NEW YORK – Multiple sources predict a 78-game NBA season will be staged if the players and owners can compromise on the revenue split by next weekend, the New York Post reported Sunday.
After hatcheting November's games following another labor negotiation breakdown, NBA commissioner David Stern proclaimed officially Friday that there is no longer a chance of squeezing in an 82-game schedule with a Dec. 1 starting date.
But the predictions of a 68-game slate currently officially listed on team websites will prove inaccurate if there are no further cancellations and if the sides settle next week.
"Anything is possible," one union source said. "If the handshake is a week later, it's a week less of games."
That would point toward a 78-game slate. The final schedule has to be an even number, sources said.
Several contingency schedules have been compiled by NBA schedule-maker Matt Winick, pending the season's starting date. The schedule is made from scratch, pending the availability of arenas.
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