NBA Season Gets Official Ratification

The NBA owners and players recently ratified a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).

The New Orleans Hornets, Los Angeles Lakers and Houston Rockets pulled the trigger on a trade that had Spain’s Pau Gasol, Argentina’s Luis Scola, Slovenia’s Goran Dragic and Team USA duo Chris Paul and Lamar Odom joining new teams.

New Orleans sent Paul to the Lakers and LA’s Gasol was traded to Houston. In the same deal, Rockets trio Scola, Dragic and Kevin Martin, a Houston first-round draft pick and Lakers versatile forward Odom were dealt to New Orleans.

But the NBA, who bought the Hornets last December, rejected the trade.

With Paul having stated he will not sign a contract extension with New Orleans, Hornets fans are wondering what this all means since the point guard is to become a free agent at the end of this season.

It remains to be seen if he will show up for practice, when players of all NBA teams are supposed to start their training camps following the end of the 161-day lockout.

Paul, Gasol and Odom all reacted to the events on Twitter.

“WoW,” said Paul’s tweet, while Gasol’s was, “Good night everyone! It’s been a crazy day but as always I’m going to be & stay positive. Thanks everyone for your appreciation and support.”

Odom was not as upbeat.

His response was, “When a team trades u and it doesn’t go down? Now what?”

Odom spoke to the Los Angeles Times and sounded as if he would miss the opening day of training camp.

“Maybe I’ll see you there (at practice),” Odom said, “but I doubt it. You don’t want to go to no place you’re not wanted. I’ll try to give them what they want as much as possible.”

So why was the blockbuster deal rejected by the league?

Owners of small-market teams seeking a competitive balance in the NBA during the tough negotiations with the players’ association during the lockout are thought to have wanted the trade to be rejected.

The NBA denied this, but an email sent by Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert to league commissioner David Stern and obtained by Yahoo Sports! called the trade a “travesty”.

“I just don’t see how we can allow this trade to happen,” Gilbert reportedly wrote.

“I know the vast majority of owners feel the same way that I do.

“When will we just change the name of 25 of the 30 teams to the Washington Generals?”

Stern had said for months that Hornets general manager Dell Demps and the rest of the team’s front office had autonomy over basketball decisions but the league’s decision to reject the trade suggests otherwise.

News of the quashed deal has overshadowed Thursday’s ratification of the new CBA by the owners and players.

Owners approved the deal by a 25-5 vote and the players’ association said 86% of the more than 200 players to vote electronically endorsed the new CBA.

Either side can opt out after six years.

Stern said the new CBA will be good for the small-market owners like Gilbert, who watched his former star LeBron James bolt to Miami in 2010 to join Dwyane Wade and fellow free agent Chris Bosh instead of signing a new deal with the Cavs.

Without James, Cleveland went from being one of the best teams in the league to one of the worst.

While acknowledging the small-market owners did not get all they wanted in the new CBA, Stern insisted, “This is going to be a more competitive league over time.

“While it’s not perfect, the deal addresses significant issues on both sides in a very productive way, we believe.”

The 66-game regular season is to tip off on Christmas day and conclude on April 26.