When LeBron James re-signed with the Cleveland Cavaliers this off-season a lot of Cleveland faithful were worried he was extorting the front office using the threat of another painful departure. James' camp, via various media outlets, insisted he just wanted a max deal after the TV contracts were re-negotiated.
Well, today the NBA announced their new TV deal: $2.66 billion per year through 2024-2025; effective in the 2016-2017 season. Games will continue to be aired on ABC, ESPN and TNT.
I'm guessing James wasn't bluffing.
Signing a max deal after the increased TV revenue kicks-in will give him an additional $8.5 million per year (per Deadspin) and that's not chump change (not even to James).
Well, today the NBA announced their new TV deal: $2.66 billion per year through 2024-2025; effective in the 2016-2017 season. Games will continue to be aired on ABC, ESPN and TNT.
I'm guessing James wasn't bluffing.
Signing a max deal after the increased TV revenue kicks-in will give him an additional $8.5 million per year (per Deadspin) and that's not chump change (not even to James).
From a non-professional standpoint, that's a shit ton of money. That's got to be close to the GDP of several small nations. It has to dwarf the annual GDP of, say, Haiti.
There could also be some sort of online streaming service, a la the WWE Network. It would be offered as a stand-alone from Cable (meaning you wouldn' t need Cable to have the service, which is a pretty dope win for non-cable people).
In Association terms, it means a few things.
There could also be some sort of online streaming service, a la the WWE Network. It would be offered as a stand-alone from Cable (meaning you wouldn' t need Cable to have the service, which is a pretty dope win for non-cable people).
In Association terms, it means a few things.
- Team salary caps will increase...a lot. The Cavs could end up being major beneficiaries of that wrinkle (Irving's max deal won't look so max when he's getting $10 mill less than a max contract).
- As a few outlets have pointed out, there will likely be another lockout when the CBA comes up for negotiation. This is a lot of money. The players got screwed out of their share in the last round of talks and I doubt they'll be eager to hand over their cake again.