For months, the NBA has been discussing an end to the Olympic basketball Dream Team movement and delivering its superstars to a proposed rebranding of the world championships called "The World Cup of Basketball."
For the use of its most marketable players, the league office and many NBA owners are determined to create a financial partnership with FIBA for a World Cup that would allow the NBA to significantly share in the windfall of revenues.
"The owners would be a lot more comfortable letting star players play internationally if they’re sharing in the revenue," one league source told Yahoo! Sports.
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Sounds like it's just a way to make more money and to give owners' more control to limit players' injuries.