THE FINANCIAL IMPACT
If the season gets canceled, players would lose $1.2 billion in salary (or 35 percent of their total pay),
according to ESPN’s
Adrian Wojnarowski. Also, the NBA would lose $2 billion in revenue, per ESPN’s
Bobby Marks. NBA agents have been delivering “stern warnings” to their players recently, explaining “the financial implications of a lost season,”
writesWojnarowski.
This $2 billion drop in league revenue would have a significant effect on the NBA’s salary cap. Before this Orlando plan came together, experts like
John Hollinger and
Danny LeRoux of The Athletic estimated that a canceled regular season could lead to an $8 million dip in the cap (
as HoopsHype outlined). But if the NBA playoffs were canceled as well, the cap could decrease by more than $10 million (with some estimating a dip of approximately $15 million).
Not only would this hurt every single NBA team, this would negatively impact any player who’s set to hit free agency in the near future (or anyone whose salary is based on a percentage of the cap).