The league giving up and acquiescing is not how I proved it.

Showing how the league has every right to cancel the season due to the language in the present CBA
... is how I proved it.

Our debate was never about WILL the league cancel the season.
It was about COULD the league cancel the season.
Hell, we don't even know if the league ever actually threatened to cancel the season!
What we do know is that the league asked the players to defer more money according to the spirit of the CBA
... and that the players replied "Nope, we'll take more than our 50% this year and let future players pay that back."
End. Of. Story.