NBA players re-form union, pave way for deal

NBA players have officially re-formed their union, paving the way for final approval of a deal to end a months-long lockout and launch a shortened basketball season later this month. More than 300 players agreed on Thursday to re-appoint the National Basketball Players Association as their official union, easily surpassing the 260 signatures required. "This is good news and completes another step in the process of finalizing our agreement," National Basketball Association (NBA) spokesman Tim Frank said. The move paves the way for negotiations with the owners to resume, possibly on Friday, concerning some still unresolved issues in the collective bargaining agreement, including an anti-drug agreement and other contract issues. An agreement early Saturday morning that appears set to end the lockout which began July 1 must be ratified by the owners and the players, who needed to re-establish their union in order to agree to the 10-year deal. The hope is to complete the new collective bargaining agreement next week so both sides can ratify the agreement in time to open training camps December 9. When talks between the players and owners broke down November 14, the NBPA disclaimed interest in representing the players, allowing them to file an antitrust lawsuit against the NBA. The players, like the NBA Board of Governors, are expected to approve the deal reached over the weekend rather than prolong the negotiations. Under the terms of the new NBA deal, a season of 66 games per team, 16 shorter than normal, is set to begin on December 25 with the campaign stretching to late April and the NBA Finals pushed back to late June.