NBA Free Agents Able to Begin Discussions with Teams

The prelude to the madness has begun. Think of it as waiting in line on Tuesday for a Black Friday deal.

The NBA season is fast approaching and Wednesday marks the beginning of it all.

We haven't been told much regarding contact between the players and organizations to this point, but that's all about to change.

Sports Illustrated’s Sam Amick has confirmed that the official end of the lockout begins this morning.

Are you ready for 10 days of non-stop rumors regarding trades and free agents? This is going to be just like the end of July when the NFL lockout ended and there was a new free agent signing seemingly every five minutes.

Where will Nene, Tyson Chandler, David West, DeAndre Jordan, Jamal Crawford, Thaddeus Young and Andrei Kirilenko land? Will the rumors of a Chris Paul-for-Rajon Rondo trade come to fruition? Can players like Kenyon Martin break the terms of their overseas contract and get back to the states in time for the season?

There are countless questions that need to be addressed and today will only begin to provide the answers.

I think this is a great idea by the league to ensure there is a generous window of time to let teams adjust to the new CBA and target free agents and trades accordingly. The biggest reason for the lockout in the first place was idiot owners and GMs that gave horrible contracts to players that didn’t deserve half of that amount. This is a way of making sure they don’t shoot themselves in the foot…again. 

This is also terrific news for players already under contract itching to get back out on the floor with their teammates. They need all the practice time they can get after this lengthy layoff.