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Splitter's deal gives him the option to sign with an NBA team after the 2009-10 season, but includes a provision requiring the team to pay an unspecified amount to Tau Ceramica to buy out the remainder of the deal if he exercises the option.
He wasn't $1 million for each of four years.
Splitter's deal gives him the option to sign with an NBA team after the 2009-10 season, but includes a provision requiring the team to pay an unspecified amount to Tau Ceramica to buy out the remainder of the deal if he exercises the option.
Well, we already knew that. The real question is: how much?
Splitter will probably never play a minute in silver and black. I see the Spurs carrying his cap slot until 2010, and then offloading his Tau ass as a throw in for a trade so they can clear cap space.
Maybe RC believes he can sucker some GM into taking the rights to his potential. Too bad for him, Isiah got fired this summer.
Buford >>>> Hilary at denying the reality
"We're excited"
A couple of days ago, I was pissed at the lack of Spurs coverage, but when I see what Spurs say to the press, I rather take no coverage than that.
Lots of possibilities in the future that make any predictions now a gamble.
NEGATIVE
1. Splitter plays so well that Tau offers him another even bigger contract to stay--and the Spurs are still limited by the rookie pay scale and buy out limits.
2. Splitter gets hurt and never regains his ability to play at a high level.
3. They trade Splitter's rights and Matt Bonner to Denver for Najera and Chucky Atkins.
POSITIVES
1. The NBA gets its head out of its ass, recognizes they are in a bidding war with well-funded overseas teams and junks the rookie pay scale and drafting of Euro pros.
2. Splitter has a NBA moment and decides he really wants to play in the NBA, even taking a pay cut if the finances aren't comparable with a huge new contract with TAU.
3. Spurs fall apart with injuries to two of the big three and wind up with a #1 lottery pick which they use to pick up the next Tim Duncan. They now don't need Splitter and trade his rights to Denver for Najera and Chuck Atkins.
All we can do is hope that Splitter doesn't pull a Jav and take up motorcycle riding as a hobby.
So what do the Spurs do now? But more to the point is what does the NBA or each individual team do in the future about his type of situation? Here we have a player that IMHO said he would come over to the NBA the following season and play if drafted. So an NBA team(in this case the Spurs) draft him and a year later get nothing. Essentially we have a verbal agreement from a player who reneges on it at a later date to reap much greater financial rewards. Reaping the $$$$ isn't the point IMO but verbally committing to the Spurs and then leveraging - if indeed Splitter was or his agent was doing this intentionally - that against your present team for substanialy greater $$$ and thereby leaving the Spurs pretty much empty handed is. IMO - this is unethical and pure manipulation - if indeed that was what was going on from the start. Maybe Tiago was naive and didn't have all the facts and after considerable thought later on decided that it was in his best interests to stay with Tau. That is understandable and considering the vast differences in $$$ the best economical decision but that is not relevant to me. If you give your word - draft me and I will play for you in the near future - and that casues an organization to give their word - drafting said player - then both sides need to step up and honor that committment. In any case regardless of motive the fact remains - a NBA team wasted a first round pick on a foreign player and most likely will receive nothing in return. This is a sticky situation and there are many ways to view it but I'm trying to look at the end results.
* If you verbally commit to be drafted by the NBA and are then I feel you should be held to that committment. There might be a time frame attached to that committment due to previous contract committments but knowing the short length of a player's career it needs to be very limited. Maybe there should be a form that all draftees have to sign to that effect. If any player breaks that agreement then they can be banned from playing in the NBA forever or a limited time. Or other consequences could be thought up. Some Euro players would probably do it anyway since $$$ talks and BS walks. If they get the money by leveraging their present Euro team against the future in the NBA then they really didn't care to play in the NBA in the first place.
*Presently I feel that many if not all NBA GM's will shy away from foreign players in the first round due to the restraints of the CBA in offering contract $$$ to these players versus what the Euroleague teams can. I frankly don't see that provision in the CBA being altered since it was put there to control costs and this situation implies a possible bidding war between the leagues.
The Scola & Splitter situations have deprived the Spurs of players that could help this team stay compe ive. The repercussions in the near future won't be pretty. Just ask the Timberwolves what they went through when they lost those first rounds picks (3?) in the infamnous Joe Smith deal.
This will be interesting to see how this plays out.
Are people seriously advocating junking the rookie pay scale?
Don't you realize that pay scale is the only thing that makes it possible for a Cleveland to draft and sign a LeBron James instead of him holding out at the start for a trade to New York or LA?
There's a difference in advocating a different pay scale for foreign professionals, rather than collegiate players.
Oh, yeah, that'll work. A pay scale that lets Tiago Splitter and Luis Scola get paid more than Kevin Durant and Greg Oden.
Yeah, such a stupid idea. Splitter makes more than the rookie scale. How much did Durant make last year? Oh, that's right.
ROFL. So pay them more because they're foreign and in a system that allows them to start getting paid at age 17 or whatever? Meanwhile restrict US players from even getting drafted until they've played a year of college?Yeah, such a stupid idea. Splitter makes more than the rookie scale. How much did Durant make last year? Oh, that's right.
Doesn't matter anyway because the Players' Association would never let that bull fly.
One thing that could be done is allow an escalating scale of what can be offered each year post draft year. Say you draft a player and can offer him rookie scale year one. If he doesn't sign each year you could offer him more so that by year three or so you could offer up to MLE type money if you wanted him and that's what it took to bring him over.
Then there would be some bite to Euro temas paying to develop talent they could lose when fully mature.
ROFL? If you don't get the difference, I am sorry for you. Perhaps some light reading? http://www.amazon.com/Your-Favorite-...2949777&sr=8-1
As opposed to the idiocy of separate pay scales for Euro players, this actually is a potentially fair solution.
The risk is that it could set up situations where it would be more financially advantageous for a drafted US player to go play in Europe for 2-3 years before coming back to sign in the NBA.
Fair solution? ROFL. Follow the link I posted. SERIOUSLY.
There's a way to setup a fair scale for European players that already make more than the NBA rookie scale. I'm sorry you can't comprehend that.
Possibly, but that would have an upside too. You could actually see how a player developed and not lock into a longer term contract if he didn't look like he was a good draft choice. The top picks would take the high lottery contracts, until of course some Russian oil man offers a LeBron $50 million his first year.
i don't see how you don't understand the players association would never let that pass, as Shoog pointed out.
Just increase the rookie pay scale, for all players...to make it more compe ive with Europe.
What's funny is everyone acting like this can only happen to a European draft pick...the Euroleague teams can start outbidding NBA teams for American Rookies as well, as long as they aren't bound by a rookie payscale and the NBA teams are.
Raise the Rookie payscale and stay compe ive...or stay cheap and get passed by the Euroleagues.
The NBA is the #1 league because it pays the most...if that is no longer the case, the NBA will no longer be the #1 league.
Ditto. IMHO the players asc. will NEVER I repeat NEVER allow the NBA to set up two different pay scales - one for domestic and one for foreign players. It just won't happen. I can't conceive of a scenario that would allow that to happen. If it did then the players assc. would simply be a paper tiger without any clout.
The NBA is not in the business of paying people for what they did in the European leagues. Any system that allows a person with zero years NBA experience to make more than a rookie LeBron is insane.
I think it's pretty clear the only one who doesn't comprehend things is you.
Oh. Can you ask them a question then for me, since you two are so intimately familiar with them? Can they just drop all Euros from being included in the draft? Thanks.
That's a better solution, as it would inevitably go that way, ALA ABA.
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