Nah, we didn't. That was a rumor perpetuated by Mike Rice as Merlin, I think. So we still have the rights to both Koponen and Freeland.
Freeland likely will never be a Blazer even though we still have his rights. He just signed a long contract and between him having to play for less money over here, and the Blazers already having LMA and Oden at the 4/5 means Freeland would have to give up a lot to play here, both money and playing time.
What happens if Freeland AND Claver come over in 2/3 years? Do either of them even see the floor? Are either of them going to be an upgrade over Cunningham? Having too much talent is a great problem to have.
No, you can't, because Rudy's here now. A year ago, yes, you could have said that.... Kidding aside, the logic the other poster had about JF never being a Blazer was flawed. Foreigners give up money all the time to come to the NBA. If Joel wasn't happy, he could walk and go back to Europe. Just look at the "quotes" from Rudy earlier this summer about him possibly going back to Europe.
I thought that the NBA and European clubs honored each others contracts. Hence, if Freeland has a contract to play with the Blazers, he cannot just pack his bags and head back to Europe and sign with a team there as he would already be under contract in the NBA. Tis that not the case? Gramps...
I don't think it applies like it did with Rudy. Sure Rudy is a SG mainly and we have Roy at that spot, but Roy also plays some PG and SF and those positions were not cemented when Rudy was deciding to come over. Lets just say we had a lineup of Paul, Roy, Butler at the PG/SG/SF spots, I think there would be a much greater chance that Rudy would not have come over. Freeland is pissed already because he spent the last several years not playing much and has already discovered how much that sucks. So why would he want to come over at just a chance to compete for 15 minutes a game. If he gets good enough to demand more playing time, then he will likely not want to come play for the Blazers because his minutes would be limited but might agree to a sign and trade. I just don't ever see him playing on the Blazers.
There's a loophole in the CBA where after 3 years, they don't have to sign for a the rookie based deal, so after his deal is up it could depend on how much he's developed.
I disagree. I believe he wishes to become good enough to play over here with the Blazers. Who wouldn't? If you can grab a spot on a finals bound National Basketball Association team you take that chance, because if you do make a run your stock as a world player skyrockets. It doesn't get any better than that as a resume builder. . If he gets NBA ready, and the Blazers make a few moves, I can easily see him coming over here in a couple years when we're in our prime.
It is, but I think that NBA teams are generally willing to let players skee-daddle back to Europe when they want to. I believe that Juan Carlos Navarro is one case, and there have been others, too. Ed O.
I thought Navarro was an RFA who wasn't offered by another team, so the Grizzlies just let him go. Or did the Grizz hold an option to terminate his contract?
True. The catch is, the Blazers can only take advantage of that loop-hole if they have cap space available, or their MLE - which the owners want to eliminate in the new CBA. Not to be Danny downer, but I agree with those who say Freeland and Claver will never be Blazers. If the owners get their way in the new CBA, payrolls will shrink. The stars will eat up most of the money, and the merely good players will be left with scraps. Frankly, I expect the league to start losing talent to Europe, rather than the influx of Euro-players to continue.
Wait a minute now. He was drafted in 2006, so that "3rd season" is this year which means we can use the MLE to sign him next summer? I wonder what his opt put options are with the Euro team he signed with? if POR was involved I'd wager there is a reasonable opt out option next summer, coinciding with the 3 yr period ending. Very smart of POR mgmt "IF" this is the case. Here's more fuel for the fire from Blazer's edge: "As we wrote earlier this summer, Freeland signed with the Spanish club Unicaja Malaga. At the time, Kevin Pritchard stated, "I don't want to say that we brokered the deal, but we were always a part of that communication. Joel was pretty adament about going back overseas for a couple more years. He does absolutely want to come back to the NBA, he just wants more playing time, so when he comes he can be ready and we love that."
Freeland will be a Blazer if we want him to be in a couple of years, or even next year in the unlikely event the other Joel opts out. I say this with complete confidence, even with the knowledge that he could have come over this year (he was offered the chance). He has moved to a much bigger club (Unicaja Malaga) with a bigger role and with one of his GB teammates as a teammate. So right now he's enjoying moderate stardom in sunny Spain. BUT: he's English, which means America is sort of a land of milk and honey, so he will come here eventually, especially if he can avoid rookie scale, but probably even then. People forget that he was a late starter and is still learning. But don't think he's like Fran Vasquez, who may never come over: Vasquez is playing in his home. Spain is not Freeland's home. (And yes, KP did indeed say that he was involved in Freeland's contract with Malaga, and it was rumored that he has very easy buyouts every year of his five year contract.) Now as for Claver, I don't know. Let's see if he's any good first. He strikes me as a bit of a tweener: too skinny for PF, but lacking SF skills. A sensible enough gamble, and he could turn out to be a Rashard Lewis type, but we've no hurry with Batum and LaMarcus already on the team. But let's not forget Koponen! Of the three, I'd like him to come over soonest.
