Boozer to Jazz

[Riot]

LeBron is mature, he won't let it get in their way. It's a buisness and Boozer did what's best for him. LeBron can't fault him for that.

[Ruff Ryder]

I thought that it was just an offer sheet. Can't the Cavs match?

[air gordon]

yes but currently they don't have the cap space to match that offer. as the article mentions, they must either makes trades to open up more space or renounce rights on players

[Full Surface]

Wait, didn't the Cavaliars opt Boozer out. Wasn't it a team option. Paxson is a dumbass, Boozer did what everyone else would have done. Take the cash and go.

Instead of paying Boozer the $700k he was due next season, the Cavs opted out of the contract in order to sign him to a bigger contract to reward him for playing so well. Now he throws that back in their face and is going to Utah. What an honorable guy.

[fgrep15]

Maybe Boozer didn't understand ther cap situation lol, and didn't realize the Cavs can't match anything over mid-level

[Full Surface]

Maybe Boozer didn't understand ther cap situation lol, and didn't realize the Cavs can't match anything over mid-level

Everytime you play basketball for a living, money is always the #1 priority.

[MC Hao]

damn, the jazz has lots money. but boozer's worth that.

[Amphatoast]

lol this is a messed up sitituation.
Cavs coulda kept him and pay him cheap according the contract.
Cavs spoke to him and let him free so they can pay him more.
Then he says, thanks, but no thanks, im going to Utah.
Really messed up, can't wait to see Cavs vs. Jazz lol

[fgrep15]

Maybe Boozer didn't understand ther cap situation lol, and didn't realize the Cavs can't match anything over mid-level

Everytime you play basketball for a living, money is always the #1 priority.

I laugh at all these people talking about loyalty

[Bill Russell]

Money talks.....

Boozer is a backstabber in my book

Couldn't say it better

[Matt]

Boozer shows no class here at all

Ouch to the Cavs....is the rebuliding process over for the Jazz?
maybe KMart will sign with Cavs...not sure on cap sit. though

[J@3]

Everytime you play basketball for a living, money is always the #1 priority.

Exactly, for people like us playing basketball for a living might just be about playing the game and having fun, but for these guys its how they put food on the table. Yes, I understand million dollar contracts put alot of food on tables. But the fact remains, you all go on about loyalty but I can absolutely guarantee if you were playing for a team, and someone offered you more you'd take it in a heartbeat. You cant deny it, because you've never been in that situation. We're not talking about a $3 an hour pay rise, this is millions and millions of dollars.

[Riot]

The average length of an NBA career is 3 years. You take the most money you can because you aren't working for 20+ years like normal jobs. Most of these guys don't have college degrees so they don't have much options outside of basketball. You have to take whatever you can get.

[Prime!]

Bleh, meh.. Boozer.. meh.

It doesn't really matter to me. >.>

[FanOfAll]

SI on Boozer

Boozer was apparently worried about his longterm financial future. That's why he asked the Cavaliers to cancel their option for next season and instead allow him to become a free agent. In that case, Boozer promised (according to sources -- and common sense) that he would then re-sign with the Cavaliers for as much as $41 million over six years, the maximum they could offer a free agent with fewer than three years experience under their salary-cap constraints.

Paxson held all the cards on this deal. He could have ignored Boozer's pleas and forced him to fulfill the team option at a salary of $695,000 in 2004-05. Next summer Boozer would have been a restricted free agent, giving the Cavs the right to pay him as much as they wished along with the ability to match any offer Boozer received.

Instead, Paxson and Cleveland owner Gordon Gund nullified their option. They gambled on Boozer's word and set him free. According to a source who was in the room at the time the verbal deal was struck, Boozer told Gund, "If you respect me by not picking up the option, I'll show trust and loyalty to you by signing with you."

But instead of keeping to his word, Boozer agreed this week to a six-year, $68 million contract with Utah. (I tried, through a variety of sources, to give Boozer's agent, Rob Pelinka an opportunity to respond, but I was unable to reach him.)

Paxson is being taken to task in the press for allowing Boozer to escape, but the short-sighted duplicity of a basketball player is the least of his troubles. Paxson's wife, Candice, has spent the past year fighting central nervous system lymphoma, a rare form of brain cancer. This week Jim and Candice flew to Portland, Ore., for the funeral of Candice's daughter-in-law from a previous marriage, Tina Kosmos, who died of cancer.

Paxson was trying to console his wife and family in-between calls from Pelinka, who, according to a source, matter-of-factly explained how he was reneging on his agreement with the Cavaliers.

Aaron Goodwin (LeBron James' agent) adds -- and I've confirmed this with other sources -- that Gund took personal responsibility for approving the plan to make Boozer a free agent.

"My understanding is that Carlos, his wife and Pelinka all gave their words to Paxson and Gordon Gund that Boozer would re-sign with Cleveland," Goodwin says. "By letting him become a free agent, Gordon was saying, 'I'm doing this to help the Boozer family, not just Carlos.'

"Gordon Gund isn't stupid. He knew there was a chance Boozer would leave if he let him out of his $700,000 contract. But he was [telling] the kid 'I respect you and I care about you and your family.' For him to get slapped in the face is wrong; even as an agent I have to say it's wrong. I talk to Gordon and I hear the devastation in his voice because he's from the old school, where if someone says something to you, you take him at his word.

"What Rob Pelinka did," said Goodwin, "was he figured out a way to get his guy out of his contract. And he lied to do it."

[Jackal]

Here's another thingie:

The only thing that worries Tomjanovich and the Lakers today is, strangely enough, Carlos Boozer. He might have nothing to do with the Lakers’ plans, but Boozer’s agent, Rob Pelinka, recently double-crossed the Cavaliers when he convinced them that he would re-sign with them, only to take a $68 million offer from the Jazz. Pelinka also is Bryant’s agent.

I would be shitting myself if I was a part of the Lakers' managment right now.

(This is a multi post, it can be posted in the Kobe Thread & Here because it involves all these players/manager. Kobe, Boozer & Pelinka.)

[Amphatoast]

well, heres the real story on what happened
its a bit long so I won't paste it here.

[Andrew]

Even though I understand Boozer's desire for more money and that loyalty to a team isn't always reciprocated, he seems to have dealt with the situation pretty poorly. I don't believe in karma in a spiritual manner, but I do believe that matters such as these have a way of coming back to haunt the individual(s) in question.

My favourite example is Jerry Krause. His poor people skills didn't matter while the Bulls' core was intact, focused on winning and willing to stick together until his patience ran out and he finally dismantled the team. We all know what happened when the post-Jordan Bulls made a run at some high profile free agents back in 2000.

It's interesting that Aaron Goodwin, an agent (and by profession therefore supposedly one of the greedy "bad guys" in pro sports), described the actions of Boozer and his agent as being "wrong".

[Bill Russell]

Amphatoast, can you put the article here? I really want to read it but registration is needed

[Jackal]

Boozer $tory revolve$ around 1 i$$ue

A behind-the-scenes look at how contract situation went haywire

CLEVELAND - On a sunny afternoon on June 30, Carlos Boozer and his party walked away from a meeting at Gund Arena believing he was going to be a Cleveland Cavalier for years to come.

On the sixth floor of the arena's executive offices, team owner Gordon Gund and general manager Jim Paxson believed they were on the verge of making a deal that would satisfy everyone, a rarity in today's NBA.

But somewhere between the goodwill of that day and last Thursday morning's phone call from Boozer's agent Rob Pelinka to Paxson, those good feelings went awry. Now Boozer seems to be headed to the Utah Jazz for lots more money, and even if the Cavaliers match the $68 million offer, they still appear to have made a costly, ill-advised decision.

Here is the story of how Boozer's contract situation turned into a national circus based on interviews with people inside and outside the Cavaliers organization, NBA general managers and players, agents and news media. Boozer and wife CeCe, reached by e-mail, declined to comment, and Pelinka did not return a telephone message Saturday.

The story began last summer after Boozer's very successful rookie season. He rose from second-round draft pick status and the end of coach John Lucas' bench to average 10 points and 7.5 rebounds and was named to the NBA's All-Rookie Team. The Cavaliers and Boozer were excited about his future.

Boozer, however, was not pleased with his contract. A year earlier, in August of 2002, after being impressed with him in summer league, the Cavaliers got Pelinka and Boozer to agree to a two-year guaranteed contract with an option for a third year. This was a rare deal for a second-round pick. Such players seldom receive long-term contracts but Boozer was given $989,000 over the first two years, including a $75,000 bonus for inserting a third-year option. In the third year, Boozer's salary would be $695,000 for the 2004-05 season.

Then, with Boozer's stock on the rise and the fact that a former second-round pick named Gilbert Arenas had just received a $65 million deal after his second season, Boozer's contract suddenly didn't seem so appealing.

Boozer's agent is employed by the sports management group SFX, founded by Arn Tellem. Pelinka asked last summer if the Cavaliers would consider what it would take to let Boozer out of the contract a year early.

During the 2003-04 season, in which Boozer averaged 15.5 points and 11.4 rebounds and finished second in the voting for the NBA's Most Improved Player Award, Boozer and his agent took their contract pleas public to several newspaper reporters.

In late April, after Boozer completed his breakout season, Pelinka brought it back to the Cavaliers' attention and both sides agreed to consider it in June. The parties met twice, once before the NBA's Pre-Draft Camp and once June 30.

Meeting time

On June 30, the principals gathered around a Fortune 500-style boardroom table at Gund Arena. Pelinka had flown in from Los Angeles. He sat on one side with Carlos and CeCe, a Duke graduate who has experience working for sports management giant IMG. Owner Gordon Gund flew in from his offices in Princeton, N.J., on his private jet. He joined Paxson and members of his staff on the other side of the table.

The meeting opened with Gund telling Boozer how valuable he was to the Cavaliers' franchise and their fan base. Gund was perhaps closer to Boozer than any other Cavaliers player. To Gund, players like Boozer and center Zydrunas Ilgauskas represented the transition the organization was trying to make. Each time Gund visited the Cavaliers during the season, either in Cleveland or at road games in Boston, New Jersey, New York or Philadelphia, he spent time talking with Boozer.

Paxson informed Pelinka and the Boozers that the Cavaliers were considering letting Boozer out of the option year. That decision had to be finalized by midnight that evening. Paxson explained to them that after losing Jason Kapono in the recent expansion draft and making a trade to acquire Sasha Pavlovic, the team's payroll would be $43,434,000 next season. That would put the Cavaliers within $3 million of the salary cap, expected to be announced next week.

Paxson said that if the Cavaliers allowed Boozer to become a free agent, the only thing the team could do was offer him something referred to as the maximum ``Early Bird'' contract. That would be a deal starting at $5 million that would increase 12.5 percent each year for six years, making it worth around $40 million. This was not a contract offer to Boozer, just an explanation of what the Cavaliers' salary cap constraint would be.

Paxson told Boozer that the team would not make any trades or other player moves to try and get drastically under the salary cap to attempt to offer more.

And, as a part of the goodwill gesture of not picking up the option, Boozer and Pelinka would have to calm the fan base by making public statements July 1 of his intention to return to the Cavaliers.

They would not be saying they had agreed to a deal, because that would be in violation of NBA rules because it came before July 1.

Pelinka had brought a copy of the NBA's collective bargaining agreement and referred to the contract rules and read from it several times.

The Cavaliers made it clear to Boozer that as many as seven other NBA teams could offer him more money and the team was taking a risk. Gund told Boozer he didn't want him to commit to a contract that he would regret signing a few years down the road.

The Cavaliers reminded him that by picking up the $695,000 option, the team would be able to sign him to a contract larger than the $40 million deal after the 2004-05 season because they would not be under NBA salary cap restraints.

But Carlos and CeCe, who only a few days earlier were looking at expensive houses in the affluent eastern Cleveland suburb of Bratenahl, said they wanted security now. They understood there was a limit, due to the league's salary cap rules, on what the Cavaliers could offer, but they wanted to remain in Cleveland.

Then Boozer and Gund spoke to each other. As they talked, they appeared to come to a trust they both thought would eventually lead to a deal.

Caucus time

At that time, the parties broke and had separate discussions. It was a tense 10-minute period that might be remembered as one of the most crucial moments in Cavaliers history that didn't take place on a basketball court.

Gund asked Paxson if he thought the Cavaliers could trust Boozer. Paxson pointed out that Pelinka was present when the Boozers said they knew it was possible to get a larger offer than the Cavaliers could put on the table after July 1 -- but they still preferred to stay in Cleveland. At that time, Paxson and Gund agreed to allow Boozer to become a restricted free agent if that was what he wanted.

The Boozers and Pelinka came back into the room and said they indeed wanted to be let out of the contract. They knew they could not make a deal on that day, but Pelinka said he was sure he could work out a deal with Paxson after July 1. Paxson promptly left the room and went to his office, where he had prepared a ``qualifying offer,'' which is part of the procedure in making a player a restricted free agent. Under NBA rules, all qualifying offers have to be issued before July 1.

The meeting then broke up, midnight passed, and Carlos Boozer was no longer a Cavalier.

Crunch time

On July 1, the Cavaliers stunned the NBA by revealing they had not picked up Boozer's option. Boozer and Pelinka granted interviews to the Associated Press stating their preference to re-sign with the Cavaliers. But, in retrospect, they did not issue any guarantees.

``I want to be in Cleveland, I want to be with the Cavaliers,'' Boozer told the Associated Press. ``Now it's up to my agent and the Cavs to work things out.''

``Carlos and his wife, CeCe, made it clear to me that they are very comfortable with the Cavaliers organization,'' Pelinka told the AP. ``I'm confident (Paxson) and I will continue to have conversations and we'll be able to work something out.''

That afternoon, Utah Jazz owner Larry H. Miller made a previously scheduled phone call to a reporter in Salt Lake City. During the course of the conversation, the reporter asked Miller if the Jazz had any interest in Boozer. Until that moment, Miller didn't know the Cavaliers hadn't picked up Boozer's option. Miller told the reporter he was planning to call Jazz vice president Kevin O'Connor to have him look into Boozer's availability.

On July 2, Boozer disconnected a cell phone that the Cavaliers and media had been using to contact him.

On July 3, the Boozers were telling people that there was no deal with the Cavaliers in place.

Over the July 4th weekend, the Golden State Warriors came to an agreement with center Adonal Foyle on a five-year, $41.6 million contract, a deal worth more per year than what Boozer could sign for with the Cavaliers under NBA rules.

Also, the Jazz agreed to an offer sheet with Detroit Pistons forward Mehmet Okur for six years and nearly $50 million. Neither Okur nor Foyle are regarded as players as talented as Boozer and both were about to get richer deals.

The Boozers and Pelinka took notice. With contract values soaring, especially for big men, Boozer getting a six-year, $40 million deal with the Cavaliers would certainly be lower than his market value.

If the player signed for such a figure, it would affect the agent, too. Potential clients might be told that Boozer had signed what was perceived as a ``bad contract.'' This was what the Cavaliers feared, that Boozer would be tempted to look elsewhere.

On Monday, July 5, Pelinka called Paxson and told him the Boozers had decided to test the market. He took calls from a number of teams and found interest in the Denver Nuggets and the Jazz. On Wednesday, July 7, the Jazz prepared their huge offer sheet.

To ensure they wouldn't lose Boozer, the Jazz wanted to ``front-load'' the offer, meaning they would pay a large salary in the first year to make it harder for the Cavaliers to try to match. The Jazz were scheduled to host free-agent forward Kenyon Martin in Salt Lake City on Thursday. But they canceled his visit.

Offer time

On Thursday morning, Paxson was in Portland, Ore., for the funeral of his wife's daughter-in-law. Pelinka called to say that Boozer planned to sign a six-year, $68 million offer sheet with the Jazz.

Coach Paul Silas got the message while with family in Oakland, Calif., gathering after the death of his mother, Clara.

Gund was on vacation with his family in Canada.

Upon hearing the news, he got in his jet and departed for Cleveland to deal with the situation.

During the day, Paxson took calls from Gund in his jet in between church and graveside ceremonies at the funeral. Later, they issued a statement expressing their shock and disappointment at the turn of events.

In the following hours, Cavaliers fans filled up reporters' e-mail boxes, expounded on Internet message boards and jammed sports talk-show phone lines as the shock trickled down.

[magius]

why on earth should players be loyal to their teams? Especially considering the way a certain organization treated the only reason they won any championships......... if it could happen to shaq it could happen to anybody. fuck them before they fuck you.

[Riot]

very well put, teams always backstab players. Remember when Sonics told Desmond Mason he will be a Sonic for a very long time, then they go trading him to Bucks like a week later? Shit happens.

[Andrew]

very well put, teams always backstab players. Remember when Sonics told Desmond Mason he will be a Sonic for a very long time, then they go trading him to Bucks like a week later? Shit happens.

They also traded Gary Payton the day before he was due to play in his 1000th game for the Supersonics.

[Riot]

yupp, nobody got this mad at the Sonics for doing that. Why get all mad at Boozer?

[Andrew]

I guess it's just a double-standard. We almost expect teams and GMs to sever ties more freely. Players (and in particular their agents) always seem more greedy as they are individuals demanding a lot of money from an organisation. I'm not saying it's right, but it's a double-standard that affects our perception.

Gary Payton also wanted out of Seattle. The timing was pretty poor, but the move was pretty much expected nevertheless.