He's a good guy on and off the court: http://www.usatoday.com/sports/basketball/...y-package_x.htm <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">"It's still more money than I've ever had. I'm able to help the people who helped me get here. I definitely would like to be in a better situation financially, but I'm going to continue to work hard." -- Udonis Haslem, in the Dec. 17 USA Today, on earning the rookie minimum of $366,931. He's considered one of USA Today's best buys in the NBA, according to the Dec. 17 edition</div>
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting ObieCent:</div><div class="quote_post">Sources? I want to see who else are the "best buys" in the NBA</div> Go here: http://www.justbball.com/forums/showthread.php?p=139922 I am surprised that Rafer Alston was not on that list, he is making $688k and playing like he's worth at least a mil .
I appreciate Haslem's comments. He's happy with the minimum he's making. At least he's not making himself look greedy.
Very refreshing, as long as he continues to work hard, his payday will definitely come. The Heat may have finally found a solid 4. The big man should improve his post moves as well under coaching of McAdoo.
Thanks Accord, please post links at all times, even if you take 1 sentence. We could get in big time trouble otherwise.
Haslem always struck me as a levelheaded fellow. He is able to tell that if he weren't playing basketball then it'd take him decades to put that kind of money in the bank. He also knows that going into the season when he signed that contract, he did not deserve it as he'd been bouncing around minor leagues for a year and hadn't proven anything yet. I hope he's just spending it wisely or investing it and not blowing it like most other NBA players supposidely do. As far as Haslem's success goes, I am not surprised. He was a great player at Florida. Next season, I predict Haslem will sign a contract around the one million dollar range.
listen to you fools, happy!???!!! with his wages? HES MAKING MORE THAN DOCTORS AND AND PROFESSIONAL JOB! GREEDY!? HES MAKING FREAKING OVER $350,000 , HIS STINGY *** BETTER NOT BE COMPLAINING, HE GETS PAID TO PLAY A LITTLE KIDS SPORT...
"I definitely would like to be in a better situation financially..." -why you lowlife? cuz making over 360k isnt good enough, not paying the bills, not paying the rent, not putting food in your stomach? -hes talking like he makes 10k a year...
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Laker_Fever_834:</div><div class="quote_post">...He's happy with the minimum he's making.</div> lol, who wouldnt be happy making 360k a year, what are you 12?
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting King James:</div><div class="quote_post">Thanks Accord, please post links at all times, even if you take 1 sentence. We could get in big time trouble otherwise.</div> Sure thing, I just edited my post with the link and will do so in the future.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting saad:</div><div class="quote_post">"I definitely would like to be in a better situation financially..." -why you lowlife? cuz making over 360k isnt good enough, not paying the bills, not paying the rent, not putting food in your stomach? -hes talking like he makes 10k a year...</div> No need to bash him, he is obviously aware that it is more money than he has ever had in his lifetime and is very appreciative, but you need to look at it from his perspective. When you're sitting on the bench next to players making 2+ million, you would wish you made that much too . I'm not even going to comment on what you said about basketball being a little kids sport, because it's not. If you think it's so easy to play in the NBA, let alone just be a bench warmer, then I suggest you go to NBA.com and download all of the Real Training Camp: Denver Nuggets videos. Your perspective of the NBA and how hard these guys work will really change after watching it.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Accord:</div><div class="quote_post">No need to bash him, he is obviously aware that it is more money than he has ever had in his lifetime and is very appreciative, but you need to look at it from his perspective. When you're sitting on the bench next to players making 2+ million, you would wish you made that much too . I'm not even going to comment on what you said about basketball being a little kids sport, because it's not. If you think it's so easy to play in the NBA, let alone just be a bench warmer, then I suggest you go to NBA.com and download all of the Real Training Camp: Denver Nuggets videos. Your perspective of the NBA and how hard these guys work will really change after watching it.</div> i could imagine how tough it is...it is extremely tough but making all this money for playing a sport? come on...if he were better than the players on the bench with him making 2+ million dollars then OK, moan and groan all you want, but he is anot a superstar and is a newcomer to the NBA, he hasnt proven anyhting yet...so be happy with what you have and keep your mouth shut...
Nobody in the NBA should be complaining about their salaries. I think the original point was simply that his attitude is a nice change from others on the team like Lamar Odom for instance. He gets busted for drugs twice, has constant injury problems, then bashes the team that stood by him and rejects their 8 million dollar per-year offer. This is a guy who had absolutely zero reason to complain, yet he opened his mouth and proved himself a fool. I know this wasn't about him, but I'll take a guy like Udonis Haslem over Odom any day.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting OgShowtime:</div><div class="quote_post">Nobody in the NBA should be complaining about their salaries. I think the original point was simply that his attitude is a nice change from others on the team like Lamar Odom for instance. He gets busted for drugs twice, has constant injury problems, then bashes the team that stood by him and rejects their 8 million dollar per-year offer. This is a guy who had absolutely zero reason to complain, yet he opened his mouth and proved himself a fool. I know this wasn't about him, but I'll take a guy like Udonis Haslem over Odom any day.</div> Of course he is going to go with the team that offered him an iron clad 5 year 65 million dollar contract, infact any NBA player not concerned with winning a championship would have accepted that offer. You cannot blame Lamar for going with the team that offered him the better deal, and if you were in his position, don't say you wouldn't have accepted it! Thus far, Lamar has lived up to his high dollar contract and for the most part there have been no injury problems, if his performance remains consistent then he will definitely lead this team into the playoffs, if not this year definitely the next.
I'm not upset with the fact that he took the money, because of course I would have too. But, the thing that I am upset with is the fact that the team stood by him through all of his problems and got a slap in the face in return. He could have signed that extension long before he was offered a contract by the Heat, who didn't have Odom at the top of their shopping list in the first place. They were intent on landing Elton Brand, but when the Clippers unexpectedly matched, they decided they had to save face and go after option number two. Then frontload the deal with a ludicrous amount of money, making it impossible to match by LA. But that's fine, I understand why they did so, the thing that burns me is simply Odom's attitude throughout the process. The fans in LA loved him when he arrived, and through his difficulties I was the biggest Lamar Odom apologist. I continued to tell anyone who would listen that this guy was special. I still believe that, I just feel that he did the fans and the team very wrong with his assanine comments on the way out the door. I completely understand why Heat fans are so excited to have this guy, he's a tremendous player and will only continue to get better. But, his mental makeup is very questionable to me. If he was more accountable for his indiscretions and conducted himself with integrity as he left the Clippers, I would have absolutely no problems with him. That's not what he chose to do, therefore he lost a lot of respect from not only Clipper fans, but many fans outside the Miami city limits. Maybe I'm taking this thing too personally, but I live and die with my basketball teams and to myself and others like me Lamar's actions felt like a huge knife in the back.
if you're not concerned about winning a championship, then why are you here really? you are playing for paychecks and your individual stats for millions of dollars for playing a sport, you people are dumb for saying it's OK to just play for the money, you are to play for a contending team and actually win...you can buy a lot of things with a minimum salary in the pro sports...you stingy idiots... <font color="blue">One more comment like that and you will be banned. No if's and's or but's about it. Read our rules and apply them to your posting.-dexter</font>
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting saad:</div><div class="quote_post">if you're not concerned about winning a championship, then why are you here really? you are playing for paychecks and your individual stats for millions of dollars for playing a sport, you people are dumb for saying it's OK to just play for the money, you are to play for a contending team and actually win...you can buy a lot of things with a minimum salary in the pro sports......</div> The attitude and cheap insults really aren't needed man. Winning a championship is a mere dream for most players in the NBA, unless you're on a championship caliber team such as the Spurs, Kings, Lakers, Dallas, etc. then the main goal is to make it to the playoffs and do well, not winning a championship. The NBA is a business before anything, and many people forget this. Of course everyone WANTS to win a championship, but the reality is most players in the NBA never will, and that's just the way it is. Teams like Miami, Atlanta, Orlando, Washington, Utah, Phoenix, Cleveland, etc. are more than satisfied by just making it into the playoffs. Do they all want to win a championship? Of course! But they know the reality is they most likely won't anytime soon. These teams are playing to make it to the first round of the playoffs and to fill the seats at regular season home games, not to win a championship. Yes, professional athletes are overpaid, and i've said it many times in this post already; that's just the way it is. If you don't like it, go watch college hoops. For most guys in the NBA, if they did not make it then they would be sitting behind the counter at McDonalds flipping burgers just trying to make ends meat, to say they are ungrateful is just ludicrous. Most of these guys grew up with absolutely nothing, their dreams were to make it to the NBA. Of course there are some guys which don't care about anything aside from themselves, such as Chris Webber, Jason Terry, Ricky Davis, etc. but the point of this thread was to show that Udonis Haslem is a good guy, and you just come in here trashing him and saying he's ungrateful which couldn't be any farther from the truth. <div class="quote_poster">Quoting saad:</div><div class="quote_post">listen to you fools, happy!???!!! with his wages? HES MAKING MORE THAN DOCTORS AND AND PROFESSIONAL JOB! GREEDY!? HES MAKING FREAKING OVER $350,000 , HIS STINGY *** BETTER NOT BE COMPLAINING, HE GETS PAID TO PLAY A LITTLE KIDS SPORT...</div> Little kids sport? That's a slap in the face to every die-hard basketball fan in this community. Please, if you're not going to reply with something intelligent then don't reply with anything at all.
