Court threat as NBA players reject offer

NBA players rejected the league’s latest contract offer and will disband as a union, a move that could wipe out the entire season with the sides taking their labour dispute into the court of law.

The National Basketball Players’ Association said it would no longer continue in collective bargaining and will become a trade association in order to pursue legal action against the NBA, with the entire 2011-12 season hanging in the balance.

“We have arrived at the conclusion that the collective bargaining process has completely broken down,” NBPA executive director Billy Hunter said at a news conference in New York.

“As a result, within the last hour we served a notice of disclaimer on Commissioner (David) Stern and the NBA.”

A shift from the negotiating room to the courts also came during this year’s National Football League labour dispute, but NFL owners and players were able to reach an agreement before their season began and did not lose any regular season games. The NBA, however, has already cancelled the first month of a regular season that was scheduled to begin two weeks ago and offered no assurance that further cuts can be avoided.

“There will ultimately be a new collective bargaining agreement, but the 2011-12 season is now in jeopardy,” Stern said in a statement. The NBA locked out its players on July 1 given a disagreement over two major issues.

The latest offer by the NBA called for a 50-50 split of basketball related income between the owners and players and would have provided for a 72-game season to start on December 15.

Players, who received 57 percent of basketball income in the previous contract, also are at odds with the owners over rules governing contracts and free agency.

“We will allow our legal team to really lead the charge and hopefully at some point assist us in getting a deal done that is fair to our entire body,” NBPA president Derek Fisher of the Los Angeles Lakers said.