Labor pact has effects on Heat

Players just glad there won’t be a lockout

MIAMI — Sometimes business comes before business. So only after the Heat took care of business on the court Wednesday night did they learn that their business of basketball would continue uninterrupted, with a deal reached on a new, seven-year NBA collective-bargaining agreement.

While the agreement still must be ratified, considered a formality, it means no lockout when the current pact expires June 30 and at least six more years of NBA labor peace, with the agreement allowing the players or owners to opt out after the sixth year.

“It is a relief,” said Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, who’s had three seasons shortened during his tenure by lockouts, including the Heat’s 2011-12 championship run. “We’ve been through three of ’em. And you just come to expect it. That’s how sad that is. You come to expect it, that come July that it’ll turn into something else and then ugly, and then stop communicating, and then we’re off, and we’re not doing what we want to do and love to do.

“So, yeah, we’re all very fortunate to be in this profession.”

The agreement was completed just hours before Thursday’s opt-out deadline for both sides. That had Heat union representative Wayne Ellington stroking a pair of 3-pointers in the 95-89 victory over the Indiana Pacers at American-Airlines Arena while pen was being put to paper elsewhere.

“I found out after the game,” Ellington said. “Obviously, that’s something that we

all wanted to get done. We all wanted to continue to play, didn’t want any lockouts or anything like that. So we’re happy both sides can come together and come to a conclusion.”

For players such as Ellington and others working on a year-to-year contract basis at the lower end of the NBA’s salary scale, the new agreement raises minimum salaries and also makes salary-cap exceptions more lucrative. It is why the agreement is expected to be rubberstamped by the new January deadline set for approval.

“The stars are always going to be taken care of,” Ellington said. “They’re always going to get top money. But there’s a huge drop-off. So, obviously, guys that are at the bottom aren’t making those huge salaries, but they’re still getting a nice push in the money, which is fair at the end of the day.”

The new agreement will reduce the preseason schedule to a maximum of six games, after teams such as the Heat often had played the previous maximum of eight. That, in turn, will allow the NBA to start the regular season a week earlier and reduce the number of back-to-back games to about 14 per team.

Compared with what might have otherwise occurred in a lockout season, it provides a more palatable alternative.

“Obviously you want to keep the ball rolling,” Heat captain Udonis Haslem said. “I always think about the lockout season when we had to play back-to-back-to-back. That was no fun at all.

“It helps the players go into the summer with a clear mind and, obviously, guys won’t have financial issues and we can just give the fans what they want.”

Among the effects on the Heat in the new agreement:

Unlike the previous CBA, there will be no “amnesty” clause, eliminating one potential mechanism for the Heat removing Chris Bosh’s salary from the salary cap.

Maximum salaries will rise as high as $36 million starting in 2017-18, which affects the Heat’s potential for adding two players at or near the maximum in free agency if Bosh’s salary is excised, as expected, after Feb. 9.

The NBA has added incentives for teams to re-sign star players to more lucrative extensions, potentially reducing the number of top-tier players to change teams.

The one-and-done aspect of the NBA draft will continue. While the new CBA does not start until after the coming draft, it means players might not be as quick to jump into the 2017 draft, with less fear of possibly being forced to remain in college for a lengthier period going forward. The Heat hold a potential 2017 lottery pick.

Salary-cap exceptions will increase, which could therefore reduce the buying power of teams with salary-cap space, such as the Heat in the 2017 offseason. The midlevel exception, for example, could rise in excess of $8 million.

The NBA’s over-36 rule will be changed to an over-38 rule when it comes to averaging out salaries on multiyear contracts for older players. Had such a mechanism been in place in the current agreement, it could have made it easier for the Heat to reach a workable contract with Dwyane Wade during last summer’s free agency.

Two-way contracts will be added, allowing teams to maintain rights to two players on their D-League teams beyond the 15-player NBA limit. Such a mechanism could have allowed the Heat to retain rights this season to Sioux Falls Skyforce players such as Briante Weber and Okaro White, who instead can currently be signed by any NBA team.