July 23, 2006

SALMONS LATEST MEMBER ON ALL-CONTEMPTIBLE TEAM

      If sports fans, especially those in the Toronto area, thought that the self-serving Shea Hillenbrand made some moronic decisions to pave his path out of town—let’s analyze John Salmons whose despicable and contemptible nature sent two NBA teams scrambling after he backed away from agreements with them.  With all the controversy surrounding Hillenbrand and his “play for yourself” and “this is a sinking ship” jokes (he said) that he wrote on a board in the Jay clubhouse, and the dust-up with Jay management that followed, it was easy to miss the circus that surrounded Salmons.

       Now, the beginning of this story has a nice feel to it for Toronto fans.  Salmons, a moderately talented young basketball player, had reached a stage in his career where he could just about dictate his own terms.  He was a restricted free agent and, after having spent four years with the Philadelphia 76ers and never being more than a spot player, Salmons was eager to test the market to hopefully find value for his talents.  Never having played enough to assimilate marketable statistics he was hoping that NBA executives would reward him for his talent and for what he could accomplish in the future.  However, he knew that he would not be among the first tier of free agents and simply hoped that there would still be some cap space left on some team for him.  The 76ers knew that Salmons wanted to leave and filled his spot through in the draft.  Then they just waited for the player to decide on a team.

       The Phoenix Suns were the first team in line for his services.  The Suns have been in the hunt for a quality point guard to back up two-time MVP Steve Nash.  After scouring the trade market and the long list of free agents the Suns decided there were two players that met their needs—in both talent and in salary.  Salmons was their first choice, though they liked Marcus Banks as well.  It was common knowledge that Salmons would not be returning to Philadelphia but Banks still had hopes of returning to Minnesota as the Timberwolves starting point guard.  So the Suns negotiated with Salmons and his agent and the two sides agreed on a five-year contract in the $21 million range.  Salmons talked about how exciting it would be to play with Nash and contribute to a contending club.   The Suns had their man.

       Except…

       The Raptors liked Salmons’ versatility and had visions of him as a combo guard and a possible starter.  Salmons’ agent went back to Toronto and gave them the final figure given by Phoenix.  The Raptors had sufficient funds that they didn’t need to penny-pinch.  They wanted Salmons and made a final offer that exceeded the Suns’ offer by nearly two million dollars.  Now Salmons had a choice.  He could sign with Phoenix for less money and be a back-up on a contending club, or he could sign with Toronto for more money and have a chance at starting, though for a team that was not close to contending for a title—yet.  The money, and the playing time proved too enticing so Salmons agreed to sign with Toronto. 

       There was just one small glitch before the transaction could be finalized.  The Raptors had to open up a roster spot (which they did by waiving Andre Barrett), and they had to finalize a deal with Philadelphia (which they did sending a second round draft choice and cash to the 76ers) to acquire the restricted free agent’s services.  Because of NBA guidelines the transactions would take about a week to become official.  The Raptors contentedly waited for the rubber stamp.

       The Suns, meanwhile, went to plan B.  Banks became available when the Wolves signed former Raptor Mike James to be their starting point guard.  The Suns quickly came to an agreement with Banks and had the player sign for fear of having another player change his mind at the last possible moment. 

       During the week, as the parties in question waited for the deal to be finalized, the Sacramento Kings entered the picture.  The Kings had grown weary with their discussions with Bonzi Wells.  They had tried for weeks to first re-sign the shooting guard, and then when that idea seemed to fizzle they tried to work sign and trade deals with the teams with whom Wells was in negotiations.   The entire ordeal was dragging and, fearing being left out in the cold, the Kings decided that they had to look in another direction.  When they looked around they saw that the pickings were slim.  There was, however, an option—one that would be a little underhanded but, since their owners run gambling houses and are a little sketchy when it comes to moralistic dealings, they decided to make a run at Salmons.  They knew what the contractual agreement figures were and offered more ($2.5 million more over the same five years).  They were hopeful that the increased figure would tempt Salmons and lure the fishy-named player their way. For Salmons, he now had another decision to make.  He had already agreed on a deal with the Raptors, though it wasn’t signed.   He could be a man of honour and stick to the agreement—it certainly wouldn’t be a bad situation playing in Toronto--or he could be a scumbucket and follow the money.   The Kings could not offer more playing time, and though they might be a better team than the Raptors they are a long way from contending for a title.  He could also remain in the U.S. and not have to move to a foreign country.  For small-minded people like Salmons this is a logical reason. 

       The Raptors said fine—screw you, and signed Fred Jones.  The Sixers said fine—screw off and simply released him.  The Suns had already cast him aside.  The only hope remaining is that Salmons runs into all kinds of problems in Sacramento, finds himself glued to the bench for most games and, when he visits all the aforementioned clubs and if he does get into the game he gets booed vociferously.

       I have no doubt that if I offered Salmons one more dollar to sweep my driveway than the Kings offered him to play in Sacramento that he would be outside right now with a broom in his hand, waving at my neighbours.