Salary caps will be introduced in the new league that will start in 2026, with B League Chairman Shimada Shinji’s thoughts (part 2) “Decisions are made with a big picture” | Basketball comprehensive information site Basket Count BASKET COUNT

BThe league is10It’s finally time for the moon10The year is upon us. And the following year2026-27In the season,B.It starts with a new format under the name “Innovation”. In the first part, we asked B League Chairman Shimada Shinji about the process and intention of introducing the “Salary Cap System,” the highlight of this new format, but in the second part, we asked fans to talk about things that are difficult to understand, such as interactions with players who are heavily influenced by the Salary Cap, and the broad-special aims that the league looks at.

I have been interacting with the players’ association repeatedly.

──As I mentioned earlier, salary caps are a major factor that directly translates to players’ income. However, there are some parts that are difficult to deal with, as the current players’ association is not an organization that can negotiate labor and management with the league.

As you said, the current players’ association is not an organization that can negotiate labor and management, so I’m not going to say, “You should do that,” but I think it’s okay to become that.

The fact that the player association has the right to negotiate between labor and management, and that a company can create a labor union means that the decisions have been made between the board of directors and the executive committee will be added to the one-stop dialogue with the players association. To be honest, there are aspects of the process being required differently than before, and it is more time-consuming, but I also feel uncomfortable making decisions without communicating with important stakeholders such as players, so I am clear that “let’s create a situation where we can negotiate as a labor and management organization as soon as possible” and “Even if we can’t do that, we will not ignore the players and make decisions.”

I have had many discussions with the athletes’ association myself, and I have been communicating with the league’s competition management members as well as lawyers from the athletes’ association. In particular, regarding proposals that are directly related to interests, we have also conducted a survey asking, “This is the intention of the league. What do you think of the players?” The athletes’ association is not an organization that can negotiate labor and management, so they do not negotiate it.

──You’re facing the players firmly, both as a league and as a chairman.

The fans may not see it, but they communicate well. However, the player association currently does not have an organization such as a secretariat, so there are some cases where the “common consensus of players is this” does not reach the league in a proper way. It is also interesting to see how many players read the minutes of the meetings that were sent to all players who belong to the group, saying that they had a meeting like this with the league.

Salary caps and on the coats2fromIn 3I understand that in response to the increase, some negative opinions have been raised by the players. However, the important thing is to first distribute funds to management. As each club grows from now on, the salary cap limit will naturally rise, and by setting not only the salary cap limit but also the lower limit, we are creating an environment where labor costs for the entire league will increase from now on. The players explain, “This system will create opportunities for players to receive more annual salary than they have now, and there will be more matches that are in opposition.”

I want to eliminate market size differences as much as possible

–I get the impression that the new league’s intentions, such as “the system creates opportunities to win even if they have poor financial strength,” “giving hope for small market teams,” and “encouraging regional revitalization,” which we discussed this time, have not reached the fans well. I would like to ask you about your thoughts on this point again.

From now on, the B League would like to promote competition by eliminating as much unbelievable issues as possible, such as “differences in market size.” We want to liven up local clubs without shaking the momentum of powerful clubs as much as possible. Today’s Japanese society faces a major social problem in which rural areas become depopulated due to the concentration of centralized areas in the metropolitan area, but we would like to improve this issue in basketball. The underlying desire is to create a system that gives hope to local clubs and revitalize the region.

By creating a system in which local clubs can win, local business circles will think, “I thought that clubs in big cities would advance to the top every year, but I guess that’s not the case,” and will motivate our fans and sponsors to support them. They are also trying to spark movements in local governments who think, “If there’s a club like this, it would be nice to set up arenas. I think holding concerts will improve the local economy.”

In this way, the league makes various decisions with a broad perspective. In each section, there are also some system defects, but if you are concerned about each and every one, you can’t do anything. By evaluating the fact that they are taking on challenges that are different from other sports organizations, the number of sponsors will increase, and large companies will continue to enter the management of clubs. I think there are some parts that are difficult for fans to understand. However, we would appreciate your understanding that we are currently working on various things, including salary caps, in order to further develop the league through regional revitalization.