The NBA Is Back! Owners And Players Finally Reach A Deal

It’s about time!
The NBA and the Players Association has finally reached a deal, ending the five-month lockout.
After 16 hours of negotiations on Friday, both sides reached an agreement and shook hands a little after 3 am ET.
Players will vote no later than the middle of next week. Both sides must still get a majority vote from the 29 owners and 450 players to finalize the agreement.
NBA commissioner David Stern said:

“The reason for the settlement was we├óΓé¼Γäóve got fans, we├óΓé¼Γäóve got players who would like to play and we├óΓé¼Γäóve got others who are dependent on us. And it├óΓé¼Γäós always been our goal to reach a deal that was fair to both sides and get us playing as soon as possible, but that took a little time.”

The delayed 2011-2012 season will FINALLY start Dec. 25.
Merry Christmas!
[Image via WENN.]