NBA players consolidated their two lawsuits Monday, hoping to speed up the process that could lead to a settlement of the lockout.
The sides have not communicated since the talks fell apart and the players union disbanded Nov. 14.
The plaintiffs in Carmelo Anthony et al v. the NBA et al withdrew their antitrust complaint against the league Monday in Northern California's U.S. District Court and will join up with the other players lawsuit filed last week in Minnesota.
"The point is to expedite this and move it along. … If we had not done this, the courts would have," players attorney David Boies said.
The initial court date in California was set for March 9, and Boies hopes to have a court date in Minnesota in December.
Anthony remains the lead plaintiff on the new complaint and is joined by players previously on the Minnesota complaint and others. They are:
Caron Butler, Steve Nash, Kevin Durant, Baron Davis, Rajon Rondo, Chauncey Billups,Ben Gordon, Leon Powe, Kawhi Leonard, Anthony Randolph, Sebastian Telfair, Anthony Tolliver and Derrick Williams.
Yet another twist in the NBA lockout, that reached Day 144 on Monday. And the finger-pointing continues.
"We assume that Mr. Boies was not happy with either the reassignment of the case from Oakland to San Francisco or the fact that the new judge scheduled the first conference for March 2012," Rick Buchanan, NBA executive vice president and general counsel said in a statement.
"This is consistent with Mr. Boies' inappropriate shopping for a forum that he can only hope will be friendlier to his baseless legal claims."
Boies denied he was forum shopping, a legal term for searching for a court that might rule in favor of the plaintiff.
