CARON BUTLER!? <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Kobe Bryant now knows how much his seven-year contract offer from the Lakers is really worth - $136.4 million - after the NBA established next season's salary cap and maximum salary figures Tuesday night. Bryant is allowed to sign that offer, officially, now that the league's moratorium on transactions is over. He hasn't yet, though. After separate Monday night meetings in Newport Beach with the Lakers and Clippers - in which Bryant met Rudy Tomjanovich as Lakers coach for the first time - Bryant still had not committed to a team. The NBA salary cap was set at $43.87 million - lower than projected by the Clippers - and that somewhat complicates the Clippers' offer to Bryant. The Clippers now don't have enough cap room to make a maximum $106 million offer over six years to Bryant. Late Tuesday night they began to clear more space to increase their offer by dealing Eddie House and Melvin Ely to the Charlotte Bobcats. That could place their offer to Bryant at about $91 million. In the meantime, the Lakers moved forward with their landmark trade of Shaquille O'Neal to the Miami Heat for Lamar Odom, Brian Grant, Caron Butler and a future first-round pick. Transactions were permitted after 9 p.m. Tuesday, and the trade is expected to become official today, according to O'Neal's agent Perry Rogers. Included in the deal is expected to be $3 million from the Heat to the Lakers, according to a Lakers source, to help compensate for a trade kicker in Odom's contract that will give him an $8 million bonus for being traded. The maximum in cash, by league rule, movable from one team to another is $3 million. Odom will get the $8million bonus within 30 days of the trade, and it will count against the Lakers' salary cap - an additional $1.6 million each of the next five years. Accepting that burden is another demonstration of the Lakers' willingness to get Odom. The incoming players are not expected to be introduced as Lakers until Thursday at the earliest. It would follow that the club will get Brian Cook to surrender No.7 to Odom; Odom wears No.7 because it was the favorite number of his grandmother, Mildred Mercer, who raised him. Cook actually chose No.7 as a rookie a year ago because his college number was unavailable; it's available now - No.34 - though the Lakers won't be giving it to anyone soon in deference to O'Neal. Odom can play many positions, but he is already plugged in as the starting small forward - more easily assigned because Devean George is projected to miss the first few weeks of the season recovering from surgery to his left ankle Tuesday. In a two-hour procedure in Indianapolis, George had ligaments on the outside of his ankle reconstructed and tightened and bone spurs removed. The ankle has bothered George since the 2003 playoffs; he had hoped rest last summer would heal the ankle, but it didn't. The surgery affects the Lakers immediately because it wipes out George's trade value. They have a glut of small forwards with Odom and Butler coming in. Butler could be traded by the Lakers in a deal where he is the lone player traded; if he or any of the coming players is traded again in a package, the Lakers must wait two months to do it, according to a league rule. One player who remains a strong candidate to be traded is guard Gary Payton. He has indicated unhappiness with O'Neal departing; but the Lakers already have had thoughts about moving Payton to a team looking to clear future salary-cap space; Payton (due $5.4 million next season) and Rick Fox ($5 million) have contracts expiring in a year.</div> No...Butler cant be moved...why not George, Fox, or even Odom...Butler is going to be special..and i think moving him is a mistake.... Article MOD NOTE: I posted the whole article because oyu have to register...
