Typically a new collective bargaining agreement in professional sports focuses on the players that are active. However, the new CBA in the National Basketball Association may rewrite the script.

LeBron James isn’t just the star, MVP, and unofficial captain of the Cleveland Cavaliers, he’s also the Vice President of the NBA Players Association as well. As a result, he knows a lot more than most about the NBA’s collective bargaining agreement negotiations.

The NBAPA has been working with the NBA lately on a new CBA and LeBron has been crucial to those negotiations. When speaking with The Association Press on Thursday, LeBron mentioned the union is focusing on aid for retired players as a priority in the new CBA.

That’s a major change of place from typical CBA negotiations. The current CBA has an opt out on December 15th of this year.

Four other sources told the AP that the NBA and its players both mutually want the next CBA to include league-funded programs to help retired players with their education and medical expenses. This would be a new program the league has never done before.

The crucial point in creating this program is that in return, the league would split all basketball-related income “50-50” with players instead of a larger split. This is something owners are likely in favor of as it means more money in their pockets.

This then leads back to the NBA lockout back in 2011 when breaking up the revenue led to the lockout. That’s why focusing on the “50-50” split is so important for both sides because they know it means possibly avoiding another lockout.

“We got a group of guys that are in there that know the negotiations, so any way to give back and try to help our former teammates and help former players and things of that nature,” James said. “Because we’ve all built this league together. No matter how big of a guy you were or if you were the 15th guy on the bench, we all built this league into what it is today. But it’s not just my idea. I’m not taking any credit for that. But it’s all part of the process.”

LeBron is joined at the negotiating table by NBPA President Chris Paul and 10-year NBA veteran Mike Glenn, who’s a member of the National Basketball Retired Players Association’s board of directors.

“We’re very thankful to Chris Paul, LeBron and others who have provided the leadership to include us in the negotiations, and have the foresight to see that they’ll be us in a couple of years,” Glenn said. “There are so many guys with medical issues, who have had hip and knee replacements. With the cost of health care going up, it would be the biggest thing that’s happened for retirees in 10 years.”

Next week the league and NBPA will meet before the NBA Board of Governor’s meeting in New York on October 20th. Both sides believe they should be able to negotiate more there and in the future.

“I just want to see the league continue to grow, that’s all that matters to me,” James said. “The players are a huge, huge piece but we also know the owners have great minds as well, our commissioner is great, but our league, our logo, the Jerry West logo is probably the most well sought-out, admired logo in the world and we’ve got to figure out a way to keep it going, keep raising the bar. That’s my only concern.”

Other elements the AP reported could be in the new CBA include a proposal that makes it easier for teams to keep homegrown talent, a possible second five-year maximum deal, and more.

[Associate Press]

About David Lauterbach

David is a writer for The Comeback. He enjoyed two Men's Basketball Final Four trips for Syracuse before graduating in 2016. If The Office or Game of Thrones is on TV, David will be watching.