NBA Proposes Players Take 50 Percent Pay Cut Beginning April 15th

[RealGM Wiretap]

The NBA is proposing players take a 50 percent paycheck reduction beginning on April 15th.

The NBPA has counter-proposed a 25 percent reduction of paychecks starting in mid-May.

Players received their scheduled payment in full on April 1st.

Via Shams Charania/The Athletic

[nguyen925]

As a fan I have to agree with the owners on this one. If there's no revenue or games to be had during this medical crisis it's not out of the question to reduce the players salaries to half seeing as how they are not playing games (which should be a requirement to get paid for services rendered).

It's not as if the owners are trying to cut off the players salaries all together. I can also see this from a players perspective, you are healthy now and you have a current contract to get paid to play the game of basketball but are unable to play as the world is on a social distancing order.

[kenwood3333]

I doubt players will take any meaningful concussion. This is a player's league, not an owner's league. Players have the upper hand here.

[alienpick]

As a fan I have to agree with the owners on this one. If there's no revenue or games to be had during this medical crisis it's not out of the question to reduce the players salaries to half seeing as how they are not playing games (which should be a requirement to get paid for services rendered).

It's not as if the owners are trying to cut off the players salaries all together. I can also see this from a players perspective, you are healthy now and you have a current contract to get paid to play the game of basketball but are unable to play as the world is on a social distancing order.

While I fully agree with your premise; it depends on the wording and intent of the contract. It is a contract, and not an hourly wage. Is the contract for the owners to have the player exclusively play basketball for them for a certain time frame (ie: one season) or is it for a game by game basis? I know most players and owners opt for a game by game bi-weekly pay cheque, but is that what the contract is actually for? That’s where things get kind of sticky.

All that said, I fully agree with the economic principles you laid out. It’s just a different beast when it’s contracts.

[Pickled Prunes]

As a fan I have to agree with the owners on this one. If there's no revenue or games to be had during this medical crisis it's not out of the question to reduce the players salaries to half seeing as how they are not playing games (which should be a requirement to get paid for services rendered).

It's not as if the owners are trying to cut off the players salaries all together. I can also see this from a players perspective, you are healthy now and you have a current contract to get paid to play the game of basketball but are unable to play as the world is on a social distancing order.

While I fully agree with your premise; it depends on the wording and intent of the contract. It is a contract, and not an hourly wage. Is the contract for the owners to have the player exclusively play basketball for them for a certain time frame (ie: one season) or is it for a game by game basis? I know most players and owners opt for a game by game bi-weekly pay cheque, but is that what the contract is actually for? That’s where things get kind of sticky.

All that said, I fully agree with the economic principles you laid out. It’s just a different beast when it’s contracts.

The CBA gives the players a specific % of BRI. If BRI goes up, the players get bonus checks... if it goes down... ?

BRI just dropped like the stock market. This was a situation they didn't have a plan for, and yet the money will balance out eventually. It has to come from somewhere.

[Sinobas]

I doubt players will take any meaningful concussion. This is a player's league, not an owner's league. Players have the upper hand here.

Except most of the owners are billionares or close to and have a lot of other businesses and investments, while few players would have much of a revenue stream outside of basketball.

[Tomahawk226]

I doubt players will take any meaningful concussion. This is a player's league, not an owner's league. Players have the upper hand here.

Except most of the owners are billionares or close to and have a lot of other businesses and investments, while few players would have much of a revenue stream outside of basketball.

That may make sense in theory but is not legal or relevant to the contacts in dispute. Also most of those owners' businesses/investments are also reeling from the effects of the virus and surely some are going under.

[Metallikid]

The NBA has all the power here I think.

They'll use the Force Majeure clause if they have to.

Everybody has to take a paycut, existing contracts will have to be negotiated down and free agents will have to accept less. The Cap could be down 30%, 40% next season. There's a good chance no one will have enough money to buy tickets. Advertising could drop by 50% across the board - in society as a whole.

[Sam195]

The NBA has all the power here I think.

They'll use the Force Majeure clause if they have to.

Everybody has to take a paycut, existing contracts will have to be negotiated down and free agents will have to accept less. The Cap could be down 30%, 40% next season. There's a good chance no one will have enough money to buy tickets. Advertising could drop by 50% across the board - in society as a whole.

You are kind of over-exaggerating the situation there is really three major parties in this dispute - the League/Owners, the nba superstars and the other players in the game (role players and bench warmers). The League/Owners will always see this from a pure business case in that if we are not generating enough revenues to cover our expenses then we gut the expenses which means the player contracts because the league unlike a conventional business (that can enter insolvency/bankruptcy for unpaid debts) is more of a mutual partnership in terms of BRI between owners via the league and players via their union. One major discrepancy that is going to arise just like it has in past nba cba negotiations superstar player interests vs other player interests. Most nba superstars tend to have the highest valued contracts like max deals and 8 figure compensation with more advantageous contract terms like upfront signing bonuses and such. The role players and others on the other hand tend to get payed like your average Joe with their salary distributed every two weeks. I also read many nba players have or even willingly pick a 12 month compensation schedule where they get paid like public school teachers their actual salary but in split installments year round. This means that there are many nba players who have gotten paid most of their salary this year majority the superstars and many nba players the others who maybe owed closer to 2/3 of their contract compensation if they picked the 12 month pay schedule. Does this 50% proposal refer to the actual money still owed on contracts or on every nba players' base contract amounts. Notice how the nba had a strike in 2011-2012 when the union was lead by a role player in Derek Fisher negotiating with David Stern. Then in 2017 they had a more silent CBA extension negotiated with no lockout between a superstar in Chris Paul leading the union negotiating with Adam Silver. Many of the other players including role players, bench warmers and guys on rookie contracts if not very vocal have complained frequently every so often that the current CBA disproportionately benefits the superstars with all the special conditions for super max contracts, trade kickers and raises compared to what every other player got in the sense the rookie scale all the way from the #1 pick to #60 really didn't rise much relevant to the salary cap aside from inflation and many role players and bench warmers seem to be getting underpaid with many nba teams paying starters and sixth men types like say George Hill the bigger contracts while everyone else is fighting for minimum salary contracts and just a place in the league. Guys like Jeremy Lin and Nick Young are out of the nba no one will even sign them for the minimum to be a 15th player on one of the 15 rosters. Melo waited months to get a min contract. Then look at the superstars where guys like aging Chris Paul and even a Kyle Lowry (who just won a ring with Raptors) are making ridiculous $30M+ annual compensation in their mid 30s landing in the top 10 salary rankings for the nba despite clearly not being top 10 players in the game even if each made the allstar game this past season. The whole system just among the player factions is a wreck and it might be worthwhile for the owners to use their clause and terminate the CBA to not only be left with the bag to pay players something past April 15 but negotiate a better labor deal for themselves going forward post season shutdown.

[Killboard]

If the owners want to pay half, will they sell the franchise in half too?

If not players should consider make a new league, develop an app and hire a cam crew and refs, and play in gyms if its necesary. Who cares about the stadiums and franchises if there is no elite players in them?

Let the owners bet their money since its all they do for his share.

[likashing]

Wonder if the highest paid players making $20-$30m+ will take a higher pay cut than the min salary players.

The highest paid players also have other means to supplement their income as well eg playing 2K on on TV and various endorsements.

They say they are brothers, right?