Marshall Babson Quoted in The Christian Science Monitor
“NBA labor deal: Did it fix the league's biggest problem?”

Marshall Babson, Employment partner and former member of the National Labor Relations Board, was quoted in a November 28 article published in The Christian Science Monitor. The article provided an overview of the recent tentative agreement between NBA players and owners to end the lockout.

According to the article, the goal of the agreement—which still needs to be approved by the players—was to reduce disparities between large and small-market teams within the league. To reduce the gap, concessions included a reduction in the players’ share of the league’s basketball-related income from 57 percent to between 49 and 51 percent. If the deal goes through, a 66-game season would begin on Christmas Day.

“This deal amounts to a major bet on the prospect that evening out the ability of more teams to attract top players will be much better for the entire league than what has existed up till now,” commented Marshall. “The argument is that if the players can live within this new, diminished percentage, the actual amount they take home could be much more if the sport continues to grow as a whole.”