<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Seattle Times - The Seattle SuperSonics will wait a few days and prepare for a Monday meeting with Chris Wilcox's representatives that will determine whether contract negotiations with the restricted free agent are going to be long or short, the Seattle Times is reporting. "Of course, we'd like them to be short and sign him as quickly as we can," Sonics general manager Rick Sund said. Wilcox claims he wants to remain in Seattle, but the two sides may be far apart on the money. According to the Seattle Times, the Sonics' initial offer will be similar to the six-year, $42 million deal they offered Vladimir Radmanovic last year, while Wilcox seeks a deal similar to the six-year, $64 million contract that Philadelphia gave Samuel Dalembert a year ago.</div> http://realgm.com/src_wiretap_archives/411...apart_on_money/
Well it's nothing more than I'd expect to be honest - negotiations always start with the player highballing and the team lowballing, it's just a matter of meeting somewhere in the middle. Thing is, apart from Seattle, who is really going to pay him that kind of money this summer? I can't really think of any team with capspace who will (Chicago have just drafted Thomas, Atlanta Williams etc), so at worst we have him for another season before he becomes unrestricted. In that time we'd find out if he is the real deal anyway. I do think we'll come to an agreement somewhere in the middle (6/50 or something in that range), but whatever happens I am very confident we'll see Chris in a Seattle uniform for at least the next season. He simply won't find a better situation for his development, and his agent knows that.
The Sonics's main competition would be Atlanta, Chicago, and New Orleans. Atlanta is probably out unless they let Harrington go for good. Chicago might take a stab at it, but I doubt they'll make a big offer. New Orleans is a long shot unless they trade West. Shows what I know.
The Hornets took two bigs in the draft at 12 and 15, so I doubt they'll go for him with that and West's emergence. Personally I think Wilcox will find out pretty quickly that he's probably not going to get big money elsewhere through circumstance, so unless he just comes back for the one year tender we're in a pretty strong bargaining position. With the Bulls apparently looking to trade Chandler, would that be an option via a sign and trade? He'd give us that interior defence we need at the four and is athletic enough to run the floor, but he did seem to regress without Curry around and it's a big deal to take on, so probably not.
I don't expect negotiations to run smoothly b/c I don't think that we are going to pay Wilcox a contract that will pay him over 8 million a year. Wilcox is going to be frustrated that he isn't getting the offers that he perceives that he is worth but just like Rashard Lewis he is going to have to bite the bullet and sign the deal that pays him the most--and most likely that deal is going to come from Seattle. There is no real plausible scenario that I can envision Weezy walking. At worst he will sign a qualifying offer and we will lose him in a year but I can't imagine any team (especially considering that just about every team has issues w/ the salary cap) offering him a contract that we wouldn't be able to match. This team gave Wilcox the opportunity to be sought after and I hope that he understands that he can be a franchise type of player for this franchise for years to come. Ray Allen is undoubtedly the star but I feel that Wilcox will be the cornerstone for franchise in the event that he does sign a long term deal. He is young, mobile, and hungry and I look forward to seeing him continue to progress in a Sonics uniform.
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">If negotiations hit a snag in Seattle, a league source said New Jersey and Phoenix have shown interest in Wilcox. The Sonics, however, are unlikely to participate in a sign-and-trade deal, which leaves Wilcox the option of accepting a less-than-favorable long-term contract or a one-year tender. Perhaps remembering 19th-century philosopher George Santayana's comment, "Those who can not remember the past are condemned to repeat it," Sund is mindful of recent history. "Everybody involved learned a lot from that situation," he said, referring to negotiations with Radmanovic. "It's not something you necessarily want to repeat."</div> Seattle Times.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Sir Desmond:</div><div class="quote_post">He simply won't find a better situation for his development, and his agent knows that.</div> True, although I'm worried that he and his agent won't care about his development after he signs for 6/64.
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">The first contract talks between the Seattle SuperSonics and restricted free agent forward Chris Wilcox on Monday did not yield much positive news. "We're far apart in what we believe Chris' value to be and his contribution to the Seattle SuperSonics," Wilcox's agent, Jeff Fried, told The Associated Press. "We view Chris as an important part of the core." Seattle has already made a qualifying offer to Wilcox, meaning the Sonics can match any offer he receives from another team. Wilcox could also choose not to sign a long-term deal, agree to a one-year contract with the Sonics and become an unrestricted free agent after next season. But Wilcox and Fried seem focused on getting a long-term deal. In recent days the market has seen former Seattle forward Vladimir Radmanovic agree to a midlevel deal with the Los Angeles Lakers, and Nene reach agreement with Denver for six years, $60 million. No contracts can be signed before July 12, and Sonics' general manager Rick Sund declined to comment on Monday. Fried and Wilcox flew to Seattle on Sunday night to meet in person with Sonics management. Fried said there has been plenty of interest from other teams, and that the focus is finding the best situation for Wilcox. The Bulls, Hawks, Clippers, Bobcats and Raptors are some of the teams considered to have enough salary cap space to pursue Wilcox. Sund reiterated during last week's NBA draft that resigning Wilcox was the Sonics' top priority in the offseason.</div> http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2508719
