Report: NBA Owners May Get Refunds in Player Compensation Deal After COVID-19

NBA owners would reportedly recoup pay that players have already received as a part of compensation negotiations with the National Basketball Players Association, according to Jabari Young of CNBC.

Per that report, NBPA executives "cleared up misinformation and told agents that any compensation deal constructed by the NBPA and league owners will include refunds on all NBA contracts" in an hourlong call Tuesday.

Young added that the "repayments will hit hardest for players who receive their paychecks on a six-month cycle."

As Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reported in late March, players like LeBron James on those cycles have two more checks coming to them for the year (April 15, May 1).

Woj also reported that if any regular-season games were canceled—a looming possibility as the United States remains under social-distancing guidelines through April because of the COVID-19 pandemic—a force majeure provision would be triggered, leading to players giving up 1 percent of their salary per game lost.

And with the league itself losing revenue, the players will inevitably bear some of that burden.

How much they'll bear remains a point of contention. Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium reported Friday that the league proposed a 50 percent reduction in player salaries beginning April 15, while the NBPA countered with a 25 percent reduction beginning mid-May.

"We're aware," NBPA president Chris Paul told Young regarding the potential of returned payments. "As long as we have the conversations about it and try to make sure that guys are as prepared as possible, I think we'll be fine."