Gasol Available, Dalembert v. O'Brien, & More <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Rumor mill - Many mistakes have been made in this league by teams that were fooled by journeymen putting up big numbers in a contract year -- Erick Dampier, Mark Blount and Calvin Booth are recent examples. Seattle's Jerome James is currently playing well in the playoffs, but where was he all season? - The more one watches the available big men in the playoffs, the more one wants the Cavaliers to bring back Zydrunas Ilgauskas. Rumors say the Cavaliers have offered him a contract starting at less than $8 million a season. That's almost insulting to the Big Lithuanian. - The 76ers say they're going to match any offer center Samuel Dalembert gets. However, word on the street is that the native of Port-Au-Prince, Haiti, won't return to Philadelphia if coach Jim O'Brien comes back. - Yes, Grizzlies forward/center Pau Gasol is available -- as is most of the Memphis team -- but they won't consider trading the 7-footer until his $11 million contract kicks in for the 2005-06 season. He's ''only'' making $4.3 million right now. - Based on media reports, at least 47 high school seniors or college underclassmen have indicated they'll be early-entry candidates in the 2005 draft. - Phoenix's Mike D'Antoni, who won the Coach of the Year award, is making less than $2 million this season. That puts him in the bottom five of coaches who began the year with their current team. - If the Magic don't hire Eric Musselman as their coach, one source thinks they are positioning themselves to keep Chris Jent -- as crazy as that sounds. He's had two interviews with GM John Weisbrod. - Expect the Bulls to re-sign free agents Chris Duhon (a second-round draft pick who is making the minimum of $385,000 this season), starting center Eddy Curry and valuable reserve forward Tyson Chandler. The latter two big men are restricted free agents. ''If anybody wants to waste their time making offer sheets, they can go right ahead and do so,'' Bulls GM John Paxson said. ''But no way is anybody going to steal these players from us.''</div> Source
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">- Yes, Grizzlies forward/center Pau Gasol is available -- as is most of the Memphis team -- but they won't consider trading the 7-footer until his $11 million contract kicks in for the 2005-06 season. He's ''only'' making $4.3 million right now.</div> I've been waiting for this day since Pau was drafted. Yes, he's a great player who wins us a lot of basketball games, but he's also a defensive liability that loses us just as many if not more games. I would take him over most players in the NBA, but considering that we could get a player like Zach Randolph or Jason Kidd in return, I really want to pull the trigger. I also like that the Grizzlies won't consider trading him until his $11 million dollar contract kicks in, because that means they'll be expecting an All-Star caliber player in return.
Why would Dalembert leave if O Brien coaches?..i dont follow the sixers, just curious what happened betwee them.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting legendisdope:</div><div class="quote_post">Why would Dalembert leave if O Brien coaches?..i dont follow the sixers, just curious what happened betwee them.</div> Dalembert and O'Brien seem to be on different pages, check that, different books. I was actually watching a game and the camera showed Dalembert on the bench and O'Brien talking to him, when O'Brien turned his back (when he was done), Dalembert and Willie Green(sitting next to Dalembert) were both laughing on the bench at O'Brien. It's not only Dalembert that doesn't seem to like him, the Philadelphia media mocks him, and some of the players don't like him either. He was bashed by the Philly media in game four of the Pistons game for having Willie Green in for crunch time. If you followed Willie, the whole year he was on the bench and only in games when Iverson was injuryed, yet come in the most important game of the season he is in for crunch time. The Philadelphia media also was bashing O'Brien when we were playing the Celtics in a very big game for us (have a chance to win the division) and he has Iguodala on the bench who is considered our best defensive player. Back on Dalembert, O'Brien wasn't starting Dalembert the first few games of the season and that seemed to get Dalembert a little annoyed.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting CourtKing:</div><div class="quote_post">Dalembert and O'Brien seem to be on different pages, check that, different books. I was actually watching a game and the camera showed Dalembert on the bench and O'Brien talking to him, when O'Brien turned his back (when he was done), Dalembert and Willie Green(sitting next to Dalembert) were both laughing on the bench at O'Brien. It's not only Dalembert that doesn't seem to like him, the Philadelphia media mocks him, and some of the players don't like him either. He was bashed by the Philly media in game four of the Pistons game for having Willie Green in for crunch time. If you followed Willie, the whole year he was on the bench and only in games when Iverson was injuryed, yet come in the most important game of the season he is in for crunch time. The Philadelphia media also was bashing O'Brien when we were playing the Celtics in a very big game for us (have a chance to win the division) and he has Iguodala on the bench who is considered our best defensive player. Back on Dalembert, O'Brien wasn't starting Dalembert the first few games of the season and that seemed to get Dalembert a little annoyed.</div> O alrite...very interesting.
