timvp
07-09-2005, 01:49 AM
Nets hoping N.J. can charm Abdur-Rahim
http://www.nj.com/sports/ledger/index.ssf?/base/sports-0/112088709553130.xml&coll=1
Saturday, July 09, 2005
BY DAVE D'ALESSANDRO
Star-Ledger Staff
The Nets won't have long to wait.
Shareef Abdur Rahim and his wife have agreed on a timetable, and its length is a result of how comfortable they felt during their visit to New Jersey.
"I'll decide in maybe a week -- at the most," Abdur-Rahim said yesterday.
"As soon as possible," his wife, Dee, agreed. "No more than a week."
And yes, that is probably a positive sign for the Nets.
When the free agent forward arrived home in Atlanta in the early evening yesterday, the first thing he did was place a call - back to New Jersey.
"I just got off the phone with Lawrence," he said, referring to coach Lawrence Frank, "and thanked him for how nice everyone treated us. Really, they went out of their way to make us feel very comfortable."
Abdur-Rahim still has two perfunctory visits to Sacramento and Miami early next week, and his wife will not accompany him - but nothing should be read into that, he said. Dee is from the Bay Area, and already familiar with the California capital; and the couple has a second home in Florida (though on the Gulf coast).
So this recruitment season, more than anything else, was all about getting to know New Jersey.
"I learned a lot about the organization, but probably most about New Jersey itself," said the native Georgian, 28. "I didn't know much about it and the things it has to offer. There's a lot more going on than I had thought. I really enjoyed it."
"We both thought it was really nice," Dee added. "We were really impressed with the organization, we toured the neighborhoods around Ridgewood, which were really beautiful."
Was it a place they could raise their two young children?
"I think we left there thinking that it's a place where we be happy," Abdur-Rahim said.
The only drawback, perhaps, is the money issue. While no team has thrown more money at him than the Nets are offering (six years, $37 million), the market has just opened. He may do better if he waits, which could be a priority, because this could be the last contract of his career.
On the other hand, "The situation is what it is," Abdur-Rahim said. "Financially, they're limited in what they can do. But New Jersey is appealing for other reasons. I don't know if money is more important than other factors. Everyone wants to be in a good situation and a good work environment. . . .and the Nets provide those things."
http://www.nj.com/sports/ledger/index.ssf?/base/sports-0/112088709553130.xml&coll=1
Saturday, July 09, 2005
BY DAVE D'ALESSANDRO
Star-Ledger Staff
The Nets won't have long to wait.
Shareef Abdur Rahim and his wife have agreed on a timetable, and its length is a result of how comfortable they felt during their visit to New Jersey.
"I'll decide in maybe a week -- at the most," Abdur-Rahim said yesterday.
"As soon as possible," his wife, Dee, agreed. "No more than a week."
And yes, that is probably a positive sign for the Nets.
When the free agent forward arrived home in Atlanta in the early evening yesterday, the first thing he did was place a call - back to New Jersey.
"I just got off the phone with Lawrence," he said, referring to coach Lawrence Frank, "and thanked him for how nice everyone treated us. Really, they went out of their way to make us feel very comfortable."
Abdur-Rahim still has two perfunctory visits to Sacramento and Miami early next week, and his wife will not accompany him - but nothing should be read into that, he said. Dee is from the Bay Area, and already familiar with the California capital; and the couple has a second home in Florida (though on the Gulf coast).
So this recruitment season, more than anything else, was all about getting to know New Jersey.
"I learned a lot about the organization, but probably most about New Jersey itself," said the native Georgian, 28. "I didn't know much about it and the things it has to offer. There's a lot more going on than I had thought. I really enjoyed it."
"We both thought it was really nice," Dee added. "We were really impressed with the organization, we toured the neighborhoods around Ridgewood, which were really beautiful."
Was it a place they could raise their two young children?
"I think we left there thinking that it's a place where we be happy," Abdur-Rahim said.
The only drawback, perhaps, is the money issue. While no team has thrown more money at him than the Nets are offering (six years, $37 million), the market has just opened. He may do better if he waits, which could be a priority, because this could be the last contract of his career.
On the other hand, "The situation is what it is," Abdur-Rahim said. "Financially, they're limited in what they can do. But New Jersey is appealing for other reasons. I don't know if money is more important than other factors. Everyone wants to be in a good situation and a good work environment. . . .and the Nets provide those things."