The NBA will discuss at its Board of Governors meeting later this month the gap between its most profitable teams and those that are losing money — as many as nine franchises even after revenue-sharing payouts — ESPN.com reported Tuesday, citing confidential NBA financial records it had obtained.

According to the in-depth report by ESPN.com, "despite a flood of new national television cash, 14 of the NBA's 30 teams lost money last season," with five getting out of the red only because of the league's revenue-sharing system.

At the heart of the matter: The NBA's richest are still getting rich, but they're having to share more of their profits with teams in smaller markets that are having a hard time keeping up with a rapidly escalating salary cap. 

An expanding gap between the haves, who make huge profits even while paying luxury taxes, and the have-nots could threaten competitive balance, the theory being that the NBA's most profitable teams could hoard stars in an era increasingly of so-called "super teams."

That remains a theory, for now, as the team that reported the largest net profit in 2016-17 also was one of its worst, the Lakers (26-56), who finished with a $115 million profit as measured by net income even after a $49 million revenue-sharing payment, the league's accounting showed.

Remember that L.A. has been a rumored destination for LeBron James if he opts out of his contract next summer, and those kinds of enormous profits put the Lakers in a very good spot financially.

Meanwhile, at the opposite end of the spectrum, per ESPN: "The nine teams that lost money, by the league's accounting for net income (which includes revenue sharing and luxury tax payments), were the Atlanta Hawks, Brooklyn Nets, Cleveland Cavaliers, Detroit Pistons, Memphis Grizzlies, Milwaukee Bucks, Orlando Magic, San Antonio Spurs and Washington Wizards."

That has led to the plan for a half-day devoted to owners reviewing the revenue-sharing system during the Board of Governors meeting Sept. 27-28 in New York.