NBA Files Labor Complaint, Federal Lawsuit Against Players Union

(NewsCore) - NEW YORK -- The NBA brought its contentious labor stalemate into the courtroom Tuesday, filing a complaint against the National Basketball Players Association and unveiling a separate federal lawsuit in New York.

The league's complaint before the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) charges the union with "unfair labor practices," arguing the players have refused to negotiate in good faith. The filing goes on to say that -- like the NFL players' strategy during the four-month lockout -- the NBA players made unlawful threats to decertify as a union and pursue an antitrust lawsuit against the NBA owners.

"These claims were filed in an effort to eliminate the use of impermissible pressure tactics by the union which are impeding the parties' ability to negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement," said NBA Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer Adam Silver.

"For the parties to reach agreement on a new CBA (collective bargaining agreement), the union must commit to the collective bargaining process fully and in good faith."

The NBA claims the decertification of the players union would be a sham, an argument that was also presented to the NLRB by the NFL after the NFL Players Association decertified in March.

In an effort to possibly preempt the NBPA's legal strategy, the federal lawsuit aims to establish "among other things, that the NBA's lockout does not violate federal antitrust laws and that if the Players Association's 'decertification' were found to be lawful, all existing player contracts would become void and unenforceable," the NBA said in a release.

In April, CBS Sports reported the NBPA had collected enough signatures from players to allow for the decertification of the union.

NBPA executive director Billy Hunter quickly responded Tuesday, saying the NBA's legal action was "totally without merit" and denied there was any plan to decertify the union.

"The litigation tactics of the NBA today are just another example of their bad faith bargaining and we will seek the complete dismissal of the actions as they are totally without merit," Hunter said in a statement.

"The NBA Players Association has not made any decision to disclaim its role as the collective bargaining representative of the players and has been engaged in good faith bargaining with the NBA for over two years. We urge the NBA to engage with us at the bargaining table and to use more productively the short time we have left before the 2011-12 season is seriously jeopardized."

The NBPA already filed an "unfair labor practices" complaint against the NBA in May. The complaint argued the NBA had failed to negotiate in good faith by making "grossly regressive contract demands" and failing to provide teams' financial data.

The NBA declared a lockout July 1 and the sides remain far apart after talks on Monday. NBA commissioner David Stern left little room for optimism after the three-hour session, saying "nothing" productive was accomplished.

Derek Fisher, the lead negotiator for the players, said the owners' current proposals "make it hard to believe" they are serious about coming to a new agreement.

The New York Knicks' Roger Mason, a member of the negotiating committee, expressed his concern Tuesday that the entire 2011-12 season could be lost to the lockout.

"I'm praying we don't lose this season, but I'm very worried," Mason tweeted. "[Monday's] meetings resulted in no movement at all. The gap is very very wide."