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An article about the Orlando FA situation for those interested.
http://www.floridatoday.com/!NEWSROOM/sportstoryA4257A.htm
Magic's next target may be Odom
NBA's free-agent 'wish-list' period opens Tuesday
By John Denton
FLORIDA TODAY
ORLANDO -- They don't wield quite the financial clout that they did in 2000 when they signed free agents Tracy McGrady and Grant Hill and made a serious run at Tim Duncan, but still the Orlando Magic are armed with enough resources to make this a highly productive offseason.
The NBA's free-agent period, often a make or break time for teams seemingly on the cusp like Orlando, opens Tuesday. Teams can court, pamper and negotiate contracts with free agents for the next two-plus weeks, but those players can't officially sign until July 16.
Orlando didn't have the cap room to make much of a splash the past two summers, but does possess enough financial muscle to be a big player on the free-agent market this go around. And because the Magic have not won a playoff series since 1996, even blowing a 3-1 lead this spring against Detroit, there is a noticeable sense of urgency in dramatically improving the team.
Most importantly, the Magic have assurances from management that if general manager John Gabriel and head coach Doc Rivers can convince a difference-maker of a free agent to sign, the money will be available. That wasn't the case last July when potential deals with forward Keon Clark and guard Travis Best were quashed at the 11th hour because of fears of straying into the luxury tax, a dollar-for-dollar penalty for teams whose payrolls exceed a certain threshold set by the NBA.
"When ownership is losing money, you tend to look at things a little differently," said Magic president Bob Vander Weide, referring to the team's cost-conscious ways of the past two years. "But where we are today, breaking even again, that sort of changes things. We're in this for the long haul. We're not walking away from this. We're going to find a way to win and find a way to add players around Tracy (McGrady), Drew (Gooden), Gordan (Giricek) and Pat (Garrity)."
Also, for the first time since Hill signed, the Magic are hoping to get something out of his salary slot. With Hill expected to miss at least a major portion of the season following a fourth surgery on his left ankle, Orlando has applied to the NBA for a medical exception. Precedent seems to suggest the Magic will get it sometime in the next two weeks, giving them $4.8 million to offer a free agent or use in a trade.
San Antonio, Denver, Utah, Miami and the Los Angeles Clippers are the teams under the salary cap and should be the key players in the sweepstakes for top free agents Jason Kidd, Jermaine O'Neal and Gary Payton. But the Magic's combination of the $4.8 million medical exception, the $4.8 million "middle class exception," a $1.5 million veteran exception and the lure of playing alongside of McGrady could give them more weapons than any of the other teams over the NBA's salary cap.
"This is absolutely the year to have it," Magic coach Doc Rivers said of the team's financial clout. "We have a chance to be really good and make a huge jump. Drew (Gooden) and Gordie (Giricek) are young and Tracy (McGrady) is still pretty young, but we have a chance to really make a big jump by adding good guys around them."
So who, you ask, are the Magic targeting in free agency? Teams are barred from talking about specific players until Tuesday, but many of the free agents seem to match the Magic's needs perfectly.Craving Clippers
Clippers swingman Lamar Odom is high on the Magic's wish list because, like McGrady, he can play three different positions and has gobs of potential. The one snag is that the 6-foot-10 forward is a restricted free agent, meaning the Clippers can match any offer other teams make. But Elton Brand, Michael Olowokandi, Corey Maggette and Andre Miller are all free agents and notoriously cheap Clippers aren't expected to sign all of them. Still, the Magic are somewhat at the mercy of the Clippers.
"If things broke perfectly, there are some good things that could happen for us," Rivers said. "But certain teams out there have to act normal and that's kind of scary for us right now."
Olowokandi, a 7-1 center who was the top pick in the 1998 draft, isn't expected to return to the Clippers after a tempestuous season in Los Angeles. His rebounding and back-to-the-basket skills would fit nicely in Orlando. Los Angeles also seemed to indicate that Olowokandi was gone, taking center Chris Kaman with the sixth pick of Thursday's NBA Draft.
Noted Gabriel: "You can really read into the way some teams drafted as to what they might do in free agency."
The Magic also had targeted San Antonio's Speedy Claxton as a player who could come in and be a starter right away. But quietly the Magic fear that Claxton's impressive play during the NBA Finals in relief of starter Tony Parker could have driven Claxton's price up too high.
Juwan Howard isn't expected to return to Denver, but the Los Angeles Lakers or his hometown Chicago Bulls are reportedly his favorite choices to play next season. The 6-9, 260-pound Howard played tremendous in a trying situation last season, averaging 18.4 points and 7.6 rebounds on a Nuggets team that won just 17 games.
New Orleans' P.J. Brown has long been a favorite of Gabriel's and Brown has spoken in the past of his desire to someday play in Orlando. But at 239 pounds, Brown is more of a power forward than a center and the Magic already have Drew Gooden locked into their lineup. Also, there are questions about how much Brown has left to offer at 33 years old.
"It certainly has to be the right player," Vander Weide said. "We already have three or four young pieces of our team in place and we can't express our desire right now for looking to veterans. We want to build with what we have. I just don't know if it makes sense to chase 33- or 34-year-old players."
Pressure's off
Gabriel said that the Magic's success in Thursday's draft took some of the pressure off the upcoming free-agent period. Orlando was able to upgrade its size at the point when it snagged Louisville's Reece Gaines with the 15th pick. Orlando then selected 6-11 power forward Zaur "Zaza" Pachulia with the 42nd pick and gave Milwaukee $225,000 for the draft rights to Kentucky shooting guard Keith Bogans.
"It's gone according to script so far," said Gabriel, who still wants to sign a veteran point guard to lighten the load on Gaines. "The benefits of the draft will take some pressure off ourselves in terms of positional needs. It's hard to go in and say we need three positions and let's go get them all. But we feel good about getting a point guard and a backup shooting guard. Now we just need to complement those picks in free agency."
In the past, the Magic have tried to strike early in free agency. In 2000, they had Hill and Duncan at their headquarters on the afternoon of July 1 and courted them with lavish tours of the city. In 2001, Gabriel and Rivers showed up on the doorstep of power forward Antonio Davis' house in southwest Orlando at 12:01 a.m. of July 1.
But after watching the market sag last summer and seeing several free agents sign for less than expected, the Magic might alter their plans this summer. The likely scenario is that the Magic will make contact with their favorite free agents early Tuesday, have prospective signees in soon after that and then wait to let the market dictate how much money players are worth.
"We were the first ones in with Horace (Grant in 1994) and he toured around with teams and came back to us," Gabriel said. "We did the same thing with T-Mac and Grant (in 2000). But the CBA (collective bargaining agreement) may work in our favor to wait this summer. Last year taught us that there was still good value out there until August because things just kind of drug out. It was a definitely a buyer's market last year."
Regardless of the approach, it expects to be another active summer for the Magic.
"It has to be the right people that you are spending the money on," said Magic chief operating officer John Weisbrod. "But if we come to the conclusion that there are two guys out there that are worth it and their additions can be the difference between winning and losing, we're not ruling out the possibility of going into the tax."
http://www.floridatoday.com/!NEWSROOM/sportstoryA4257A.htm
Magic's next target may be Odom
NBA's free-agent 'wish-list' period opens Tuesday
By John Denton
FLORIDA TODAY
ORLANDO -- They don't wield quite the financial clout that they did in 2000 when they signed free agents Tracy McGrady and Grant Hill and made a serious run at Tim Duncan, but still the Orlando Magic are armed with enough resources to make this a highly productive offseason.
The NBA's free-agent period, often a make or break time for teams seemingly on the cusp like Orlando, opens Tuesday. Teams can court, pamper and negotiate contracts with free agents for the next two-plus weeks, but those players can't officially sign until July 16.
Orlando didn't have the cap room to make much of a splash the past two summers, but does possess enough financial muscle to be a big player on the free-agent market this go around. And because the Magic have not won a playoff series since 1996, even blowing a 3-1 lead this spring against Detroit, there is a noticeable sense of urgency in dramatically improving the team.
Most importantly, the Magic have assurances from management that if general manager John Gabriel and head coach Doc Rivers can convince a difference-maker of a free agent to sign, the money will be available. That wasn't the case last July when potential deals with forward Keon Clark and guard Travis Best were quashed at the 11th hour because of fears of straying into the luxury tax, a dollar-for-dollar penalty for teams whose payrolls exceed a certain threshold set by the NBA.
"When ownership is losing money, you tend to look at things a little differently," said Magic president Bob Vander Weide, referring to the team's cost-conscious ways of the past two years. "But where we are today, breaking even again, that sort of changes things. We're in this for the long haul. We're not walking away from this. We're going to find a way to win and find a way to add players around Tracy (McGrady), Drew (Gooden), Gordan (Giricek) and Pat (Garrity)."
Also, for the first time since Hill signed, the Magic are hoping to get something out of his salary slot. With Hill expected to miss at least a major portion of the season following a fourth surgery on his left ankle, Orlando has applied to the NBA for a medical exception. Precedent seems to suggest the Magic will get it sometime in the next two weeks, giving them $4.8 million to offer a free agent or use in a trade.
San Antonio, Denver, Utah, Miami and the Los Angeles Clippers are the teams under the salary cap and should be the key players in the sweepstakes for top free agents Jason Kidd, Jermaine O'Neal and Gary Payton. But the Magic's combination of the $4.8 million medical exception, the $4.8 million "middle class exception," a $1.5 million veteran exception and the lure of playing alongside of McGrady could give them more weapons than any of the other teams over the NBA's salary cap.
"This is absolutely the year to have it," Magic coach Doc Rivers said of the team's financial clout. "We have a chance to be really good and make a huge jump. Drew (Gooden) and Gordie (Giricek) are young and Tracy (McGrady) is still pretty young, but we have a chance to really make a big jump by adding good guys around them."
So who, you ask, are the Magic targeting in free agency? Teams are barred from talking about specific players until Tuesday, but many of the free agents seem to match the Magic's needs perfectly.Craving Clippers
Clippers swingman Lamar Odom is high on the Magic's wish list because, like McGrady, he can play three different positions and has gobs of potential. The one snag is that the 6-foot-10 forward is a restricted free agent, meaning the Clippers can match any offer other teams make. But Elton Brand, Michael Olowokandi, Corey Maggette and Andre Miller are all free agents and notoriously cheap Clippers aren't expected to sign all of them. Still, the Magic are somewhat at the mercy of the Clippers.
"If things broke perfectly, there are some good things that could happen for us," Rivers said. "But certain teams out there have to act normal and that's kind of scary for us right now."
Olowokandi, a 7-1 center who was the top pick in the 1998 draft, isn't expected to return to the Clippers after a tempestuous season in Los Angeles. His rebounding and back-to-the-basket skills would fit nicely in Orlando. Los Angeles also seemed to indicate that Olowokandi was gone, taking center Chris Kaman with the sixth pick of Thursday's NBA Draft.
Noted Gabriel: "You can really read into the way some teams drafted as to what they might do in free agency."
The Magic also had targeted San Antonio's Speedy Claxton as a player who could come in and be a starter right away. But quietly the Magic fear that Claxton's impressive play during the NBA Finals in relief of starter Tony Parker could have driven Claxton's price up too high.
Juwan Howard isn't expected to return to Denver, but the Los Angeles Lakers or his hometown Chicago Bulls are reportedly his favorite choices to play next season. The 6-9, 260-pound Howard played tremendous in a trying situation last season, averaging 18.4 points and 7.6 rebounds on a Nuggets team that won just 17 games.
New Orleans' P.J. Brown has long been a favorite of Gabriel's and Brown has spoken in the past of his desire to someday play in Orlando. But at 239 pounds, Brown is more of a power forward than a center and the Magic already have Drew Gooden locked into their lineup. Also, there are questions about how much Brown has left to offer at 33 years old.
"It certainly has to be the right player," Vander Weide said. "We already have three or four young pieces of our team in place and we can't express our desire right now for looking to veterans. We want to build with what we have. I just don't know if it makes sense to chase 33- or 34-year-old players."
Pressure's off
Gabriel said that the Magic's success in Thursday's draft took some of the pressure off the upcoming free-agent period. Orlando was able to upgrade its size at the point when it snagged Louisville's Reece Gaines with the 15th pick. Orlando then selected 6-11 power forward Zaur "Zaza" Pachulia with the 42nd pick and gave Milwaukee $225,000 for the draft rights to Kentucky shooting guard Keith Bogans.
"It's gone according to script so far," said Gabriel, who still wants to sign a veteran point guard to lighten the load on Gaines. "The benefits of the draft will take some pressure off ourselves in terms of positional needs. It's hard to go in and say we need three positions and let's go get them all. But we feel good about getting a point guard and a backup shooting guard. Now we just need to complement those picks in free agency."
In the past, the Magic have tried to strike early in free agency. In 2000, they had Hill and Duncan at their headquarters on the afternoon of July 1 and courted them with lavish tours of the city. In 2001, Gabriel and Rivers showed up on the doorstep of power forward Antonio Davis' house in southwest Orlando at 12:01 a.m. of July 1.
But after watching the market sag last summer and seeing several free agents sign for less than expected, the Magic might alter their plans this summer. The likely scenario is that the Magic will make contact with their favorite free agents early Tuesday, have prospective signees in soon after that and then wait to let the market dictate how much money players are worth.
"We were the first ones in with Horace (Grant in 1994) and he toured around with teams and came back to us," Gabriel said. "We did the same thing with T-Mac and Grant (in 2000). But the CBA (collective bargaining agreement) may work in our favor to wait this summer. Last year taught us that there was still good value out there until August because things just kind of drug out. It was a definitely a buyer's market last year."
Regardless of the approach, it expects to be another active summer for the Magic.
"It has to be the right people that you are spending the money on," said Magic chief operating officer John Weisbrod. "But if we come to the conclusion that there are two guys out there that are worth it and their additions can be the difference between winning and losing, we're not ruling out the possibility of going into the tax."
Chances are Denver will land a Stephen Jackson or Lamar Odom before free agency season is through, so Carmelo won't have to score too much. Skita is tearing up Summer League, so he could very well be ready to contribute this season. In the end, the future of the franchise rested on the shoulders of Carmelo, Nene and Skita more than it did their free agent acquisitions.
