It's time to play ball.

After 149 days spent existing in an almost apocalyptic lockout wasteland, the NBA looks set to resume on Christmas Day. It still took a marathon meeting spanning more than 15 hours in New York overnight to bring about the long-awaited resolution but ultimately a deal was struck.

It took just one sentence from NBA Commissioner, David Stern, to render the litany of doomsday-ish dialogue that has dominated all lockout talk in recent weeks null and void.

"We want to play basketball", Stern said in the early hours of the Manhattan morning.

The deal - that still needs to be ratified by players and owners - will result in a 66-game schedule, with the first games to be played on December 25. Training camps will open on December 9, with free agency beginning at the same time, leaving just two weeks for teams to work out the kinks before tip-off.

The three games to begin the season are likely to remain those that are already scheduled: Boston at New York, Miami at Dallas and Chicago at the Los Angeles Lakers, providing a trio of marquee clashes to kick start the season.

The handshake agreement that is in place does not mean that all hurdles have been overcome, the main obstacles being the two pending lawsuits that players filed against the NBA. Also, the Players Union needs to be reinstated after it was dissolved earlier this month.

But Stern and Billy Hunter - head of the Players Union - expressed their utmost confidence in the proposed deal being agreed upon. While all the specifics of the new arrangement are not known, some details have emerged.

The agreement is set to be a 10-year deal, yet both parties will have an option to opt out after six. The division of Basketball Related Income (BRI) was a sticking point throughout the negotiations, but according to SheridanHoops.com, players will receive 51% of revenue in the new deal.

In other key points, rookie salary scales and veteran minimum's will remain at the same level they were under the last agreement, even though owners were reportedly seeking a 12% decrease in both categories. Also - without sounding too much like an accountant - teams will have increased manoeuverability in regards to the salary cap and the signing of players.

From an ownership angle, added restrictions and more punitive tax rates on teams that exceed the luxury tax threshold is a seen to be a ‘win'. The general consensus is that the new system will result in more competitive balance than existed under the previous agreement.

The deal also includes an "amnesty" clause, meaning teams will be allowed to cut one player from their roster, and the salary will not fully count against the salary cap.

Also, the concessions made by the players - mainly in the split of BRI - could be worth $3 billion over the life of the deal.

Yet, it wasn't a complete loss for the players, they arguably have ended up with the short end of the stick.

In a very narrow focus, Australian Patty Mills is potentially a big loser in the deal. After having spent the past few months playing in Australia, waiting for the resumption of the NBA; Mills signed to play in China on Sunday. As per the agreement he signed with the Chinese League, he will not be able to leave his new home until the 31^st of March, making playing in the upcoming NBA season all but impossible.

It's unfortunate for Mills that he appears to have missed out by just five days.

But, ultimately basketball fans are the big winners.

The past month has been littered with optimistic talks between the two parties, only for a deal to continue to remain elusive. As a result, the possibility of the entire season being lost stopped being an end-game prospect, instead becoming a highly plausible reality.

None of that matters now. Providing the deal is signed over the weekend, the NBA is back in business.

And not a moment too soon.