Over the course of the last 37 years, Ozzie and Dan Silna collected approximately $300 million from the NBA and four of its teams thanks to an agreement the brothers forged as part of the 1976 ABA-NBA merger.

As owners of the Spirits of St. Louis, the Silnas agreed to give up their dream to bring their team into the NBA in exchange for one-seventh of the television revenues of the four teams -- the Nuggets, Nets, Spurs and Pacers -- that joined the league.

An announcement will be made Tuesday that the NBA and the teams have come to an agreement that will allow them to minimize future financial exposure with a new TV deal on the horizon. The four teams will invest in the Spirits' entity in exchange for an accelerated up-front payment.
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