CBA

Draymond Green Slams NBA For New CBA: “Players Lose Again”

by

Draymond Green isn’t happy with the new collective bargaining agreement between the NBA and the NBPA. In a series of tweets posted on Saturday afternoon, the Golden State Warriors star tore into the new deal. The issue Green began with was a change in the salary cap that will hinder high-paying teams’ ability to bring in more talent. Other changes included in the CBA are a new 65-game minimum to qualify for awards and marijuana being removed from the banned substances list.

“The NBA is curbing the ability of the highest-spending teams, such as the Golden State Warriors and the LA Clippers, to continue running up salary and luxury tax spending while still maintaining mechanisms to add talent to the roster,” Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN explained. “The NBA is implementing a second salary cap apron — $17.5 million over the tax line — and those teams will no longer have access to the taxpayer mid-level in free agency. Those changes will be eased into the salary cap over a period of years.”

Draymond Green Arguing A Call

SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA – MARCH 28: Draymond Green #23 of the Golden State Warriors argues a call during the second quarter at Chase Center on March 28, 2023 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Loren Elliott/Getty Images)

In response to the report, Green wrote on Twitter: “Players lose again…. Smh! Middle and Lower spectrum teams don’t spend because they don’t want to. They want to lose. So increase their spending capabilities, just to increase them. They continue to cut out the middle. And this is what we rushed into a deal for? Smdh! Never fails.”

In more posts, he responded to the new in-season tournament expected to start next season. Players will be paid $500,000 for the championship game. “What happened to the 1mm they said when this idea was first introduced?!?!” Green wrote. “Sheesh we lost 500k there too!” When a fan implied he’s greedy for being unhappy, Green fired back, “You mean the people who generate billions to make millions? Yeah those people!” In other posts, he complained more broadly about the agreement.

Draymond Green’s Rant On Twitter

[Via]

NBA Removes Ban On Marijuana With New CBA: Report

by

The NBA is reportedly removing marijuana from its list of banned substances. Shams Charania of The Athletic reports that the league will no longer test players for the drug as part of the new collective bargaining agreement with the National Basketball Players Association. The agreement will last for seven years with a mutual opt-out following the sixth year.

The news comes after the NBA temporarily stopped testing for marijuana during the 2019-20 season. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver explained at the time: “We decided that, given all the things that were happening in society, given all the pressures and stress that players were under, that we didn’t need to act as Big Brother right now. I think society’s views around marijuana has changed to a certain extent.”

Adam Silver At A Press Conference

OAKLAND, CA – JUNE 01: NBA Commissioner Adam Silver speaks to the media before Game 1 of the 2017 NBA Finals at ORACLE Arena on June 1, 2017 in Oakland, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

There are several other distinct updates with the new CBA as well. Firstly, awards will now require a minimum of 65 games played for qualification. This will hopefully help curb the rise of load management for star players. Additionally, both the league and NBPA have agreed to increase the upper limits on contract extensions from a 120% increase on a current deal to 140%.

The new CBA reportedly also paves the way for a long-rumored in-season tournament that could arrive as soon as the 2023-24 season. With this new format, pool-play games will be incorporated into the regular-season schedule starting in November. Eight teams will then advance to a single elimination tournament the following month. Las Vegas is being discussed as a neutral location to host the final four. The league will award $500,000 per player to the winning team of the in-season tournament.

Tamika Tremaglio, Executive Director of the NBPA, said on Twitter, Saturday: “Since day one, the goal of the NBPA in this negotiation was to protect our players, enrich their lives on and off the court, and establish a framework that recognizes our players as true partners with the governors in both the NBA and the business world at large!”

Tamika Tremaglio’s Statement

[Via]