Labor Deal Done: 66-Game Season Starts Dec. 25

Posted by Ryan DeGama on Nov 26, 2011 2224623 commentshttp%3A%2F%2Fcelticshub.com%2F2011%2F11%2F26%2Flabor-deal-done-66-game-season-starts-dec-25%2FLabor+Deal+Done%3A+66-Game+Season+Starts+Dec.+252011-11-26+08%3A37%3A08Ryan+DeGamahttp%3A%2F%2Fcelticshub.com%2F%3Fp%3D22246

Early Saturday morning, the NBA owners and players reached a handshake agreement on a deal for a new CBA. The 66-game 2011-12 season starts Christmas Day.

In the joint press conference that followed, both sides avoided discussing details of the agreement until it’s been put to their respective stakeholder groups. But we do have a few early details:

• Training Camp and Free Agency will both begin Dec. 9. Danny Ainge will be able to talk to free agents in advance but won’t be able to ink them until the day Doc Rivers starts shouting at players that they’re in shape but not in “Celtics shape”. So, Boston will send no more than half a team to camp that first day (although it’ll likely be filled out quickly in the following days).

• The Celtics will almost certainly open their season Dec. 25 against the New York Knicks, as originally scheduled.

• It’s believed the final BRI split was the 49-51 band. (Per Chris Broussard of ESPN).

• Some B-level issues still need to be worked out over the next few days (e.g. drug testing) but none have the volatility to scuttle the deal.

Here at the Hub, we’ll soon have a whole lotta content for you, after what has been a few annoyingly quiet months (for all of us).

So stay tuned.

We’re back in bid’ness!