If you have come to the point that you would like to terminate the agent/player contract, it is not a difficult process. There are, however, a few things to consider.
You can terminate the contract with your agent at any time according to the latest FIBA rules that took effect in January 2022. The rule states, “The contract between an agent and a player can be terminated by either party, notifying the other party about it 30 days in advance.”
This means that your agent is still TECHNICALLY your agent for 30 days after the notification letter that the contract is being terminated. Of course, we all know that after receiving that letter, no agent will be thrilled with doing anything for you during those 30 days so it will be imperative that the timing of the termination letter is done with the utmost thought since no one will be protecting you in the case of a situation that your agent would normally be there for support.
For example, if you are already having trouble with the situation and team, it might not be wise to fire an agent. Your situation should be as calm as possible.
Another reason why timing is so important is that during those 30 days you are not allowed to sign another contract with an agent or team. If you do sign another contract with a team during that time, for example, your current agent will still be entitled to the 10% commission. If your current agent stresses the issue, it might endanger your new deal because teams do not like to be involved with commission stress between agents. They could rescind the contract offer to avoid the stress.
It would be wise to have another agent on deck before you terminate the old agent, but just to be on the safe side, I would not sign a new agreement with the newer agent.
So how do you terminate the contract? There is not a lot that needs to be done. The most professional way would be to send an email to your agent. It does not have to be very long and you do not even have to state the reasoning behind your decision if you do not want to.
I would start by saying thank you for your agents’ hard work on your behalf. You never want to burn bridges so you should take care not to use inflammatory language or send a letter based on emotion. Simply state your intent to terminate the contract between you and the agent as of (Date) and that you are hereby giving the 30 days notice stipulated by FIBA.
That is pretty much it. If you would like to expound more and add the reasoning, that is your own choice, but it is not needed. As an added measure of security for yourself, you might want to add another member of the agency in CC, as well as FIBA itself. I do not have the email address of someone directly in FIBA to address the email to, but it cannot hurt if you send it to the normal FIBA email of info@fiba.basketball. That way, there is more documentation that the letter was sent. Maybe FIBA sends the mail back and asks you to send it to another department but it is still documented.
I do know of players canceling the contract via text messages. While probably still effective since there would be a time stamp and you will also be able to see if the message was read, I feel it is still rather impersonal to do so.
A player rarely stays with an agent for more than a few seasons so you do not have to feel guilty if you decide to part ways with your agent for whatever reason. It is part of the business and who knows, maybe one day, you might also get a letter from your agent wishing to terminate the working agreement. This is a business.
I think the most important thing is not to act off emotion and to make sure that your situation is as stable as it can be before terminating the contract with your agent. It would also be wise to have another option available because it is not always easy to find an agent. Sometimes it is better to have a bad agent than no agent at all so decide wisely.