LeBron James set for NBA union meeting with players feeling powerful

LAS VEGAS – A red carpet steered a few of the NBA's brightest stars, past greats, and some of its rank-and-file players through a Vegas casino and past gathered media into a concert hall for a historic event on Sunday night.

For the first time, the league's players' union pieced together its own awards show, called – appropriately enough – the Players' Awards. The show will air Tuesday night on the BET network.

"This is awesome," said new Clippers forward Paul Pierce, on the red carpet at the Rio resort and casino. "It's about the players showing what we can do when we put our minds to something."

Traditional postseason awards, such as Most Valuable Player, are picked by media members who cover the NBA. The Players' Awards (voted on, obviously, by the players) don't cancel tradition, but they're just one sign of the players' growing power as the game they play rises in popularity.

A sign that the players still have a ways to go, at least when it comes to their own awards? LeBron James skipped the red carpet and the show because of a prior engagement, according to a spokesman.

But the real power play for the union begins Monday at their summer meetings, when James will preside for the first time as an executive vice president.

"Man, I'm very excited," said Chris Paul, All-Star Clippers point guard, James' friend, and union president. "Obviously, me and 'Bron talk about it every day. He's the face of our league. His opinion matters. Our players listen when he talks. It will be great to have him in there.

"One thing about 'Bron, too, when he commits to something he's always passionate about it, so I know his voice will be heard in there."

James, the four-time MVP, two-time champion, and Cavs superstar who led them back to the Finals in his return season, was elected to his formal position of union leadership during the All-Star break.

His ascension in the union comes as the players prepare to opt out of their collective bargaining agreement in 2017 to gain more access to the $24 billion in revenues coming to the league because of the NBA's new TV deal.

The league enjoyed huge TV ratings -- the highest in nearly two decades -- with the Cavs-Warriors Finals, and the salary cap is expected to rise by about $40 million over the next two seasons. And yet, last week NBA commissioner Adam Silver said "a significant number of teams" are losing money.

In October, months before James was a union VP, he said such a statement from owners "will not fly with us this time." He was referring to the contentious contract dispute between the players and owners in 2011 which resulted in a lockout that was ended when (the players believe) large concessions were made to address the owners' financial woes.

Now, James has a seat at the negotiating table.

"I can't speak for LeBron, I think LeBron spoke pretty well for himself. I took him at his word, I take him at his word," said Michele Roberts, executive director for the players' union. "It's a difficult pill to swallow, given all that even the commissioner has said about the health of the game. I can't speak for what may have motivated that; I assume he was given information that's not the information I've seen."

Roberts said James will "bring a certain amount of excitement" to Monday's meetings.

"We all look forward to watching and hearing how he'll interact with the players," she said. "This is an important time for the game and it is critical that we have some of our marquee players involved in the discussion."

There are other issues on the union's plate. Remember when James stepped on or fell over cameramen during the playoffs who were too close to the court? Or when teams would purposefully foul Tristan Thompson away from the ball to force him to shoot free throws? Those are just two examples.

"Obviously he's the best player in our league, so for him to be in the forefront and support that, it kind of holds weight," said Celtics guard Evan Turner. "Sometimes when you have his stature and you feel strongly about a situation, it might get handled quicker than if the 58^th guy in the league feels that way.

"We need everybody to be a part of things. I definitely think he's a trendsetter, and for him to get involved is definitely key for our process."