They are coming for LeBron James. Like possessed, bug-eyed shoppers on Black Friday, NBA executives are gathering for a mad dash at James, who in 17 months could become the most coveted free agent in modern history: the biggest toy under the tallest tree, wrote the New York Times.
They will come in waves, armed with earnest smiles, clever videos, dreamy promises and, most important, with cap space, that precious NBA commodity. The Knicks have cleared their 2010 payroll to chase James, the Cleveland Cavaliers' superstar, and his fellow free agents in waiting: Dwyane Wade of the Miami Heat and Chris Bosh of the Toronto Raptors.
At least a dozen other franchises will be in the hunt, all with the same three-step plan: dump contracts, clear salary-cap room, write a big check to the nearest superstar. The strategy is simple, flawlessly logical. And it is probably doomed to fail because of one immutable, rarely acknowledged truth: superstar free agency barely exists in the NBA.
It has been almost 13 years since Shaquille O'Neal jilted the Orlando Magic and altered the NBA landscape by signing with the Los Angeles Lakers. It was a modern anomaly, not a precedent. Few superstars have made free-agent moves since then. It is not an accident.
"It's built right into the system," said Lon Babby, an agent whose client list includes Tim Duncan, Grant Hill and Ray Allen. "They don't want guys to leave."
By "they," Babby means NBA officials, whose quest for parity and cost control has created a market that rewards superstars for staying put and punishes them for leaving.
Under the NBA's collective bargaining agreement, a player who stays with his team can sign a six-year contract with 10.5 percent raises. If he leaves, he is limited to five years and 8 percent raises. In real terms, a player like James would have to forgo about $31 million in guaranteed money to sign a so-called max contract with a team other than the Cavaliers, who will be in New York on Wednesday to face the Knicks.
Superstars in free agency barely exist in NBA - Sports Rumors - NBA - Yahoo! Sports
02-04-2009, 08:08 PM
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