Reply With QuoteGive me Olowokandi for $6 million and give the rest to Gary The Glove if/when we fail to sign O'Neal or Brand.
If Camby gets traded to Portland and/or Howard leaves Denver, I'm gonna forget about Olowokandi being available as a last resort.
Olowokandi insists Nuggets on his list
By Chris Tomasson, Rocky Mountain News
July 1, 2003
With Gilbert Arenas' agent trying to get as many millions as he can out of the Denver Nuggets, it should be refreshing to the team that Michael Olowokandi is entering free agency with ideas other than just to get very rich.
"I don't think any human being should be making $80 (million) or $90 million compared to the worth of another," Olowokandi said Monday as he pondered the amazing dollars that are regularly bestowed upon basketball players. That doesn't mean Olowokandi, an unrestricted free-agent center who played the past five seasons with the Los Angeles Clippers, is willing to sign with the Nuggets for minimum wage. But it does give an indication that Olowokandi, who declined to be precise about his salary demands, won't steadfastly insist on a figure close to the maximum of about $10 million.
Arenas is another story. With today being the first day teams can negotiate with free agents, his agent, Dan Fegan, apparently continues to insist on a first-year salary of about $9 million. When 10 percent raises are considered over a six-year contract, the longest the Nuggets could give Arenas, that's $67.5 million, which is getting close to the territory where Olowokandi believes no man should be.
"The Nuggets may have (salary) cap room, but they don't want to attract a player strictly for the money," said Bill Duffy, Olowokandi's agent.
Olowokandi said the Nuggets are "very high" on his list, and indications are he could be had for a starting salary in the $6 million range when teams can sign free agents July 16. But that doesn't necessarily mean he's the first order of business for the Nuggets.
A source said Monday night that Nuggets officials will meet today in Miami with Heat unrestricted free-agent center Alonzo Mourning:shock . General manager Kiki Vandeweghe confirmed he and other officials are in Miami, but didn't name Mourning. Earlier in the day, Vandeweghe downplayed the immediate need for a center.
"I think our first priority is to address our backcourt and secondary is center," said Vandeweghe.
More precisely, that means somebody who can play the point. Arenas has been the leading candidate, but he might have priced himself out of reach for the Nuggets, who would prefer not to pay him more than $7 million for the first year.
New Jersey unrestricted free agent Jason Kidd is a long shot. Then there's Andre Miller, a Clippers restricted free agent who said Sunday that Denver is high on his list, and Atlanta restricted free agent Jason Terry.
"Absolutely, he's interested," said Terry's agent, Raymond Brothers. "His first choice is to return to the team he's on. But Denver is a young team that is putting together some good pieces, and that's definitely a team that has some interest."
While the prospect of a full season with Junior Harrington as the starter is enough to scare the Nuggets into trying to lock up a point guard first, they will have enough money to eventually turn to a big man. The Nuggets figure to be about $18 million under the cap when it is set in two weeks.
When he was a restricted free agent last summer, Olowokandi met with Vandeweghe and other team officials in Denver. He eventually opted to return to the Clippers for a one-year qualifying offer of $6.06 million.
But Olowokandi didn't end up helping his market value. Playing with a sore left knee, he averaged 12.3 points and 9.1 rebounds in 36 games. Olowokandi eventually underwent surgery to remove loose cartilage and ended up missing the final 2 ½ months of the season.
"I started last season on a bad knee, and I want to redeem myself," said Olowokandi.
Olowokandi, who also is considering San Antonio:shock , Miami and Utah, said re-signing with the Clippers is "an option, no matter how slight." But Olowokandi sure sounds as if the Nuggets top his list.
"It's a great place to play," he said. "It's a team that's moving forward. In a year from now, they could be a team making a lot of noise. . . . Who knows? It might work out (that he signs with the Nuggets)."
And it just might be a smooth negotiation.scoop
Give me Olowokandi for $6 million and give the rest to Gary The Glove if/when we fail to sign O'Neal or Brand.
If Camby gets traded to Portland and/or Howard leaves Denver, I'm gonna forget about Olowokandi being available as a last resort.
No Payton, yes Speedy. Kandi is fine, or Miller or Nesterivic
I'm starting to warm up to the idea of (in the case of no Brand or O'Neal) bringing in Kandi or PJ for a little over the MLE and giving Payton the rest for a year.
I'd like to see us set it up, if need be, so that next summer we can still go after Brand and take care of Manu.
AHF
Sounds like a great plan, Aggie.
The problem with that scenario is those players that we go OVER the cap to sign, count against the cap next year. You would have Kandi, Speedy(maybe), Jax all taking a bite out of the cap. If you are really set on going after Brand next year, make Mourning or someone a sick one year offer to get all the way to the cap, and then re-sign your others. Just Jax and Speedy probably won't cause too much of a cap hit to get Brand next year.
Exactly DocE.
And if they go below the cap by an amount greater than the MLE they will lose that and their shot at signing Ginobili.
Actually you're probably right Doc.
I wonder if it would work out numbers wise to split our cap room on Mourning and Payton this summer, and be able to get Brand and Manu next?
Too many numbers, I'm getting a headache trying to digest all this cap/cba/FA permutations nonsense.
AHF
Also, no way Payton takes a one year deal.
If we can't get O'Neal or Brand, I don't have a problem with giving Payton and Olowokandi 3-year deals.
Someone will break down and give Olowokandi 6 years. Won't be the Spurs.
Six years after his injury-plagued, underwhelming season last year? Is Denver that gullible?
Would Olowokandi sign for 6 years at around $6 million each if it he truly believes he's better than that when healthy?
Yes.Is Denver that gullible?
how can Arenas think he is worth 9 million kidd is much better and only 3 million more a year?
I want Arenas to go to Denver and Camby or Howard to stick around so Olowokandi won't be a lock to go there.
you're a fool if you think payton comes here.
No kidding, Ice. If you read what I wrote properly, you'd see I didn't say he was coming here or that it was even probable.
P.S.
Go fvck yourself.
DocE, what happened to your insistance than Olowokandi would get the max from Denver?
Question.
Ghost coming backatcha hard!
He may get it by the time this is all over, GW. He sounded kind of hurt that Denver brought in Mourning for a visit, and he hasn't gotten a call yet. When 'Zo signs in Dallas, Denver is going to turn Kandi's way, but at a price.
Be that as it may, DocE, Olowokandi will not get the full monty just as I argued with you last year.
I bet he signs between $5-10 million. $7 million sounds about right.
I'm trying to think out of the box about Olowokandi. Maybe he could be a good pickup.
He's been stuck on the Clippers and that alone is enough to screw up anyone. He has very good size to be a dominant center.
The best sign to me is he's always played well against the Spurs.
This year, in his three games against the Spurs he had:
Dec 13: 20 points and 11 rebounds
Dec. 16: 17 points, 18 rebounds and 4 blocks
Jan. 5: 12 points, 9 rebounds and 3 blocks
In 2002, he was just as impressive.
Oct. 30: 4 points and 7 rebounds
Jan. 31: 20 points, 12 rebounds and 3 blocks
Feb. 14: 15 points, 12 rebounds and 3 blocks
Mar. 25: 26 points and 17 rebounds
Those are some nice numbers.
I'm thinking that maybe if he came to SA that he could turn his career around and be a very good center.
Either that or I'm losing it.
You are not losing it, timvp.
Once we take Olowokandi and put him in the Clippers Protection Program and de-ball him through a regimen of SPURSBASKETBALL, he will give us everything Robinson has since 1999 and at a much greater bargain.
Keep in mind that Olowokandi was ailing all last year.
Brand has been quoted as saying playing off the 'Kandi Man has opened up so much for his game.
PF Duncan
SF Bowen
C Olowokandi
PG Parker
SG Jackson
PG Claxton
SG Ginobili
PF Rose
C Willis
... plus about $5 million left over to blow on whomever.
That's not bad at all.
We'll have a Twin TOwers unit of two former #1 picks all over again.
Ghost, would you rather have Kandi over Jason Kidd on the Spurs, straight up? I'm starting to see your line of thinking, it actually makes for a sound argument.
Olowokandi.
He's cheaper and a better fit. Period.
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