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i hope the spurs can grab him with the mle
By JEFF EISENBERG
The Press-Enterprise
Jerry Buss paid $50,000 to play in a World Series of Poker tournament last weekend in Vegas, outlasting some accomplished pros before busting out in 36th place.
Lakers fans had better hope he wasn't betting with money earmarked for Trevor Ariza.
While Ariza has maintained that he hopes to wear purple and gold again next season, agent David Lee said Monday that the Lakers won't receive any hometown discount from his client. Lee declined to reveal how much of a raise Ariza will seek when he becomes an unrestricted free agent Tuesday night at 9:01 p.m., but he said the young forward's upside should make him the most coveted wing player on the market.
Among the teams Lee expects to pursue Ariza: Detroit, Portland and Toronto, franchises with enough cap space to more than double Ariza's $3.1 million salary of last season. Lee acknowledged he doesn't have a feel for how much the Lakers are willing to offer, but expressed hope that draft-week trades made by fellow contenders San Antonio, Cleveland and Orlando will coerce General Manager Mitch Kupchak into making a compe ive bid.
"It's a question of how committed the Lakers are to competing again," Lee said. "If everyone else stood still, you could see what happens when a piece is missing, but the reality is teams out there are positioning themselves to be compe ive. When other teams are getting better, you can't afford to rest on your laurels."
Although the Lakers want to keep their championship team intact, Ariza is not their only free agent priority. Forward Lamar Odom and reserve guard Shannon Brown also become unrestricted free agents Tuesday night, while Kobe Bryant still has one more day to decide whether he'll terminate the last two years of his deal to seek more money.
What chance the Lakers have to re-sign all their free agents ultimately depends on Buss' willingness to step up the way he has many times. The Lakers netted $4.5 million by selling their top two draft picks last week, yet with $74 million already allocated to eight players for next season, and the luxury tax threshold expected to be around $70 million, Kupchak refused to commit to bringing back Ariza and Odom.
"I don't know what the market's going to be," he said. "Even though you want a player, if a competing team comes out and makes an offer that we don't think is a good basketball business decision, then it doesn't matter how much money you have, we won't match that."
The quality that Lee believes makes Ariza most valuable is his youth. Whereas fellow free agent forwards Hedo Turkoglu, Ron Artest and Shawn Marion will be in their 30s by the time next season tips off, Ariza turns 24 today and is just beginning to harness his immense potential.
"If you're doing a one-year or two-year deal, you could have all sorts of conversations about the Artests or the Turkoglus," Lee said, "but if you're talking a five-year deal, Trevor's going to be 28 and those guys are going to be 35."
Ariza averaged 11.3 points and shot 48 percent on threes during the playoffs, playing his usual dependable defense while blossoming into a capable shooter. And as an LA native, winning a le with the Lakers was a dream come true.
"If you cut him, he bleeds purple and gold," Lee said. "The issue is whether the Lakers want to pay him."
http://www.pe.com/sports/basketball/...0.3cd2531.html
good
i hope the spurs can grab him with the mle
and hope the lakers get screwed
You cant get anymore delusional than that. I have to give you credit there.
lol, we don't really want him. We just want to make you pay through the ass for him.
HAHA wouldnt it be fun to see a rotation of RJ, Ariza and Bowen Defending Kobe during the playoffs!
Lakers will offer him what he deserves, if a stupid GM gives him more, he walks and we sign Artest.
Man I cant wait for this to be over with. I cant wait to resign Ariza/Odom already.
My guess is that Ariza and his agent will start high but would settle for a contract worth around $40-45 over 5 years, starting around $7 million for the first year of the contract.
I think Lamar wants and will ask for a three year, $30 million contract.
Yeah, that sounds about right. No way Ariza settles for 5m, when there is a guy named Sasha sitting next to him making 4.5, who has never done anything worth while. And Odom deserves the 10 and he will be getting it, if not from Lakers from somebody else.
Somebody will offer Ariza 7-10 million dollars a year over 5-6 years. He has loads of potential so unless the lakers can afford that and the 10 million a year that Odom will find then you can say bye to one if not both.
Also begs the question will Ariza be better/improve outside of the Lakers system.
So much for all the Laker fans on here insisting that Dr. Bus can afford to give every Laker all the money they want and pay the luxury tax no problem
Welcome to reality. Holding that entire talent base together will take sacrifices, not thinking that signing Kobe to the max will solve all your problems.
Ariza is career role player. He does not deserve anything above 5 million a year.
Yeah right. The guy has got so much talent its unfair, great defender, complete all round game, and he is 23 or something like that, and you think he is getting a Luke Walton or Sasha kind of a deal.
The impact of Bryant and Gasol is severely underrated here. Ariza gets his open looks, free driving lanes from the double teaming of the two leading players of the Lakers, Unless Ariza manages to find a way to improve his ball handling, he is never going to jump to the next level. Though I say that, the Lakers are probably going to overpay for him because of the James Posey effect. A critical cog in a championship team but an overpaid mother er on the team like the Hornets.Yeah right. The guy has got so much talent its unfair, great defender, complete all round game, and he is 23 or something like that, and you think he is getting a Luke Walton or Sasha kind of a deal.
1) Odom will not find 10 million a year lol. Inconsistent 30 year old, yeah, he'll put us over the top guys! Screw 2010 when you can have Lamar ing Odom!
2) There's only about 7 teams that can offer that much money to Ariza. Most of which already have good SFs so overpaying Ariza doesn't make any sense for them. So Ariza stays in LA unless Detroit somehow magically trades Prince and offers Trevor bags of gold.
he has "Pistons" written all over his chest with 8 mill a year...
Agent talk - pay it no mind.
The MLE isn't going to outbid LA for him.
Detroit was interested but the Ariza camp has made it clear he's going back to LA.
Laker fans - no need to worry about this one.
Trevor playing hardball
Detroit drafted 3 small forwards they are out of the mix.
I think he's a product of the system. Not to diminish him in any way. I think it's more of a testament to Kobe and Gasol that he gets the types of looks he does. I think one of the two are going to be gone, but not both. Ariza will be in a Laker uniform. He's the younger out of the two, and he has the most upside. Odom will be playing somewhere else next year, IMO.
We shall see ...I want both but if w ehav eto choose Ariza is younger ...and we could get a vet for a year or two instead ...
I just heard on Espn first take that it is unlikely the Lakers will resign Odom given what Odom wants. Is that true? I thought many Lakers were saying Buss would do whatever it takes to sign Odom/Ariza and that money was no object?
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