Possible Lockout Affecting Player Salaries

The possibility of a lockout has greatly affected this year’s free agent market, and the decisions players have made on whether to become a free agent or not.

Veteran players have been faced with a tough decision to either play another year with a very high salary, or opt out and secure a long term deal for a little less money.

Many think the new collective bargaining agreement will lower player salaries. Thus many veterans have looked for long term contracts under the current CBA agreement.

Notable veterans who opted out of their contracts to secure a long term deal are Paul Pierce of the Boston Celtics, and Dirk Nowitzki of the Dallas Mavericks.

By opting out of their current deals, Pierce and Nowitzki got long term security, but were also able to save their teams money for the upcoming season.

This plan is good for the teams involved because both the Celtics and Mavericks are looking to win the championship now, not in the future.

It will be interesting to see how the CBA talks between the NBA owners and NBA player association progress, but there is no doubt the evidence of a possible lockout is clear with this summer’s free agent frenzy.