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Week 3: Case Study - Negotiation and the NBA
Background
Whether you’re a basketball fan or not, it’s impossible to deny the NBA is a major force of both American
culture and the economy. The NBA’s 2018–2019 season generated nearly $10 billion in revenue. NBA
merchandise sells in countries all across the globe, and the players themselves remain prominent cultural
icons and figures in the media. However, in spite of the organization’s economic and cultural successes,
it’s not always smooth sailing within the ranks of the NBA. As is the case with any workplace, there are
frequent tensions between the players and their management. With so many commercial partnerships
and the media involved in their games, these tensions can frequently become the subject of intense
scrutiny by the press and the general public.
Today, the 1998–1999 NBA Lockout is remembered as one of the most prolonged and bitter fights in
sports history. At the time, the conflict between the players and team owners was so acrimonious, the
season itself actually had to be shortened. Of course, they were eventually able to reach a resolution and
go on playing, but not without fighting a tough uphill battle.
This assignment begins with a case study set in a fictional NBA team, the Honolulu Hawks. The events of
the case study feature a negotiation which takes place between a player for the Honolulu Hawks and a
representative from the team manager’s office. Notate the important information about the negotiation, as
well as the negotiation techniques that are being displayed, as that information will be helpful to you when
you create your assignment.
Case Study
Jordy is a basketball player for the Honolulu Hawks who has just had an incredible season in the National
Basketball League. He wants to renegotiate his contract with a representative from the team manager’s
office, Leilani, as he feels undervalued as a player given his performance in the league.
When they meet in the conference room, Jordy makes sure to thank Leilani for taking the time to sit down
with him, as he knows that the office operations for running a basketball team are quite hectic. Leilani tells
Jordy she appreciates that and asks him how his ankle is feeling. She recalls that toward the end of the
season, Jordy had to sit out of a few games after rolling his ankle after going for a rebound. Jordy lets her
know it’s gotten a lot better after spending some time with the team’s physical trainer, and thanks her for
asking. They are already off to a great start.
Leilani invites Jordy to take a seat and asks him what it is he’d like to talk about today, giving him the
opportunity to fully express his perspective on this matter. Jordy begins by telling her that he signed his
contract as a college sophomore, before he’d fully physically developed and reached his peak
performance as a basketball player. Now that he’s risen to one of the most competitive players in the
league, even though he still has three years of his contract left, he deserves the opportunity to be given a
contract commensurate to his stature in the game. If that’s not possible, then he’d like to be traded to a
team that will pay him for what he’s worth. He emphasizes the fact that he has no hard feelings about
this, but that his responsibility to himself and his family is to earn the best salary he can in the league.
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Week 3: Case Study - Negotiation and the NBA
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Leilani nods and lets Jordy know she fully understands where he is coming from and that the Hawks
office has no malicious intentions when it comes to his salary. Unfortunately, they are still not a major
franchise in the league and are therefore limited in their options for compensation. Jordy asks Leilani why
then a veteran player like Billy Pilgrim is making nearly twice his salary even though Pilgrim’s only playing
in two thirds the number of games. Leilani informs Jordy that deal was made not in isolation, but in
conjunction with another trade the Hawks made with the Anchorage Aardvarks. Jordy tells her he did not
know this before.
Leilani asks Jordy if she’s correct in assuming that he is fully committed to leaving the Honolulu Hawks if
they are not able to pay him the salary he desires. Jordy says for him it’s not such a cut and dry issue, but
if they were to walk away from the negotiating table today without making steps toward showing they
value him as a player, then he would take it as a sign it may be time to move on. Leilani asks Jordy if
there is a specific number he has in mind, and Jordy tells her that he’d certainly have to be making more
than a player like Billy Pilgrim. Leilani asks Jordy what exactly it is that’s important to him, being paid
more, or being paid more than Billy Pilgrim. Jordy doesn’t answer right away, but leans back in his chair
as if thinking to himself.
At this point, Leilani informs Jordy that while she’s happy to continue discussing his salary, she feels he
should know that ultimately, she does not have the authority to make any decision on her own, and that
any change to his current pay would have to be made by upper management. She advises him to
approach his agent for help in contacting upper management so that he can negotiate with them directly.
Jordy seems somewhat disappointed by what she is saying, so Leilani adds that technically, she’s not
certain whether she should even be advising him to take these steps, but that she likes him and
understands his frustrations and wants to help him in the ways she can to negotiate a better deal for
himself.
At Jordy’s request, Leilani agrees to discuss some hypothetical negotiation scenarios with him in order to
help him better understand how to advocate for himself and hone in on what he truly seeks to gain from a
negotiation with upper management. For instance, Jordy proposes that a fair solution would be for the
Hawks to double his current salary for the remainder of his contract while also giving him the opportunity
to negotiate for an even higher salary once his contract runs out and he becomes a free agent. Leilani
reminds him that in thinking of options during the negotiation, he should be mindful of the team’s budget,
as well as how a particular raise would play out with the rest of the team. She asks him to consider what
the effect would be on the team’s morale if all the other players knew he’d doubled his pay while the rest
of them were earning the same amount.
Jordy makes the argument that not only is he raising the team’s esteem in the league, but his
merchandise is becoming more popular, resulting in greater revenue for the team. He suggests perhaps
he could be paid more from that revenue. Leilani says thinking about merchandise is definitely a step in
the right direction.
Jordy does not seem entirely satisfied, so Leilani continues talking. She tells Jordy she knows that not
only is he a force to be reckoned with on the court, but she can tell he’s a sharp thinker and knows how to
advocate for himself. She then goes on to bring up the fact that a large part of Jordy’s brand and appeal
is that he is a native Hawaiian player. He seems to contemplate this. She asks him if he believes that with
three more years playing for the Hawks, he might even win a championship playing for his home state.
He would become an international star, as opposed to making slightly more as a decent player in the
roster of a major franchise? Jordy agrees that’s a good point.
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Week 3: Case Study - Negotiation and the NBA
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He thanks her for all her help and informs her that he’s going to follow her advice and get in touch with his
agent on his way home. Leilani tells him she’s glad she could help. Jordy says he feels like he’s made the
right choice, and Leilani agrees. He and Leilani shake hands.
Later, Jordy contacts his agent after his meeting with Leilani to fill his agent in on the details of his
conversation with Leilani, including some of the hypothetical options they devised together. After a few
days, Jordy’s agent organizes a meeting with the Honolulu Hawks executive leadership, including the
owner, CEO, and Merchandise Director to present on Jordy’s financial and career interests.
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