<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">"I wanted the chance to say will you give me $5 a day? But they said we're not doing anything. We're not going to do it now. We're not going to do it in sixth months. We'll talk after this season. So now I know that at the end of my contract I'm not going to be here. ... I don't see how I can feel good about playing for the Grizzlies when I know they're not going to sign me at the end of the year." Wright, 29, is about to enter the final year of a contract that pays him $7.7 million for the 2005-06 season. He's played for the Griz since 2001, their inaugural campaign in Memphis. Griz majority owner Michael Heisley has already stated that he wants to reduce the team's payroll, which exceeded $66 million last season. The Grizzlies also will endure more than $40 million in losses despite a new arena and their second consecutive playoff appearance. Wright averaged 9.2 points and 7.7 rebounds for the Grizzlies this season. His play since January was a major reason the Griz earned their second consecutive trip to the postseason. Griz president Jerry West refused comment to The Commercial Appeal but released a statement imploring Wright to honor his deal. "We are very appreciative of all of Lorenzen's contributions to the Grizzlies," West said. "We are aware of his desire to extend his contract and we have had discussions with his agent. As we have in the past, we will honor our contractual commitment to Lorenzen who has one year remaining on his contract. In good faith, we hope he will honor his commitment to the team and the organization." Grizzly insiders claim that the team decided it could not enter contract negotiations with Wright until a collective bargaining agreement had been decided with the league and its players. The team also wanted to conduct business following the NBA draft. But Wright's agent, Robert Fayne, insisted the Grizzlies indicated that his client wasn't part of the team's future. "Our interests and their interests are divergent," said Fayne, a Memphis native now based in New York. "We decided to make this announcement because we wanted to give the Grizzlies as much time as possible before the draft to consummate a transaction. We thought our decision is one that should be considered as the team approaches the draft and the rest of the offseason." </div> Source
