How a New Collective Bargaining Agreement Affects the NBA's Summer of 2010

The prospect of a collective bargaining agreement stiffer toward players than the current edition has been batted about the fringes for the past year, as folks predict David Stern's requests (a stricter minimum age limit) and wonder just how dire the owners will make things look. CBS Sportsline has an interesting thought from Billy Hunter, head of the players association:

Billy Hunter, executive director of the NBA Players Association, warned last night that any potential free agent who waits around for a new CBA will do so at his own peril. Owners almost certainly won't extend the CBA through the 2011-12 season, so it is set to expire on June 30, 2011.

Hunter is encouraging players who can opt out in 2010 -- and this extends beyond the LeBron/Wade/Bosh set to guys like Joe Johnson, Yao Ming, Tyson Chandler -- to do so because a) a 2011 lockout would delay the signing of new contracts, and b) the new CBA in '11 stands a chance of making NBA playerdom less lucrative.

It's a smart strategy for the players, and could seriously make the free agent class the strongest ever (if it wasn't already). But is it smart for the union? The strength of the union comes from the resolve of its members. If almost every high-priced player just signed a grandfathered huge contract under the old CBA, how invested will they be in scratching for every dollar in negotiations for a new CBA? Hunter has been a strong union leader, and NBA players have always shown strong solidarity. But having LeBron's future cash earnings at stake in the CBA fight would be a heck of an asset.