Report: New CBA expected to be finalized in early December

The NBA and National Basketball Players Association have until Dec. 15 to decide whether they'll opt out of their current collective-bargaining agreement, and they'll reportedly have a new deal in place by then.

The two sides expect to finalize the next CBA in early December, a source told The Ringer's Kevin O'Connor on Tuesday.

The successful ongoing negotiations have been facilitated by mutual cooperation between commissioner Adam Silver and NBPA director Michele Roberts, who have developed "a relationship built on mutual respect and trust," O'Connor reports.

With league revenues exploding, neither players nor owners had any interest in the prospect of a work stoppage. As such, they agreed early on that their basketball-related income split - which was the biggest sticking point in the contentious, lockout-forcing 2011 negotiations - would remain the same as it is under the current CBA. The players will continue to earn between 49 and 51 percent (the specific share dependent on revenue figures for each given season) of BRI.

However, on top of minor tweaks to the preseason schedule and domestic-violence policy, the new CBA is expected to have a more comprehensive definition of what is considered BRI, O'Connor reports.

The players and their outside counsel "found a number of areas where owners in the past were able to keep some parts of revenue out of BRI," a source told O'Connor. One example of that is arena luxury suites, which owners have been able to sell to companies year-round for multiple events while excluding the revenue those suites generate specifically from NBA games from BRI.

"The union has effectively argued those things belong in BRI," the source told O'Connor. "They've expanded the definition. So in addition to the game just growing overall, they've increased the pie themselves."

A source also said the union "probably got their way on 70 to 80 percent of the issues" in the upcoming CBA, according to O'Connor.

"There's generally a spirit on both sides that the game is healthier, stronger, and they have a really good thing going. It'd be stupid to blow that up."