It sounds like the deal the players rejected a couple weeks ago is basically the deal the players accepted yesterday. The players' anti-trust law suit didn't accomplish much if anything, and the small-market teams must have gone along with the basics of the deal that Stern put on the table two weeks ago.
Having a stiff luxury tax or even a hard cap isn't going to create parity in the league. The real question is whether small-market teams are going to be able to keep their star players or not, and what can these small-market teams do to make players want to come there and stay there?? I think that has to do with tv contracts and merchandising.
Another question hidden in all of this might be whether small markets can afford to compete for top coaches, but at the end of the day savvy ownership and GMs make or break the franchise with the hires they make--including players and coaches. Mike Brown in LA? Yeah, good luck with that.