NBA Offseason / Summer 2011

[Ridders]

Wilson Chandler said he has signed a contract with the Zhejiang Guangsha of the Chinese Basketball Association, a move that would essentially preclude him from participating in the 2011-12 NBA season if the lockout ends and the games begin.

The Chinese Basketball Association will not allow players with existing contracts to sign with its teams, so playing in China is only an option for free agents such as Chandler, a restricted free agent who finished the 2010-11 season with the Denver Nuggets.

In addition, the CBA will not allow escape clauses that would allow players to leave the Chinese league in the event the NBA resumes operations. So Chandler would not be a part of the NBA if the season begins on time or even with an abbreviated schedule starting in January or February.

"Maybe I'll lose out," Chandler said. "But I think it can be a great experience. I haven't been in any [labor negotiation] meetings. I can't call it. I'm just taking a risk, at the end of the day."

In theory Chandler could rejoin the league on a prorated basis for part of the season if the NBA is playing in April. Only the CBA finalists were still playing in April last season, so unless the Lions are among the last two battling for the championship Chandler would be available for the end of the NBA regular season if the usual schedule is followed.

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/6907302/wilson-chandler-signs-contract-chinese-team

Very interesting decision by him, considering the restrictions that the China Basketball Association will place on players there in regards to opt-out clauses.

I guess he's counting on the lock-out cutting into a big chunk of the season.

 

[Fast Eddie]

For a while I thought he was going to come back to the Knicks.

 

[Ridders]

The agent for DeJuan Blair says the San Antonio Spurs forward has signed to play in Russia during the lockout.

Happy Walters wrote on his Twitter page Friday night that Blair would play "against some great teams and will use the extra minutes to get ready for the season, stay in shape and work on new areas of his game."

Yahoo Sports! reported the deal was with Krasnye Krylya Samara and contained an opt-out clause allowing Blair to return when the lockout ends.

Blair averaged 8.3 points and 7.0 rebounds in his second NBA season, helping the Spurs win 61 games.

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/6...-antonio-spurs-dejuan-blair-signs-play-russia

 

[Ridders]

MINNEAPOLIS -- The Minnesota Timberwolves have announced that they are hiring Rick Adelman as their next coach.

News of Adelman's deal first came out Monday, and the Timberwolves made the official announcement Tuesday morning. An introductory news conference will be held once the contract is signed, but scheduling conflicts mean that is unlikely to happen this week.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/6964847/minnesota-timberwolves-announce-rick-adelman-head-coach

Good hire imo.

 

[ceagle]

Owners and players initially found reason for optimism during Tuesday's meetings. Commissioner David Stern and Peter Holt, the head of the owners' executive committee, felt that the players' proposal to take 52 or 53 percent of basketball-related income, compared to 57 under the previous agreement, was basically fair, sources said.

Owners were seriously considering coming off of their demand for a salary freeze and would allow players' future earnings to be tied into the league's revenue growth, a critical point for players. The owners also were willing to allow the players to maintain their current salaries, without rollbacks, sources said.

But when the owners left the players to meet among themselves for around three hours, Cleveland's Dan Gilbert and Phoenix's Robert Sarver expressed their dissatisfaction with many of the points, sources said. The sources said that the Knicks' James Dolan and the Lakers' Jerry Buss were visibly annoyed by the hardline demands of Gilbert and Sarver.

http://www.iamagm.com/news/2011/09/...otential.deal.during.tuesdays.big.cba.meeting

They seem to be getting closer, but f**k Gilbert and Sarver

 

[Ridders]

Owners and players initially found reason for optimism during Tuesday's meetings. Commissioner David Stern and Peter Holt, the head of the owners' executive committee, felt that the players' proposal to take 52 or 53 percent of basketball-related income, compared to 57 under the previous agreement, was basically fair, sources said.

Owners were seriously considering coming off of their demand for a salary freeze and would allow players' future earnings to be tied into the league's revenue growth, a critical point for players. The owners also were willing to allow the players to maintain their current salaries, without rollbacks, sources said.

But when the owners left the players to meet among themselves for around three hours, Cleveland's Dan Gilbert and Phoenix's Robert Sarver expressed their dissatisfaction with many of the points, sources said. The sources said that the Knicks' James Dolan and the Lakers' Jerry Buss were visibly annoyed by the hardline demands of Gilbert and Sarver.

http://www.iamagm.com/news/2011/09/15/dan.gilbert.and.robert.sarver.killed.potential.deal.during.tuesdays.big.cba.meeting

They seem to be getting closer, but f**k Gilbert and Sarver

That is promising at least.

No surprise that one of the cheapest owners in the league (Sarver) would be holding things up.

 

[Tonearm Terrorwrist]

Is it any surprise the Lakers and Knicks are the ones royally pissed off?

 

[Ridders]

NEW YORK -- The NBA postponed training camps indefinitely and canceled 43 preseason games Friday because it has not reached a new labor deal with players.

All games from Oct. 9-15 are off, the league said. Camps were expected to open Oct. 3.

NBA.com's schedule page, which has a banner across the top listing the number of games on each day, was changed Friday morning to read "0 Games" for each date until Oct. 16, when there are four games.

"We have regretfully reached the point on the calendar where we are not able to open training camps on time and need to cancel the first week of preseason games," deputy commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement. "We will make further decisions as warranted."

The cancellations were expected after the latest meeting between owners and players Thursday ended without a collective bargaining agreement. Both sides still hope the entire regular season, scheduled to begin Nov. 1, can be saved.

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/7008269/nba-postpones-camps-cancels-43-preseason-games

Pretty disheartening. Bad signs for whats to come.

 

[ceagle]

Why can't the players just come to a compromise? They get paid ridiculous amounts of money anyway.

 

[HowHigh]

Agreed, whats a few million less when you're singing 100 million dollar contracts anyway

 

[andrew057]

Agreed, whats a few million less when you're singing 100 million dollar contracts anyway

What percentage of the league is signing 100mil contracts?

 

[Cartman]

This sucks, I remember the last locked out season it never felt right. Hopefully if we do get some games this season nobody comes back sweating cheese burgers Sean Kemp style.

I am trying to stay positive but I have not read anything that gives me any hope of the season starting on time.

 

[ceagle]

"The NBA canceled the remainder of the preseason Tuesday and will wipe out the first two weeks of the regular season if there is no labor agreement by Monday."

http://www.nba.com/2011/news/10/04/labor-tuesday.ap/index.html

Fuark.

 

[Nth-Qld-Raider]

So it comes down to an 11th hour meeting, gee I hope something gets sorted out soon, I don't want to many games being missed, I think I'll go crazy without NBA and NBA fantasy lol.

 

[ceagle]

The pre-season is already cancelled.

One side has to budge, I hope the players don't boycott the season.

 

[Nth-Qld-Raider]

The meeting today went for six hours, and they will meet again tomorrow, so fingers crossed I guess.

 

[ceagle]

The fact that they have agreed to meet again says that progress was made. If there wasn't, there wouldn't be a meeting tomorrow.

Keeping my fingers crossed

 

[ceagle]

Encouraging sign: Deal near on mid-level salary aspect


NEW YORK -- In one small but encouraging sign in the last-minute negotiations between the NBA and the National Basketball Players Association on a new collective bargaining agreement, a source who has been briefed on the discussions between the two sides said Monday afternoon that the sides are close to an agreement on one "system" aspect that has proven troublesome -- a new, shorter mid-level exception for free agents.

http://www.nba.com/2011/news/features/david_aldridge/10/10/encouraging-sign/

 

[Ridders]

*sigh*

And so it begins...

NEW YORK -- Saying he was sad and sorry, NBA commissioner David Stern canceled the first two weeks of the season Monday after players and owners were unable to reach a new labor deal to end the lockout.

"The gap is so significant that we just can't bridge it at this time," said Stern, who added it's doubtful a full 82-game season can be played.
"We certainly hoped it would never come to this," he said of the NBA's first work stoppage since the 1998-99 season was reduced to 50 games.

"This is not where we choose to be," union president Derek Fisher said. "We're not at a place where a fair deal can be reached with the NBA."

With just three weeks remaining before the start of the season, top negotiators for both sides met for more than seven hours Monday but were unable to reach an agreement.

The two sides expect to remain in contact, but no additional formal talks have been scheduled.

Stern said both sides are "very far apart on virtually all issues. ... We just have a gulf that separates us."

Opening night was scheduled for Nov. 1, and the cancellation includes all games scheduled to be played through Nov. 14. Affected arenas have been authorized to release dates for those dates.

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/7085089/nba-labor-david-stern-cancels-first-two-weeks-nba-season

 

[Ridders]

Dwight Howard sounds frustrated in Orlando



Has Dwight Howard out-grown Orlando?

Magic star Dwight Howard, in an interview with Esquire’s Scott Raab, said, “I just don’t know what else I can do” in Orlando when asked about his free-agent future. Asked by Raab if he sees himself in a much larger market, Howard said, “There’s more you can do in a bigger place. I’m stuck in a tough position because I feel like right now, where I’m at, I’ve done so much.

“And I just don’t know what else I can do. I can’t live for everybody else. I don’t know what decision I’m gonna make as of right now. It’s been crazy. Everybody wants me to come here, come play here, come to our team, do this. It’s a great feeling, though, to be wanted.”

Raab, who apparently just met Howard, says, “You’re gone. I can feel it.”

Howard responds, “The toughest part for me is the city — the people. They’ve got burgers named after me in Orlando, they’ve got a Web site saying, “Please stay.” I love the people in the city. I’ve literally sat on the bench with a towel on my head crying, because I feel the passion in the stands. I just think about what’s going to be best for what I want to accomplish in my life. And I don’t want that door to close on me, wherever that door is. I don’t want it to close.”

http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/sp...ight-howard-sounds-frustrated-in-orlando.html

Appears like more of Dwight positioning himself to leave. Wonder how the Magic will approach it? Will they go down the Cleveland path of waiting out and hoping that he resigns, or the Denver path of trying to ship him out and getting what they can for him?