How NBA’s coronavirus stoppage could affect player pay, salary cap

The NBA finds itself in a place unlike any other time.

With Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert testing positive for the coronavirus, the league suspended its season on Wednesday night. ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported Thursday morning that Gobert's teammate Donovan Mitchell tested positive for the virus as well.

Jazz star Donovan Mitchell has tested positive for the coronavirus, league sources tell ESPN. Jazz players privately say that Rudy Gobert had been careless in the locker room touching other players and their belongings. Now a Jazz teammate has tested positive.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) March 12, 2020

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While there is pessimism around the league that the season will resume at all, the NBA does plan to continue play eventually if possible. But what happens in the meantime?

Players almost certainly still will be paid. Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban rightfully said Wednesday now that he will find ways to pay employees of American Airlines Center, home of the Mavericks.

Mark Cuban says he's going to put a program in place to take care of Mavericks concession workers and others making hourly pay who will lose work time due to NBA coronavirus shutdown pic.twitter.com/hbCWnMI8H5
— Gifdsports (@gifdsports) March 12, 2020

ESPN's Bobby Marks reported Wednesday night that there is a provision in the collective bargaining agreement that could allow the NBA to not pay players for missed games during events, including an epidemic.

According to the Collective Bargaining Agreement, Article XXXIX, section 5, players lose 1/92.6 of their salary for every game missed as a result of a Force Majeure Event ("FME") -- this refers to events or conditions that makes it impossible for the NBA to perform its obligation under the CBA.

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The following events are covered: "wars or war-like action (whether actual or threatened and whether conventional or other, including, but not limited to, chemical or biological wars or war-like action); sabotage, terrorism or threats of sabotage or terrorism; explosions; epidemics; weather or natural disasters, including, but not limited to, fires, floods, droughts, hurricanes, tornadoes, storms or earthquakes; and any governmental order or action (civil or military); provided, however, that none of the foregoing enumerated events or conditions is within the reasonable control of the NBA or an NBA Team."

Missed games obviously will affect the salary cap going forward as well. The 2020-21 salary cap already has dropped from $116 to $115 million as a result of a projected loss of $200 million or more in revenue from China.

Marks projects a loss of $500 million in basketball-related income before the playoffs if the NBA season were to continue without fans in attendance.

This is uncharted territory, there's no other way to say it.