On this Black Friday, the NBA owners and NBA Players Association are making one last-ditch effort to preserve the majority of the 2011-12 NBA season and end the NBA lockout. The two sides have been meeting all week and will meet again on Friday to discuss coming to an agreement and beginning the season on Christmas.
Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports that the two sides are confident enough to allow former NBA Players' Association president Derek Fisher rejoin the talks. This runs the risk of poking holes in the union's anti-trust lawsuit, but as Wojnarowski reports, the prospect of a deal overrides that.
His appearance in this week’s negotiations – along with that of several other key Players Association officials – figures to run the risk of validating the league’s charges that the disbanding of the union was a "sham" negotiating tactic. Nevertheless, the belief that the end of the lockout is within reach this weekend inspired Fisher to make the move to join the talks.
It remains to be seen if the league uses the players' strategy against them later in court. Nevertheless, there appears to be a "do or die nature" to getting a deal done, reports Wojnarowski.