maxpower
06-13-2007, 11:53 AM
Magic feat: Duncan nearly signed with Orlando in 2000
It's interesting to think that Duncan's decision to stay in San Antonio is almost directly responsible for Detroit's title runs...and a double kick in the nuts to Magic fans.
Not only did they not get Duncan but in attempting to do so they renounced some contracts that made me do a double take. :dizzy
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/basketball/nba/2007-06-12-duncan-notes_N.htm?loc=interstitialskip
By Greg Boeck, USA TODAY
CLEVELAND — Oh, what might have been.
Grant Hill still wonders. "It would have been nice."
John Gabriel stopped wondering a long time ago. "So I wouldn't make myself more nauseated."
And Tim Duncan? "Life," the San Antonio Spurs star says, "would have been a lot different."
Turn the clock back to the summer of 2000. Hill, billed as the next Michael Jordan at the time, and Duncan, a three-time All-Star with a championship ring won in 1999, were free agents courted by the Orlando Magic. Gabriel was the Magic's general manager, and he cleared millions of dollars from the payroll to pursue the two by renouncing the contracts of Bo Outlaw, Corey Maggette, Matt Harpring, Ben Wallace, Chauncey Billups and Darrell Armstrong.
"Our thinking was, if we could get Grant Hill, we could get Tim, because they had the same agent (Lon Babby) and were friends," remembers Gabriel, now a scout with the Portland Trail Blazers.
On a visit to Orlando, Gabriel took Hill and Duncan to Disney World, where they were serenaded with a laser light message on the Epcot Center ball: "Grant Us Tim."
The Magic even enlisted Tiger Woods as a recruiter, arranging a meeting on the fifth hole of Woods' course with Julius Erving, a Magic consultant at the time, and then-coach Doc Rivers.
"Tiger said, 'If you guys come, I'll have to switch my allegiance from the Lakers to the Magic,' " Hill remembers.
Gabriel persuaded both to stay two more days. "Grant told us, 'Tim wants to hear more,' " Gabriel recalls. Rivers met with Duncan on his third and final day in Orlando, after which Gabriel said Duncan's agent told him, "You have a real shot." But then, says Gabriel, "the David Robinson stuff happened."
The Spurs center, hearing that Duncan was considering leaving, cut short a Hawaiian vacation, flew to San Antonio and persuaded his teammate to stay. Hill left the Detroit Pistons for Orlando, joined by free agent Tracy McGrady. They never won a playoff series together.
Two titles later, Duncan went into Game 3 of the NBA Finals on Tuesday shooting for a fourth ring.
"It was probably a lot closer decision than people even think," Duncan says. "David was here, and that was great. But even beyond that, the staff, the coaches, guys I was comfortable with, guys I enjoyed being around is probably what swayed it in the end."
It's interesting to think that Duncan's decision to stay in San Antonio is almost directly responsible for Detroit's title runs...and a double kick in the nuts to Magic fans.
Not only did they not get Duncan but in attempting to do so they renounced some contracts that made me do a double take. :dizzy
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/basketball/nba/2007-06-12-duncan-notes_N.htm?loc=interstitialskip
By Greg Boeck, USA TODAY
CLEVELAND — Oh, what might have been.
Grant Hill still wonders. "It would have been nice."
John Gabriel stopped wondering a long time ago. "So I wouldn't make myself more nauseated."
And Tim Duncan? "Life," the San Antonio Spurs star says, "would have been a lot different."
Turn the clock back to the summer of 2000. Hill, billed as the next Michael Jordan at the time, and Duncan, a three-time All-Star with a championship ring won in 1999, were free agents courted by the Orlando Magic. Gabriel was the Magic's general manager, and he cleared millions of dollars from the payroll to pursue the two by renouncing the contracts of Bo Outlaw, Corey Maggette, Matt Harpring, Ben Wallace, Chauncey Billups and Darrell Armstrong.
"Our thinking was, if we could get Grant Hill, we could get Tim, because they had the same agent (Lon Babby) and were friends," remembers Gabriel, now a scout with the Portland Trail Blazers.
On a visit to Orlando, Gabriel took Hill and Duncan to Disney World, where they were serenaded with a laser light message on the Epcot Center ball: "Grant Us Tim."
The Magic even enlisted Tiger Woods as a recruiter, arranging a meeting on the fifth hole of Woods' course with Julius Erving, a Magic consultant at the time, and then-coach Doc Rivers.
"Tiger said, 'If you guys come, I'll have to switch my allegiance from the Lakers to the Magic,' " Hill remembers.
Gabriel persuaded both to stay two more days. "Grant told us, 'Tim wants to hear more,' " Gabriel recalls. Rivers met with Duncan on his third and final day in Orlando, after which Gabriel said Duncan's agent told him, "You have a real shot." But then, says Gabriel, "the David Robinson stuff happened."
The Spurs center, hearing that Duncan was considering leaving, cut short a Hawaiian vacation, flew to San Antonio and persuaded his teammate to stay. Hill left the Detroit Pistons for Orlando, joined by free agent Tracy McGrady. They never won a playoff series together.
Two titles later, Duncan went into Game 3 of the NBA Finals on Tuesday shooting for a fourth ring.
"It was probably a lot closer decision than people even think," Duncan says. "David was here, and that was great. But even beyond that, the staff, the coaches, guys I was comfortable with, guys I enjoyed being around is probably what swayed it in the end."