The NBA has submitted to the National Basketball Players Association an official proposal to bring the age of 19 to 19 years of age back into the project, told TODAY Sports USA a person informed of the proposal.

The person requested anonymity because she was not allowed to publicly discuss discussions between the league and the union.

The ANPNB and its CEO, Michele Roberts, had planned to review the proposal Monday at a meeting that would take place on the weekend after the all-star game in the Bahamas.

The league and union have had informal discussions on lowering the age limit and NBA commissioner Adam Silver said the current 19-year age limit was not working. not for college league or basketball.

This is the first step in formal negotiations to lower the age limit by 2022. The issue is collectively negotiated between the NBA and the NBPA and both parties must accept any rule changes.

Adam Silver, NBA Commissioner, at the All-Star 2019 weekend. (Photo11: Bob Donnan, USA TODAY Sports)

The timing of the proposal coincides with The injury of Zion Williamson, Duke star, has revived the debate about college players who might otherwise come into play after high school rather than spending a season at the university and bypassing millions of dollars .

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At the meeting of the NBA's owners in July, Silver told reporters, "My personal opinion is that we are ready to make that change. … When I weighed the pros and cons, knowing that Condoleezza Rice and her commission (On College Basketball) recommended to the NBA that these players unanimously now enter the league directly and saying that we do not want anymore of these players. This makes me think that we should seriously consider reducing our age to 18 years. "

Why draft 2022? The league wants to give the teams enough time to prepare for the change and now that the NBA is submitting a proposal to the union, it is clear that it would prefer to reach an agreement, or at least a framework for it. agreement, in the coming months. .

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