soak in.  Have you ever once heard about the owners rejecting a NBPA proposal?  A fair and balanced message is not being sent out and it's swaying the public opinion in a negative manner thus the truth is out there, you just have to actually do a little work to find it.  Foxsports columnist Jason Whitlock has spoken the truth about this current lockout since its inception and not just the players point of view, he has covered all angles.  Myself and The Closer have shed light on some of the injustices of the lockout and The Real NBA has seen record growth over the off-season due to our complete coverage of the lockout......the truth is out there.

What does a "Disclaimer of Interest" mean for the future of league?

Fisher and Hunter

By filing a disclaimer of interest, the Players Union is dissolved and it allows the players of the NBA to file an antitrust lawsuit against the league with the federal court and the players have stated that they will file the suit within the next 48 hours.  Billy Hunter and Derek Fisher addressed the players last night with a letter explaining the legalities of the current process.  The court proceedings could be lengthy and that has brought many to the conclusion that the entire season will be lost but even with that said there's still a small window of opportunity for the two sides to come together, make a deal and allow us, the fans to at least enjoy a 50 game season.  There is a faction of players who are willing to take the route of decertification which would give Billy Hunter and David Stern 45 days to continue to negotiating a deal until the future of the union comes to a vote.  Instead of one antitrust lawsuit, decertifying the union would allow for all 450 players to bring lawsuits against the league individually which would put an incredible amount of pressure on the owners and David Stern.  

At this point in time no one knows what the future holds for the NBA so I am not going to pretend as I do.  I will only say that I believe in what's right and if the players had gone on strike for more money I would have been on the side of the owners without hesitating but what we have here is highway robbery plain and simple.  I stand by the players 100% and if the season has to be canceled in order for this injustice to be fixed then so be it.  All the players have asked is to just play under a system that's fair, not a system that only has the interest of the owners in mind.  The league was built off of the productivity of the players past and present, Wilt-Russell, Magic-Larry, MJ against the greats of the 90's and today the game is driven by future Hall of Famers like Kobe, Wade, James, Howard, and Paul.  They are fighting the good fight and not just for themselves but for players past and present.  They won't cripple the future for the current rookies and players to come nor will they spit on the players of the past who'd sacrificed and battled the NBA in past labor negotiations.  The current NBA players are the caretakers of the game and are shouldered with the responsibility of protecting their contemporaries past, present, and future.  This too shall pass for the NBA and its players shall have life once again.

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Billy Hunter addresses players

Hunter's letter to the NBA Players

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NBA Players reject deal

ESPN NBA NBA players reject owners' offer

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Billy Hunter addresses NBA Players

TO: ALL PLAYERS

FROM: G. WILLIAM HUNTER

DATE: November 01, 2011

RE: COLLECTIVE BARGAINING UPDATE (NOVEMBER 1, 2011)

As you have undoubtedly heard, negotiations with the owners aimed at ending their 4-month lockout collapsed on Friday, October 28. After three days of productive talks, which followed a week of negotiations aided by the Federal Mediation & Conciliation Service, the owners held firm to their ultimatum that we take a 50/50 split in BRI. It was at this moment that the Negotiating Committee and I decided that it no longer made sense for the union to continue the negotiations, and I led our group out of the room. Derek sent out a thoughtful letter last night summarizing his thoughts, and I want to follow up to reinforce his message of solidarity and reflect on where we may go from here.

Let me begin with some positive news. During the marathon session last Wednesday and the two days that followed on Thursday and Friday, we made great progress in working through many of the system issues that must be resolved before a deal can be reached. While the soft cap/luxury tax system we are negotiating is far from perfect and contains positives and negatives for both sides, I believe that if the last few system issues are resolved in our favor, it will be one that we can recommend to you. Without question, we have given more than the owners, but at bottom, we are determined to defend the principles we have fought for throughout -- guaranteed contracts, healthy minimums, fair maximums, a strong middle class, and a true market for free agency.

Unfortunately,

there is still work to do before we can declare these victories, and several important system issues must be resolved. So far, we have agreed to raise the team salary floor and implement a more punitive tax system that will diminish the gap between high and low spending teams. However, we still must fight to keep all teams in the market for player services, and as a result many key issues remain, including limiting additional penalties for repeat taxpayers, insuring that the luxury tax is not overly oppressive, and the continued availability of the midlevel exception and sign and trade transactions for taxpaying teams. While these issues may sit outside the spotlight, they have a major effect on player working conditions and the ability to create a robust and fair market for player services. Further, we must have additional discussions on revenue sharing. Based on the limited review we were finally granted last Friday, the revenue sharing system proposed by the NBA addresses the profitability issues of small market teams. However, it reduces the incentive for small market teams to grow revenues and improve.

Our meeting on Friday, however, did not collapse because of system issues. Our Negotiating Committee reached the unanimous conclusion that the NBA's 50% ultimatum, combined with the league's hard line position on the remaining system issues, was unacceptable for the players.

As you know, NBA players have received 57% of BRI for many years. In an effort to make a deal and save the season, in past meetings we have offered to reduce our share to as low as 52.5% with certain system issues in our favor. On Friday, considering the many system points we had already conceded, I hoped and expected the owners would move towards our proposed BRI number. Instead, Commissioner Stern insisted that the NBA would move no further than 50%, and I ended the meeting.

In my view, a 50/50 split of BRI does not adequately compensate the players for our services to the NBA. Remember that BRI does not reflect the total revenues generated by the NBA. The NBA is allowed to take hundreds of millions in "expense credits" before sharing any revenue with the players ($543m in 2010-11). Given this, under the NBA's proposal, the players would receive only 44% of total revenue generated by the league. By comparison, we received 50% of total revenue under the previous CBA, and our 53/47 proposal would reduce the player share to 46.4% of total revenues. In addition, compared to our former 57/43 split, the owner's proposed 50/50 shifts more than $300 million per year to the owners, which equates to more than $3 billion over a 10-year deal. A move of this magnitude guarantees operating profits for all owners irrespective of quality of management and does not allow players to adequately share in the growth of the league.

It is important that you know that our Negotiating Committee has made every possible effort to resolve this conflict. We have proposed a diverse array of ideas and concepts to address the NBA's concerns about competitive balance and salary disparities. Regarding the BRI split, we have made significant compromises in an effort to bridge the financial gap that separates us. In fact, our offer of 53% amounts to an average of $185 million per year in financial givebacks, which, even under the most pessimistic interpretation of the league's financial statements, covers the league's entire purported operating loss.

The NBA, however, seems resigned to testing the resolve of our players through intimidation and hard bargaining tactics. They have given us "take it or leave it" ultimatums, threatened to end the season prematurely, reached out to players in an attempt to divide us, misled the press, and pre-conditioned further talks on our acceptance of significant concessions. This is an unacceptable form of negotiation, especially where the respective fates of the players and the owners are inextricably related. Moreover, it does nothing but damage the relationship between the league and union.

Furthermore, in recent weeks you have no doubt seen, heard or read Commissioner Stern in the media as he embarked on a media blitz intended to scare players and inflame the public. Do not buy into this. This public saber rattling is common in high profile and high stakes negotiations, and we anticipate that it will continue and intensify as the lockout continues. We will not be intimidated by public threats, ultimatums and manufactured drop dead dates. We will stand firm in our resolve to negotiate a fair deal for our current membership and those who will join our ranks in the future.

Your role is an important one. The owners need to know that we will stand strong until they are ready to finish negotiating a fair deal -- not one reached with preconditions, and not one forced down our throat with the threat of missed paychecks. We have prepared for this moment for over two years and now we are here. We are proud of the actions of our Committee and take great comfort in knowing that we have your support.

One final note before I conclude. Contrary to what is being said in the media, Derek, myself and the Negotiating Committee are of one accord. Derek is a fearless defender of player rights both at the bargaining table and behind the scenes, and he carries out his duties as President with the same degree of courage, focus and tenacity that he has exhibited on the court as a five-time champion. We are all well served to have Derek in a leadership capacity during these negotiations.

We will communicate more details on short-term and long-term logistical plans in dealing with this lockout and updates on the negotiations. Thank you again, and please feel free to contact me or the staff with any questions or concerns.

G. WILLIAM HUNTER
G.W.H.

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Derek Fisher's Letter to NBA Players in response to Jason Whitlock's Claim

All,

Interesting times right now. The clock is ticking and we are aware that games are being lost, our jobs are on the line as are those of all the arena workers and business owners impacted by the lockout.

We have been prepared for this and need to make sure we are getting the best deal possible. As this sets the precedent for the next 6, 7, 10 even 20 years. My goal, the Executive Committee's ONLY goal is to present you with the most fair deal possible. A deal that is both fair on system and BRI. One isn't more important than the other. They are both extremely impactful to our business, our sport and our day to day life in the league.

Our Executive Committee, NBPA staff and I are navigating the negotiations very carefully. We need to continue to work hard on your behalf and get the season going if possible. I've been speaking with many of you and we are working with your opinions, suggestions, and requests front and center. This is your union, and we work with and for you.

Many of you have asked about the timing of the cancellation of games. We know as players and interacting
with our fans and the people that work in these arenas on a daily basis this is having an impact. If nothing more, the league and owners should understand people's livelihoods are at stake. They should be able to take the over 1 Billion dollars we've offered them and open the doors of their arenas and let us, along with the ushers, parking attendants, everyone impacted to get back to work.

Usually I wouldn't even dignify absurd media reports with a comment. But before these reports go any further, let me say on the record to each of you, my loyalty has and always will be with the players. Anyone that questions that or doubts that does not know me, my history, and what I stand for. And quite frankly, how dare anyone call that into question. The Players Association is united and any reports to the contrary are false. There have been no side agreements, no side negotiations or anything close. We are united in serving you and presenting the best options and getting everyone back to work.

The attempt by "sources" to divide us will be unsuccessful. We will continue to work every day to do right by you, the businesses that depend on our league and our fans.

The NBA and the owners have not allowed us to go back to work. So they have essentially turned their backs on not only the players, but the fans that have made them billions. I hope they decide to change that. It's the only way everyone wins. I urge each of you to stay involved. Call me and your fellow players on the Executive Committee and the NBPA staff with anything you need or questions you may have.

I will be in touch later this week with updates on the details of the negotiations. Stand United.

With much respect,
Derek

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Divide and Conquer: NBA Lockout 2011

Divide and Conquer also known as divide and rule refers to a strategy that breaks up existing power structures and prevents smaller groups from linking up.

David Stern 

Lets not shroud this in something that it is not, this is about winning, always was but winning is in part perception.  Take a look at NBA Commissioner Stern's press conference last evening after talks between the owners and the player union broke down again.  During said press conference, Stern took the misinformed on a magical tour through his world of spin where the owners supposedly "moved" yesterday from 47% to allowing the players to have 50% of Basketball Related Income "BRI".  That may have been news to the misinformed casual fan who wants the players to take a deal at all costs due to that type of fan being thirty for NBA basketball, but the reality is that everyone in the know has known that a 50/50 split has been what the owners have wanted all along.  There was no new revelations last evening from Stern other than the cancellation of NBA games through November 30th, but even with that news, it was expected to be announced once the week began anyway, so again many of you got spun yesterday
by Stern to put the players and their leadership at fault here.  The major players in the lockout are Commissioner David Stern and deputy commissioner Adam Silver who represents the owners versus Executive Director of the NBPA Billy Hunter and President of the NBPA Derek Fisher represents the players.   At its core it seems to be a fair fight, power matching power, equal sides but what if the sides aren't equal, what if the odds are in the favor of the NBA, what if in all reality the ratio is 3 against 1 with Hunter being the odd man out.

Michael Curry 

Last evening Jason Whitlock of Foxsports.com suggested that there may be a rift in the ranks of the NBPA.  In his piece Is Fisher in Stern's back pocket?  Whitlock detailed the sudden rise of power within the NBA Michael Curry, the previous NBPA president.  During his NBA career which started in the 93/94 season, Curry played for six franchises before retiring after the 2004/05 season.  Playing 11 years in the NBA is an accomplishment due to the fact that the average career spans about 4 seasons but Curry was known as a great defensive presence and a leader which is evident by Curry scoring only 2,986 points in his career.  To put that point total in perspective, during the 05/06 NBA season, Kobe Bryant scored 2832 for an average of 35.4 point per game while playing in 80 of 82 games.  Curry's career point total could be matched in a season by a player averaging 36.4 points per game as it has been surpassed in the past.

Curry's ascension throughout the NBA after serving as the NBPA was well chronicled by Whitlock.  June 21st of 2005, the NBPA agreed to the deal that just expired and a week later Curry stepped down as President.  A short time later, commissioner Stern named Curry the Vice President of Player Development for the NBDL.  As his ascension continued Curry would be named the NBA Vice President of Basketball Operations, and a year later assistant coach of the Detroit Piston and a year after that Head Coach of the Pistons despite little experience.  Curry is now the Associate Head Coach of the 76ers and perhaps positioned again to become a head coach.

This is relevant because Curry's ascension can be linked to an apparent link between Curry and David Stern.  If it's indeed true that Curry and Stern were linked when at a time they were supposed to be adversaries, could Derek Fisher be headed down the same road?  Is Derek Fisher selling out the players union for his own personal gain?  When negotiations broke last week, it was stated by Stern that there would be no more negotiations until the NBPA agreed to the 50/50 split of BRI but suddenly we had three days of meetings this past week.  According to Whitlock, there was a confrontation Friday morning between  Fisher, Billy Hunter, and another member of the executive committee based on the fact that Fisher has been "co-opted" by David Stern to deliver a deal of 50/50 to the owners.  Simply put there are major concerns about the relationship between David Stern and Derek Fisher with Billy Hunter being caught in the middle.

If Derek Fsher is truly working with Stern to deliver a 50/50 split behind the backs of the NBPA's executive committee then he has to be ousted a union President based on the fact that he is undercutting the union that pays him $2.6 million a year to be their president.  The NBPA's stance at this time is not to go below 52.5%  of BRI having already come down from 57%.  Each percentage point is worth $40 million and the owners are pushing for a ten year deal while the union would like to have a six year deal.  With that said the players have already agreed to give up $180 million per year for the duration of the potential deal, whether it be six or ten years, which equates to a substantial cut in pay because keep in mind that 90% of the players are making on average $5 million per year.  Fisher, a role player himself is throwing all of the other role players under the bus with his secret deal with Stern, again he needs to be ousted if the claims are true.

Derek Fisher & Billy Hunter

As David Stern spun the misinformed yesterday, he mentioned that upon hearing that the league's stance at a 50/50 split that Hunter ended the negotiations.  If Stern was counting on his improper relationship with Fisher to be his trump card, Hunter proved him wrong ending negotiations abruptly.  After yesterday's negotiations ended, no new negotiations are scheduled to take place, but we've heard this story before.  The owners want a BRI split of 50/50 and the NBPA wants a split of 52.5/47.5; this is where we are and before negotiations can start again Derek Fisher and Billy Hunter must bring their ideologies together and not just stand together at pressers.  The time is now to get this deal done but it has to be the right deal for both parties, no selling out, no me first mentality, this deal has to be done on good faith and not on undisclosed preconditions.  The players union must stay strong, must stay united because a union divided will usher in being conquered by David Stern and his minions.

Update:  Fisher responds to Whitlock's Claim

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Fisher's letter to the NBA Players in response to the Agent's letter

Guys,

I write to you from New York where we have had the most recent negotiating sessions, the latest one today. I wanted to keep everyone in the loop on the events of the past few days and since my last update.

Before I update you though, I must comment on a letter that has been brought to my attention and drafted by a handful of agents representing you. The letter which I personally read this morning is to their players and had planned to release this afternoon/evening. Your agents represent you, there's a loyalty there and I can appreciate that. I'll never question it, the work they do for you, or the decisions you and they make together. The letter however includes misinformation and unsupported theories.

As you would imagine, the agents are not aware of my seeing this ahead of its release. As a player myself, I know that each player should read everything we can. My emails, media reports, letters from their representation, to form an opinion on the situation. Educate yourself, ask questions, do it all. But not all of what you read is fact, you know this, I know this.

One issue I need to again be very clear on...nothing can be accepted without a vote by the players. If and when there is a proposal that we feel is in the best interests of us as players, each of you WILL have the opportunity to vote in person. It's in the union bylaws, it's not up for negotiation. You will have the

opportunity to see the full proposal before you agree, you will be able to challenge it, question it, anything you feel appropriate in order to know that this is the best deal for you and your fellow players.

As far as the negotiations, quite a few guys came out for the meeting on Friday. We met as a group first where we updated the players on the league and owner's position which I have briefed you on previously. Everyone in the room was in agreement, we have been more than fair in our proposals.

We then continued into the meeting with David Stern, Adam Silver and the Labor Negotiations Committee including: Jeanie Buss, Peter Holt, Clay Bennett, Jim Dolan, Larry Miller, Robert Sarver, Bob Vanderweide, Glen Taylor and Mickey Arison.

It was there that we discussed details of proposals and continued to reiterate our position on several key economic and system issues. At the conclusion of the day's meetings, yet again, it was agreed by the players present, we will continue to negotiate in good faith but what we have offered thus far is fair and reasonable.

Talks continued Saturday and again today in smaller groups.

Tomorrow, as you may have read, will be another larger negotiating session. Everyone in the regional meetings, Friday's player meeting, and throughout this process has been in support of the position the NBPA has taken. We go into tomorrow's meeting strong, remaining steadfast on the issues we will not be able to move away from. Anyone saying different is not privy to the meetings and is uninformed.

Keep the questions, comments and suggestions coming. Stand united.

Derek

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Agents letter to NBA Players: NBA Lockout 2011

Dear Player,

I am writing to you because the negotiations between the NBPA and NBA owners are at a critical
stage.  You must take action and protect your rights.
Your Voice Must be Heard
Any deal you and the owners agree upon will have a major impact on you, your family, and your
career.
·      Educate yourself on the specifics of the negotiations and proposals that have been made.
·      Demand a full vote by all players on any proposed deal between the players and owners.
·      Contact the NBPA to ask questions and speak out about the issues that will directly impact
you and your family.
The Current Proposal Hurts Your Earning Potential
The NBA demands deep cuts and major “givebacks” that will cripple your earning potential and
the earning potential of every future NBA player.
·      The NBPA offered to reduce the players’ share of BRI from 57% to 52%.  This will result in
a transfer of over $200 million per year or a minimum of $500,000 per player back to the owners.
o   This results in at least 8% or more of your salary being withheld by the owners each season

through the escrow withholding.  This applies to all contracts, including contracts signed before
the lockout.  You may never receive this money back.
·      The owners demand mandatory reductions in all player salaries in addition to the escrow
withholding, including “claw backs” from all existing contracts by as much as 10% per year.
o   With an 8% escrow and a 10% “claw back,” each player will likely return 15 - 20% of his
salary to the owners at the end of each season.
·      A reduction of the players’ share of BRI to 52% will result in severe restrictions on free
agency and your ability to obtain your true market value.
o   Every NBA team’s Salary Cap will be significantly reduced, leaving teams with much less
Salary Cap room to sign free agents.
o   Teams will possess all of the leverage because there will be fewer teams competing for your
services.
o   Players will compete against each other for shorter and smaller contracts than the contracts
that were available under past systems.
o   A reduced salary cap reduces the Maximum Salary.
o   The NBA demands a reduction in the Mid-Level Exception salary and contract length as
well as new limitations on Bird rights.  This will severely restrict usage of these very important
exceptions and harm your ability to negotiate a fair contract.
Refuse Any Deal that Excludes the Players from the Explosive Growth of the NBA
The owners demand a long term deal with the players but do not want to share in the tremendous
growth and success of the league over the past six seasons.
·      Over the past six seasons:
o   The NBA enjoyed record attendance, sky-rocketing television ratings, and ever increasing
television rights deals;
o   NBA franchise values have continued to escalate and set records (compare the sales of the
past six years to previous sales); and
o   International growth is rapid and constant with a growing worldwide television audience and
more games played internationally.
·      During the 2010-11 season, the NBA experienced its highest revenues ever.
·      Demand to see the complete financial records of the owners over the past six seasons,
including their related entities (such as regional sports networks and arenas).
Never Respond to Ultimatums or Threats– Stand Strong for Your Principles
The owners will threaten a doomsday scenario, but you must not yield to their ultimatums or
threats.
·      The NBA seeks unprecedented and unjustified changes to the collective bargaining
agreement.
·      Do not acknowledge “scare tactics” and fight to achieve your goals.  You fought your entire life to reach the NBA and must not let your right to receive fair compensation be taken from you
now.
·      Careers are short with limited time to maximize your earnings and limited opportunities to
share in the money you help generate for the league.  If you don’t fight to preserve your rights
now, you will pay the price in each pay check you receive for the rest of your career.
·      It is your career, your family, your income, your future. What will you do?
Participate in the Process and Protect your Individual Right to Bargain
When the time comes, you must demand that the NBPA submit any proposed agreement to a vote
by all NBA players and provide every player with a reasonable amount of time to review and
consider the proposed deal. We urge you now to become involved and educate yourself.
Knowledge is power!
  Contact the union to educate yourself and fight for what is important:
·               No further reduction of the percentage of BRI received by the players.
·               Maintain existing structure of the Bird and Mid-Level Exceptions.
·               No reduction in Maximum Salary from existing levels.
·               No reduction in Contract Length from existing levels.
·               No changes to Unrestricted Free Agency and improve Restricted Free Agency.
Any deal must include these points.  Remember, it is not about when or how fast a deal is
reached, it is about taking the time to secure the best deal.
We are here to support you. We welcome the opportunity to address any questions or concerns
you may have.

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NBA Players Association United by Hunter, Smith and Fisher

NBPA Executive Director Billy Hunter

    Take a second and ponder a question if you will....what do you fear the most?  Just for a moment, focus on how it would feel to be an owner of a professional basketball team in the NBA during a self imposed lockout; now ask yourself this question....what would I fear the most?  On this day, the owners of the NBA faced what they fear the most, a unified players union!  Two days had passed since stories surfaced detailing a somber tone coming from the results of a meeting this past Tuesday between the owners and the Players Association in which a deal wasn't struck and future meetings were not planned.  The rhetoric coming out of Tuesday's meeting featured the  owners making Billy Hunter wait 3 hours before declining to agree to the deal and also the first indications of the players faith in Billy Hunter waning.

Since 1996 Billy Hunter has guided the players association and looked out for their best interest, that was his singular goal year in and year out, battling Commissioner Stern and his owners at every opportunity he
could.  This was not his first rodeo as he also battled Stern in the lockout of 98/99 that caused the NBA implement a 50 game season due to 32 games being lost.  Again he'd seen it all but as the news continued to circulate out after Tuesday's meeting, the most startling revelation of all began to rear its ugly head.  Five super agents in the NBA, Arn Tellem, Bill Duffy, Mark Bartelstein, Jeff Schwartz, and Dan Fegan spoke about the possibility of de-certifying the Players Association which would in turn remove Hunter from his position.

By law, labor unions cannot file antitrust lawsuits.  In the event of de-certification, the antitrust rules would change allowing the players to file antitrust motions against the owners and request injunctions that would force the owners to allow the players to work thus ending the owner imposed lockout.  This tactic would replace Hunter with an antitrust lawyer who would present the case to federal judges and at that point both players and owners are at risk for more loses than they are currently presented with.  Of course this is the path that Hunter has wanted to avoid but take this into consideration.  Thirty percent of the players would have to vote for de-certifying the union and the five super agents mentioned above represents that amount of players in the NBA.

Today was the day that it was speculated that the agents mentioned above would begin their cue because keep this in mind, if the players aren't getting paid come November, the agents wouldn't be getting paid as well and it was that selfishness that Hunter was trying to avoid at all costs.  It seemed as if a rift was beginning to form in the ranks of the players union and that was music to the ears of the owners who wanted to hold out until at least November when checks would be missed to watch the union crumble but it was being speculated that the fraction, the rift had already begun.  Coincident or not, Hunter's grasp on the players and his job was at risk as he prepared to face the players today in Las Vegas.

NBPA President Derek Fisher

Sensing possible dissension in the ranks, Derek Fisher, the Players President of the Union, sent out an email explaining in detail that the most recent hold up at the meeting wasn't caused by the owners simply rejecting the players proposal but due to the fact that the owners had begun fighting among themselves.  It was reported by ESPN that Dan Gilbert and Robert Sarver, who own the Cleveland Cavaliers and Phoenix Suns respectively were opposed to the most recent players proposal while the owners of the Knicks and Lakers, James Dolan and Dr. Jerry Buss were visibly annoyed by the demands of Gilbert and Sarver.  That fact all but verified that there's a rift between the philosophies of the owners of the NBA, a rift caused by the difference between large markets and small market teams, a rift that may not be repaired due to the fact that the haves won't allow their successful structure to be deconstructed due to the have nots having the incapability to understand that there's no current business model in the world where everyone business is successful.  Every business can't succeed but every business will incur loses.  Fisher's email also addressed those players who's agents were in their ear, trying to dictate the fate of the players from behind the shadows.

NFLPA Executive Director DeMaurice Smith

While the owners were in Dallas today battling among themselves, Billy Hunter, Derek Fisher and about 70 NBA players were in Las Vegas participating in the Las Vegas Impact League, a league built upon the notion of having the players prepared for training camp whenever it starts.  Today was the day that the agents and the owners were waiting for the fraction, rift, and dissension among the players to become public, today was supposed to be the day that the shit hit the fan and the Players Union would crumble, it was to be the day that Billy Hunter's 15 years of service would have ended.  As demonstrated earlier by the email that was sent, Derek Fisher was again a step ahead of the agents and the owners.  Fisher invited the NFL's Players Union executive director DeMaurice Smith to speak to the near 70 players who were attending the Impact League.  Having just endured a 4.5 month lockout himself with the NFL, Smith's goal was to instill faith back into the players of the NBA and also to remind them to remain unified in this harsh time of uncertainty.

Not one but two union heads delivering the same message...unity amongst themselves, amongst the players as the owners and the agents were moving in for the kill.  The owners faced their worst nightmare today, a unified union, a strong union who will not lay down or be strong armed.  The agents faced their fears as de-certification was taken off the table completely as an option and at the end there was Billy Hunter, standing as tall as ever having won another battle in the war of the NBA, the war of reality vs perception.  The first shot has been fired by the players after the mess that was Tuesday and only just now did the owners fire back by stating that the owners are still united, bonded by the idea of having a hard salary cap.  Let it be known that on this day, Thursday, September 15th, 2011 the players won a small battle, their unified front could be a giant step in the right direction of creating a resolution with the owners.  After today's meeting, Tony Allen of the Memphis Grizzlies sent out a tweet that spoke volumes, I just hope that the owners were able to hear it and/or paid attention to it.

"We believe in Billy Hunter!!!  Great Meeting!!!

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