I agree, but you can't say you are ok with his radio interview and that he shouldn't go public. The radio interview kept this story alive, prompting Wheels to text him, Canzano then to write a piece about him, and people jumping off bridges. Again, I agree with your main point, Roy, his agent, KP, etc. shouldn't have made this public.
It's hard in this day in age to put pressure on the other party without going public, it seems like, especially when agents are involved. And so far, I think Brandon has more people on his side than the front office.
Roy is going to walk a fine line here. On one hand, he's the franchise player. Has all the sympathy of the die-hards (hell... look how quick everyone is ready to shout "FUCK KP!" from the rooftops...!) However, he will not find too much sympathy with a lot of renewed-interest and casual fans if he's bitching about $80 million instead of $70 million in this economy. Oregon has incredibly high unemployment and we all know how bad this economy is. Not many will forgive him if he plays his hand too publicly here. Also, and I brought this up in another thread but it was late and most were mid-argument already... but FUCK ROY for saying (verbatim) "I wouldn't recruit because I don't know my future here." That is complete and utter bullshit and Roy has already lost points with me for it. If that is anything more than posturing than I don't expect him to be around here for the long haul. If Roy is not doing his part to help this franchise get better - and is solely concerned with his coming payday - than how is he any better than a Rasheed "C.T.C." Wallace? I'm guessing this post wouldn't be popular with many-a-you, but all of the anger towards Blazers' management has pissed me off. It's been just as much if not more KP than Roy that has revitalized this team and positioned us to be a real great team for a long while for the next decade. Everyones willingness to throw KP and Co. under the bus - coupled with some ridiculous revisionist history ("KP fucked up on draft day" is my new favorite) - is plain wrong. Not that I'm saying Roy is wrong or should be traded and all that, but my god... he is not a saint by any means, either!
Oh, I think Brandon is worth the max in terms of money and years on the contract - there is no doubt about that to me. He's a top ten player and made (along with LMA) Portland relevant again and revived the city. However, I also understand the need for Portland to negotiate with him when LMA is represented by the same agency (not exact same agents but both their agents work for Wasserman Media Group, and LMA's is Arn Tellum who is the lead of the management division which employs Roy's agent Bob Myers) and with several young players coming up in the next few years. I think Bargnani's 50/5 right out of the gate really put a dink into LMA's negotiations (Arn Tellum claws for every tooth and nail for his client the guy is very, very good at getting big contracts) and I think Portland may be wanting to try to get them both signed at the same time. I'd rather have this be a distraction now than LMA not get signed and this be a distraction in the season and then next summer when Greg is up for a contract extension too. In addition like others have said the CBA is running out in 2011, the cap and luxury numbers are coming down. Paul Allen, even though he is very very rich, is losing billions of dollars in net worth a year on multiple projects. I can understand if they want to at least try to negotiate what is in the best interest of the team's overall financial health a few years down the road. In the end Brandon will get his max contract and it may have caused all parties a little stress, but I do understand why Portland feels the possible need to negotiate.
I agree. I'm on Roy's side too (that he should get a full max contract) However, that doesn't mean I agree with how he is dealing with Portland only offering him the max for 4 years. If September rolled around without a peep from Roy's agent or the Blazers, and there was no contract extension, the pressure would be put on the organization without anyone having to make the other look bad.
That is true. I wish this had all just been kept in house and not leaked at all. I understand why his agent did it, but don't feel it is necessary.
While I'm not as extreme as you, I agree with the part I put in bold. If a guys #1 concern was winning and building a championship contender, you would think he could find the time to help the organization recruit between cashing his $340k monthly check. Again, I understand his point, but he is still employed and under contract, and he has the ability to attract a talent player to come to Portland and it's a shame he didn't give a little more effort.
It's not like Brandon is doing nothing this summer. He's trying to improve for next year, and I'm sure he sees Bargnani getting 5 years worth of security and wonders why he can't get five years at just a few million/per more.
Niether Roy nor LMA were asked to call Hedo. Colangelo asked Bosh to call Hedo. This is all in the public record.
Yeah, I'm sure if they had it their way.. especially Brandon's, I'm sure he'd rather do it in-house than out in the public, and same as KP and the franchise. That KJR interview Roy gave was just very un-Roy like in a way that it was about himself now instead of the team. A lot of it was his agent's doing, but I also believe Brandon would rather get this done and over with quickly. And to get it over with quickly or accelerating the process would be just going out to the media about it.
I never said he wasn't working on his game, I said he could have also found the time to engage himself in the Blazers' FA talks. Personally, if I wanted to stay with a team for the next 6 years, and I had a chance to improve my teams chances of winning a championship by being proactive and offering my services in recruiting players, I would be all over it. If I knew I wanted to bolt after 2 years, then I wouldn't.
I agree and my point is that he is willing to trade off what might be best for HIS team in the future for what is best for him right now. Either way, he was going to get his deal IMO, so I don't see the value in bring down the franchises image to speed up the process a couple weeks. And if Roy really wanted it that way, he has the power to tell his agent to keep it out of the media.
Taking it public is the only way Roy is going to get a five year max deal. He STILL might not get it, but unless he talks about it he can only sign what they put in front of him or play out his contract and become a free agent right at the expiration of the current CBA... or, of course, sign for less with another team and have it matched. I don't blame Roy. He's not a savior and, as much as he likes Portland, it's his JOB to play basketball and make money. If he could get a five year max deal from Oklahoma City tomorrow, I wouldn't be surprised (or upset) if he'd take it. Ed O.
Unless you're a Blazer insider, that's quite the factual statement to make with no evidence. If the 4 year extension was the max Portland was willing to offer Roy, then I don't see how going to the media would change that. Either 4 years is the max they're willing to go or there is some wiggle room.
But what is that wiggle room? Please let me know how it's not binary: 4 years/max or 5 years/max. Are you saying he'd prefer five years with more money overall but not maxed? I can't imagine that's the case. Applying pressure to the Blazers is, in my opinion, the only leverage he has. Sitting out is not going to happen, and the Blazers know it. Playing out a pair of one year deals to become an UFA when the CBA is expiring is too large of a risk. Making a stink and getting some Portlanders fired up is the only way to get what he seems to want. That it damages (temporarily) the brand and/or may restrict future team moves isn't his concern, and I don't think that it should be. Ed O.
It's a negotiation that, in theory, could extend for up to two years. You're thinking Roy was backed in to a corner already and played his ace in the hole? That's just ridiculous.
What else can he do, right now, to get the max five year extension? I'd be delighted to hear what your thoughts on that are. He should just sit on his hands and be a good soldier? Hope that, over time, the team will decide to give him that final year at some point in the future? The salary cap is probably going to precipitously decline next year. If he signs a max five year extension this time next year he might be costing himself $6m over the course of those five years (since the max contract will be lower this time next year). Why should he be quiet and watch that money simply disappear? That is just ridiculous IMO. Ed O.
He feels he has put in the time and work to earn that 5th year, he said that on the radio interview up in here in seattle, He seems genuinely frustrated at the process.
With all the money available the year he would be a restricted free agent somebody will max offer him. Then you havea situation where a player is pissed because we didn't sign him before, and he is not sure he wants to be here anymore. So even if we match, it will never be the same because he isn't happy anymore. So if that is going to happen anyhow, why not just get it out of the way and make him happy now, and avoid all the team chemistry bullshit and drama.
