Cavs may be big player in free-agent market
Although no new contracts can be signed until July 22 when the new collective
bargaining agreement goes into effect, solid verbal agreements are very often
reached weeks before contracts are signed. Consequently, nobody was happier
than the long distance phone providers as the auction began in earnest.
The Cleveland Cavaliers are the lightning rod for much of what will transpire
over the next few weeks. Girded by a new billionaire owner in Dan Gilbert,
$28 million in salary cap space and a cornerstone in young LeBron James, new
general manager Danny Ferry and new coach Mike Brown are presiding over the
most important summer in franchise history.
But they are not alone in the market, just the best positioned to make a
splash.
In a more creative manner, the New Jersey Nets will also be significant
players, if only because this team built around Jason Kidd, Vince Carter and
Richard Jefferson has a chance to make a move in the East. They also have two
exceptions to play with as they try to rebuild their frontcourt — the
mid-level one that everyone over the cap has (which will begin at $5 million
or more), and a $4.9 million exception from a trade.
The Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Bobcats, Los Angeles Clippers and New Orleans
Hornets all have significant money to burn under the cap. But they will need
more than money to convince top-drawer free agents to come aboard, considering
most players' desire to compete at a higher level than those teams have
performed.
The list of unrestricted free agents is topped by shooting guards Ray Allen,
Michael Redd and Larry Hughes, while center Zydrunas Ilgauskas, and forwards
Shareef Abdur-Rahim, Donyell Marshall, Antoine Walker, Bobby Simmons and
Stromile Swift are also very attractive. And once Antonio Daniels opts out of
his contract with Seattle, he'll be a classic mid-level draw because he plays
both guard positions, with the other available point guard types — Earl
Watson, Tyronn Lue, Keyon Dooling and Damon Jones — down another rung.
The new CBA still strongly favors teams retaining their free agents,
considering they can offer six-year deals with 10 percent raises as opposed
to five years and eight percent bumps from a new team. Generally speaking,
that can account for a difference of $10-15 million over the duration of the
deal. Then again, there are also states like Washington, Texas and Florida
that do not have state income tax, which provides the Sonics, Spurs, Mavericks
, Rockets, Magic and Heat at least a seven percent leeway
compared to the other 24 teams.
Allen tops the list of free agents as he approaches his 30th birthday later
this month, and comes from a team in Seattle that is clearly wobbling heading
into the summer. The five-time All-Star is coming off a season in which he
averaged a career-high 23.9 points while leading the Sonics out of nowhere to
the Northwest Division title, and to Game 6 of the conference semifinals
against the Spurs. The Sonics, who have been crying poor for several years,
have had a five-year, $75 million contract on the table for months, which any
number of other teams can match. They also have to deal with Daniels,
unrestricted centers Jerome James and Vitaly Potapenko, and restricted free
agents Vladimir Radmanovic, Reggie Evans, Flip Murray and Damien Wilkins.
In other words, Allen may be the priority, but there's plenty of work for
general manager Rick Sund. Oh yeah, that's not to mention coach Nate McMillan
about to embark on his Tour de NBA as a coach without a deal. So Allen, always
his own man, is ready and willing to listen to anybody — including Milwaukee
and Cleveland.
The Cavs figure to have an Ohio edge in their desire to land Redd and Daniels
— both are natives of Columbus — with James (Akron) and Eric Snow (Canton)
preaching Buckeye State loyalty. But Redd may be leaning toward staying in
Milwaukee for the money, although they have no coach yet. Besides, Ferry's
first priority appears to be preventing his former teammate Ilgauskas from
leaving. His defense and rebounding deficiencies aside, 7-foot-3 All-Star
centers with his shooting touch don't grow on trees. The Knicks have
continuously made overtures toward him, but Ferry is pushing every button
imaginable.
Radmanovic is hardly the most desirable restricted free agent out there,
either. Young Phoenix guard Joe Johnson has superstar written all over him and
the Suns cleared even more salary space for the future by unloading Quentin
Richardson to the Knicks, so expect them to match anything Johnson is offered.
And then there are all the young big men — Samuel Dalembert, Eddy Curry,
Tyson Chandler and Kwame Brown — sporting that restricted free agent tag. It
isn't likely the Sixers, Bulls and Wizards respectively, will allow them to
leave; teams have 14 days to match all offers for their restricted free agents.
But orchestrating a sign-and-trade in lieu of an offer sheet isn't out of the
question either.
That's what some unrestricted free agents like Abdur-Rahim are hoping for, but
he has been destined to land on the Nets for so long and they don't have much
to give up. A $70 million deal like last time won't come again, but even if
he gets $30 million from the Nets, he can probably survive on the total ...
not to mention they may sign Marshall too.
And lastly, there will be one more line of free agents coming to a market
near you ... the amnesty crowd after the new CBA is invoked. Teams steep in
luxury tax will have one shot to avoid that dollar-for-dollar tax by letting
go a player with a multi-year deal. The top candidates are Allan Houston,
Michael Finley, Jalen Rose and Brian Grant — and considering they'll still
be getting paid their huge contracts by their former team, they'll likely go
to good teams under market value just for a chance to win.
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