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The NBA's Collective Bargaining Agreement may not expire until 2030, but it's effects are felt more and more every offseason and recently, Milwaukee Bucks forward Kyle Kuzma took to X with a lengthy post torching the CBA and all of the effects it's had on the league so far.
The biggest changes that the most-recent CBA made to the league was the implementations of the first and second aprons, financial boundaries above the NBA's salary cap and luxury tax thresholds that implement even more penalties meant to restrict teams that spend higher than other teams.
The first apron is the first tier of additional financial restriction and the primary penalty that comes with it is that teams in the first apron are unable to sign players who were bought out and had a salary greater than the Mid-Level tax Exemption, a system that lets teams sing free agents for salaries that exceed the salary cap.
Milwaukee Bucks forward Kyle Kuzma (18) drives for the basket against Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) in the second quarter at Fiserv Forum. Benny Sieu-Imagn Images
The second apron comes with much harsher penalties. Teams with salaries in the second apron cannot sign-and-trade players, can't send cash in trades and either lose the ability to trade a first round pick or may even have their first round pick sent to the end of the round, just to name some penalties.
The aprons were added for the purposes of "competitive balance" to help make sure teams in larger markets can't simply spend their way to championship and squeeze out teams in smaller markets instead.
Milwaukee Bucks forward Kyle Kuzma (18) drives against Phoenix Suns forward Oso Ighodaro (11) during the second half at Mortgage Matchup Center. Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images
Kuzma's interpretation of the aprons' effect, though, are that the aprons have become restrictions that let teams, both big market and small, justify keeping their wallets closed and not spending for notable players or even to keep their own, standing in the face of the competition that the CBA claimed to create.
"Teams are no longer making purely basketball decisions," Kuzma wrote. "They’re making fear-based apron decisions. That means good players get squeezed, homegrown cores get broken up, fan-favorite teams lose their identity and the overall product loses some of the nostalgia and continuity that made people fall in love with the NBA in the first place."
Kuzma continued on in his post his and other players' dissatisfaction with the apron system isn't due to them being ignorant of the business of the NBA, but that the Player's Association needs to be sharper in negotiations and stand their ground against the lawyers and strategists that NBA owners bring in to implement their policies.
He expressed his frustration at what he believes has been a series of negotiation failures and defeats that have led to the NBA having free reign over deciding things like salary cap structure that ultimately hurts the players and the fans.
Milwaukee Bucks forward Kyle Kuzma (18) dribbles the ball against the Utah Jazz during the first half at Delta Center. Rob Gray-Imagn Images
Kuzma was even more upset that it feels like players aren't fully informed about new policies until after they're already implemented, leaving players stuck with the consequences of a new policy without having any real say in it.
He ended his post with a call to action for his fellow players that when the CBA does expire, the players have to fight against policies like the aprons that, under the guise of promoting parity, actually seek to save money for ownership across the league and as a result, break up teams and devalue players.
Continue reading...
The biggest changes that the most-recent CBA made to the league was the implementations of the first and second aprons, financial boundaries above the NBA's salary cap and luxury tax thresholds that implement even more penalties meant to restrict teams that spend higher than other teams.
Explaining the Aprons
The first apron is the first tier of additional financial restriction and the primary penalty that comes with it is that teams in the first apron are unable to sign players who were bought out and had a salary greater than the Mid-Level tax Exemption, a system that lets teams sing free agents for salaries that exceed the salary cap.
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Milwaukee Bucks forward Kyle Kuzma (18) drives for the basket against Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) in the second quarter at Fiserv Forum. Benny Sieu-Imagn Images
The second apron comes with much harsher penalties. Teams with salaries in the second apron cannot sign-and-trade players, can't send cash in trades and either lose the ability to trade a first round pick or may even have their first round pick sent to the end of the round, just to name some penalties.
The aprons were added for the purposes of "competitive balance" to help make sure teams in larger markets can't simply spend their way to championship and squeeze out teams in smaller markets instead.
You must be registered for see images attach
Milwaukee Bucks forward Kyle Kuzma (18) drives against Phoenix Suns forward Oso Ighodaro (11) during the second half at Mortgage Matchup Center. Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images
Kyle Kuzma Sounds Off On the CBA
Kuzma's interpretation of the aprons' effect, though, are that the aprons have become restrictions that let teams, both big market and small, justify keeping their wallets closed and not spending for notable players or even to keep their own, standing in the face of the competition that the CBA claimed to create.
"Teams are no longer making purely basketball decisions," Kuzma wrote. "They’re making fear-based apron decisions. That means good players get squeezed, homegrown cores get broken up, fan-favorite teams lose their identity and the overall product loses some of the nostalgia and continuity that made people fall in love with the NBA in the first place."
Kuzma continued on in his post his and other players' dissatisfaction with the apron system isn't due to them being ignorant of the business of the NBA, but that the Player's Association needs to be sharper in negotiations and stand their ground against the lawyers and strategists that NBA owners bring in to implement their policies.
Calling for Better Player's Association Leadership
He expressed his frustration at what he believes has been a series of negotiation failures and defeats that have led to the NBA having free reign over deciding things like salary cap structure that ultimately hurts the players and the fans.
You must be registered for see images attach
Milwaukee Bucks forward Kyle Kuzma (18) dribbles the ball against the Utah Jazz during the first half at Delta Center. Rob Gray-Imagn Images
Kuzma was even more upset that it feels like players aren't fully informed about new policies until after they're already implemented, leaving players stuck with the consequences of a new policy without having any real say in it.
He ended his post with a call to action for his fellow players that when the CBA does expire, the players have to fight against policies like the aprons that, under the guise of promoting parity, actually seek to save money for ownership across the league and as a result, break up teams and devalue players.
Continue reading...
