Re: Peja says he won't return next season. LINK<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>April 5, 2006 pacers notebookPeja says he will opt out of dealStojakovic, acquired in Artest trade, likely to become free agent after this season Related articles? Another collapse for Pacers LPN/Medical RecordsEastside specialty group Quality Assurance Coordinator2 years operations/supervisory exp Bilingual Marketing AssistantFull benefit pkg incl 401K match Various PositionsWe have Multiple Postions in Indy Location General ManagersSupervision of Customer Service Mgr View all Top Jobs Butler Hyundai Warehouse$99/month on all New Hyundais in Stock!Butler Ford WarehouseUsed Car Madness! $0 Down Payments! No Credit Application Refused!Tom Wood Ford06 Mustang $249/mo 07 Sport Trac $289/mo 06 Fusion $259/moView all Top Car Deals Related news from the WebLatest headlines by topic:? Sports ? Indiana Pacers ? NBA Basketball ? Lottery ? Chicago Bulls ? New York Knicks Powered by Topix.net By Mike Wellsmike.wells@indystar.comCHICAGO -- Indiana Pacers forward Peja Stojakovic said Tuesday that he'll probably opt out of the final year of his contract and become a free agent this summer. "I have the option to do it, so that's something I'm probably going to do," he said before the game at Chicago.Stojakovic, acquired from Sacramento for Ron Artest on Jan. 25, is scheduled to make $8.2 million next season. Pacers president Larry Bird said in January that the team wants to keep Stojakovic beyond this season."I've been after this kid for two years and I don't want him to be here for two weeks. . . . Hopefully he'll be in a Pacer uniform for a long time to come," Bird said during the news conference to introduce Stojakovic.Stojakovic is averaging 19.0 points and making 39 percent of his 3-pointers in 31 games with the Pacers.Stojakovic said he's interested in remaining with the Pacers."I said from the beginning that the Pacers are a great organization," he said. "(CEO) Donnie (Walsh) and Larry are great people. I believe this team has the potential."</div>This might be bad news for the Pacers. Unless they go out and get another guy to replace him it might be hard for them to make the playoffs next year.
Re: Peja says he won't return next season. Wow, just 'cause they're on a 5 game losing streak means he's automatically leaving? Time for Danny Granger to step up.
Re: Peja says he won't return next season. oops i guess im too late. I posted an article on this in the General NBA board. Hes gonna be a free agent. He doesn't know yet if he'll return or not. Hes probably gonna be going to the Bulls though. There has been talk about it and they got a huge Serbian population over there. He said he has considered staying with the Pacers but i doubt he will. And no its not because of the 5 game losing streak. He wanted to go the bulls for a while now. I'll be surprised if he goes somewhere else.
Re: Peja says he won't return next season. That is going to kill the Pacers. They lose Artest and Peja. I hope the Heat sign Peja. Because dang that would be a hell of a lineup. But we need chemistry to really win the title.
Re: Peja says he won't return next season. Interesting. Yea they did get nothing for Artest then, besides cleaning up some cap. Im not familiar with who are free agents this offseason. But eaither Pacers need a draft steal or grab a good free agentMiller gone last season, Artest gone this season...hum
Re: Peja says he won't return next season. Peja mentioned when he was with the Kings that he wanted to test free agency, so the pacers prolly knew he was gonna test the market. I hope the Bulls go after him just cuz hes one of my fav players
Re: Peja says he won't return next season. Jeez. I dont know why. No other team needs just a shooter at SF. He fit in very well with the Pacers and they are one of the few teams that want him. He's on a playoff team? I dont know why he wants out.
Re: Peja says he won't return next season. I heard somewhere that he and his agent feel like they could get more then 8.3 mil. Maybe he's just doing this so the Pacers offer him more.
Re: Peja says he won't return next season. i don't think they were planning on re-signing him anyways. i hvae heard talks of a complete make over. supposedly, Bird said the team had become "stale".
Re: Peja says he won't return next season. Just because Peja opted out doesn't mean he's leaving. Wasn't that the case all season anyways Peja was going to opt out, even on the Kings. Peja knows he will probably get a better deal, that's why he opted out. There's a good chance he will resign with the Pacers.
Re: Peja says he won't return next season. yeah, him saying hes gonna opt out is just a bargaining chip to se if he can get more out of the Pacers, if he feels he cant, then he has the option to shop his services around...unfortunately for the pacers if he does leave, its just one more shot to the gut for them...this team has had atrocious luck since the brawl at the palace...hopefully something goes their way eventually
Re: Peja says he won't return next season. <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (nba dogmatist @ Apr 13 2006, 11:04 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>i don't think they were planning on re-signing him anyways. i hvae heard talks of a complete make over. supposedly, Bird said the team had become "stale".</div>Bird really likes Peja, i doubt he's just gonna let him go. If they do not re-sign him its basically like them giving Ron away to Sacramento.
Re: Peja says he won't return next season. He may come back, he just said he want to test the market. He never said i dont wanna play for the pacers anymore.
