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Nikola Pekovic

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Re: Nikola Pekovic 

Post#41 » by Klomp » Tue Jan 22, 2013 3:14 am

VUK1 wrote:1. If another team offers say 11M a season, but the Wolves only offer 10M - is he forced to leave even if his personal preference is to stay? can they strike a deal now for next season? How exactly does the RFA process work? What if the Wolves offered a 4yr 40M deal but another team offered a 1 year 16M for example?


No. He can accept whatever contract he wants. However, if he accepts another team's offer, no matter the price, Minnesota has the right to match the offer. If we match, he's ours and we pay whatever contract terms he agreed to with the other team.

VUK1 wrote:2. Why is there such major concern that Pekovic will be offered the Max or close to it? the reason for this question is that from what I can tell the main threats (teams with Cap room and no Centre position) are Dallas, Atlanta, Charlotte and Portland.

Fans of both Portland and Charlotte seem to be majorly concerned about maintaining cap flexibility to be able to keep their recent rookies/prospects and neither seem to want Pek locked into a long-term deal. Their interest is more in length and shot blocking which is not Pek

Dallas and Atlanta both might be waiting to see what happens with Dwight Howard. Dallas especially seems to keep offering 1 yr deals to be in the game for the major free-agents.

Atlanta i dont know what their plan is - im guessing this team is the greatest threat regarding offering a Max deal.

I guess what im saying is that is it really a sure thing that Pek's contract is going to kill the Wolves Cap and be max level ? Am i missing out on another team that could offer the Max?


His maximum will start somewhere around 13 million, so it isn't too far-fetched to see someone offer that. If a team badly wants him, they have to take in mind that they may need to overpay so that our front office will question whether its worth it to pay him that much. Many times, RFAs are paid more than they "deserve."

As for what teams will do, it's hard to say. Portland doesn't have any more of their own to lock up other than Lilliard, but that's way down the line. There's also the factor that the two front offices don't really like each other, though that's somewhat blown out of proportion.

It really comes down to how badly a team wants to add a center this offseason. This year's FA center crop is loaded, so it's hard to guess what might happen. We just have to be prepared for anything!
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Re: Nikola Pekovic 

Post#42 » by VUK1 » Tue Jan 22, 2013 3:21 am

Thank you Klomp - I guess its watch this space.... Just gotta echo some of the sentiment on this board - i have a feeling as long as the TWolves offer somewhere ballpark Pek will accept even if its less....

I'd hate to see him on another team!

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Re: Nikola Pekovic 

Post#43 » by [RCG] » Tue Jan 22, 2013 3:39 am

VUK1 wrote:A few quick questions on Pek im hoping someone can answer!

1. If another team offers say 11M a season, but the Wolves only offer 10M - is he forced to leave even if his personal preference is to stay? can they strike a deal now for next season? How exactly does the RFA process work? What if the Wolves offered a 4yr 40M deal but another team offered a 1 year 16M for example?


Pekovic has to sign any deal. A team can offer him $11m but he doesn't have to sign a contract with them and can instead take the Wolves offer of $10m if he so chooses hypothetically speaking. If he does sign a contract with another team then the Wolves must offer him the same terms of the contract he signed (same $). Pekovic can't re-sign with the Wolves for some odd reason I forget. But it doesn't make sense to me for both sides. Wolves want to lock him up and Pek could very well have a major knee injury that may leave him unsigned in the offseason or decrease his payday. It's withholding insurance from both sides IMO.[/quote]

2. Why is there such major concern that Pekovic will be offered the Max or close to it? the reason for this question is that from what I can tell the main threats (teams with Cap room and no Centre position) are Dallas, Atlanta, Charlotte and Portland.

Fans of both Portland and Charlotte seem to be majorly concerned about maintaining cap flexibility to be able to keep their recent rookies/prospects and neither seem to want Pek locked into a long-term deal. Their interest is more in length and shot blocking which is not Pek

Dallas and Atlanta both might be waiting to see what happens with Dwight Howard. Dallas especially seems to keep offering 1 yr deals to be in the game for the major free-agents.

Atlanta i dont know what their plan is - im guessing this team is the greatest threat regarding offering a Max deal.

I guess what im saying is that is it really a sure thing that Pek's contract is going to kill the Wolves Cap and be max level ? Am i missing out on another team that could offer the Max?


I don't think he'll get close to the max, more in the $9-12 mil range. But productive centers are more of a rare commodity. Portland is the most likely to throw a bunch of money at him because it is the weak spot of their roster. Other teams may be willing to spend if/when they miss out on other big name free agents like Howard, Paul, Iggy, Smith which is why it is important to try and sign Pek early in free agency. Most of the big-$ centers are young athletic guys like Jordan, McGee who will block shots. That isn't Pek's game so hopefully he won't see the max for the Wolves' sake. I also think the new CBA will help keep those mega-contracts to a minimum as teams will go about spending a little more wisely.
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Re: Nikola Pekovic 

Post#44 » by Klomp » Tue Jan 22, 2013 5:13 am

[RCG] wrote:I don't think he'll get close to the max, more in the $9-12 mil range.


VUK1 wrote:Just gotta echo some of the sentiment on this board - i have a feeling as long as the TWolves offer somewhere ballpark Pek will accept even if its less....

First, to address RCGs point, his max, if the same as last year, will start at $13,668,750. So, if he's on the high end of your range, isn't that close to the max? Or are you talking the overall deal (which would be 4/60, or 15m per)?

That is the interesting phenomenon here, whether Pek negotiates with us first, or goes on the open market to get as much money as possible, knowing Minnesota can match. If he negotiates with us first, I can see him getting in the 9-12 range. If he waits though, I fully expect someone to offer him the max, just to see what Kahn will do.

[RCG] wrote:Pekovic can't re-sign with the Wolves for some odd reason I forget.


We just can't sign him to an extension before July 1, which is when ANY team can offer him a contract.
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Re: Nikola Pekovic 

Post#45 » by [RCG] » Tue Jan 22, 2013 5:34 am

Klomp wrote:
[RCG] wrote:I don't think he'll get close to the max, more in the $9-12 mil range.


VUK1 wrote:Just gotta echo some of the sentiment on this board - i have a feeling as long as the TWolves offer somewhere ballpark Pek will accept even if its less....

First, to address RCGs point, his max, if the same as last year, will start at $13,668,750. So, if he's on the high end of your range, isn't that close to the max? Or are you talking the overall deal (which would be 4/60, or 15m per)?

That is the interesting phenomenon here, whether Pek negotiates with us first, or goes on the open market to get as much money as possible, knowing Minnesota can match. If he negotiates with us first, I can see him getting in the 9-12 range. If he waits though, I fully expect someone to offer him the max, just to see what Kahn will do.

[RCG] wrote:Pekovic can't re-sign with the Wolves for some odd reason I forget.


We just can't sign him to an extension before July 1, which is when ANY team can offer him a contract.


Overall deal. I'm thinking 4/48-ish. The vibe I get is that Pekovic is happy here and will take a deal if he thinks it is fair.
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Re: Nikola Pekovic 

Post#46 » by Klomp » Tue Jan 22, 2013 5:42 am

[RCG] wrote:Overall deal. I'm thinking 4/48-ish. The vibe I get is that Pekovic is happy here and will take a deal if he thinks it is fair.

Something to keep in mind: Pekovic shares the same agent as Al Jefferson, who reportedly took less when he signed his Minnesota extension for 4/50.
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Re: Nikola Pekovic 

Post#47 » by [RCG] » Tue Jan 22, 2013 5:49 am

Klomp wrote:
[RCG] wrote:Pekovic can't re-sign with the Wolves for some odd reason I forget.


We just can't sign him to an extension before July 1, which is when ANY team can offer him a contract.


But what was the reason we couldn't renegotiate before?

Klomp wrote:
[RCG] wrote:Overall deal. I'm thinking 4/48-ish. The vibe I get is that Pekovic is happy here and will take a deal if he thinks it is fair.

Something to keep in mind: Pekovic shares the same agent as Al Jefferson, who reportedly took less when he signed his Minnesota extension for 4/50.


I think that bodes well, no?
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Re: Nikola Pekovic 

Post#48 » by Klomp » Tue Jan 22, 2013 5:53 am

[RCG] wrote:But what was the reason we couldn't renegotiate before?


Something to do with the fact that it was a three-year deal (so we may be in similar situation with Shved down the road)

[RCG] wrote:I think that bodes well, no?


I think it does.
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Re: Nikola Pekovic 

Post#49 » by Calinks » Tue Jan 22, 2013 7:29 am

Hate to say it but I don't think I am willing to pay Pek a lot of money. He is a beast but I'm really starting to think he is injury prone. If we can only get him for 65 games a year and for ten of them he is battling some injury, I don't know how much money I am willing to give him. Durability is huge.
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Re: Nikola Pekovic 

Post#50 » by Klomp » Tue Jan 22, 2013 8:07 am

Calinks wrote:Hate to say it but I don't think I am willing to pay Pek a lot of money. He is a beast but I'm really starting to think he is injury prone. If we can only get him for 65 games a year and for ten of them he is battling some injury, I don't know how much money I am willing to give him. Durability is huge.

Honestly, I wonder if he plays too much. I think he'd be best in a 20 mpg role off the bench. His physical style seems to do him more harm than good.
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Re: Nikola Pekovic 

Post#51 » by FinnTheHuman » Tue Jan 22, 2013 12:06 pm

Klomp wrote:
Calinks wrote:Hate to say it but I don't think I am willing to pay Pek a lot of money. He is a beast but I'm really starting to think he is injury prone. If we can only get him for 65 games a year and for ten of them he is battling some injury, I don't know how much money I am willing to give him. Durability is huge.

Honestly, I wonder if he plays too much. I think he'd be best in a 20 mpg role off the bench. His physical style seems to do him more harm than good.


Wow, that's a huge understatement, considering he's proven himself as our best offensive option this season, and being decent on D. His physical style is just fine, it's just not so great for his health when he has to put in so much extra effort because of the injuries and general lack of offensive options.

And, it's not like all of his injuries were because of his too big effort, there was that one with stepping on Carter's foot.
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Re: Nikola Pekovic 

Post#52 » by shrink » Tue Jan 22, 2013 12:40 pm

I believe we couldn't give him an extension a year before because we got he was not a first round pick - we signed him to a straight three-year deal, and the new CBA addressed the issue of him even becoming an RFA.

The reason you may expect a max offer is for the reasons listed, but also because the NBA is changing. As the true superstars gather in fewer cities, the remaining teams are left with more cap space, new team salary minimums, and no true superstars to spend it on. Last year we saw a max deal to Roy Hibbert, and we're very aware that we offered Nic Batum more than he was worth, and it was still matched.
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Re: Nikola Pekovic 

Post#53 » by Dewey » Tue Jan 22, 2013 1:57 pm

shrink wrote:I believe we couldn't give him an extension a year before because we got he was not a first round pick - we signed him to a straight three-year deal, and the new CBA addressed the issue of him even becoming an RFA.

The reason you may expect a max offer is for the reasons listed, but also because the NBA is changing. As the true superstars gather in fewer cities, the remaining teams are left with more cap space, new team salary minimums, and no true superstars to spend it on. Last year we saw a max deal to Roy Hibbert, and we're very aware that we offered Nic Batum more than he was worth, and it was still matched.


no doubt he will be overpaid and I can live with that - as long as all other opportunities have been givin the proper attention.
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Re: Nikola Pekovic 

Post#54 » by C.lupus » Tue Jan 22, 2013 3:16 pm

FinnTheHuman wrote:
Klomp wrote:
Calinks wrote:Hate to say it but I don't think I am willing to pay Pek a lot of money. He is a beast but I'm really starting to think he is injury prone. If we can only get him for 65 games a year and for ten of them he is battling some injury, I don't know how much money I am willing to give him. Durability is huge.

Honestly, I wonder if he plays too much. I think he'd be best in a 20 mpg role off the bench. His physical style seems to do him more harm than good.


Wow, that's a huge understatement, considering he's proven himself as our best offensive option this season, and being decent on D. His physical style is just fine, it's just not so great for his health when he has to put in so much extra effort because of the injuries and general lack of offensive options.

And, it's not like all of his injuries were because of his too big effort, there was that one with stepping on Carter's foot.

I think he is always going to be prone to nagging injuries like ankle sprains and such just because he carries so much weight and bangs for a living. He's played in 78% of the teams games in his career here to date. It's probably safe to pencil him in for missing 10-15 games per season. Should that reduce his value? Yes. Will it? Probably not. Big men always get overpaid in the NBA.

It would be nice to have a competent backup that could fill in 20 mpg to reduce the workload and provide a little insurance.
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Re: Nikola Pekovic 

Post#55 » by ACST » Wed Jan 23, 2013 1:51 am

I think pek is better here than he would be anywhere else. He is a fan favorite, and I'm sure he likes that. If he went somewhere else, I don't think he would get the same fan love he gets here and his play would suffer. I hope he stays.
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Re: Nikola Pekovic 

Post#56 » by Murphs56 » Wed Jan 23, 2013 9:43 am

Money talks people. He's going to sign that offer sheet where he gets paid the most like every other player does
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Re: Nikola Pekovic 

Post#57 » by Klomp » Wed Jan 23, 2013 10:13 am

Murphs56 wrote:Money talks people. He's going to sign that offer sheet where he gets paid the most like every other player does

There are factors other than money. Money isn't the most important thing in everybody's life.
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Re: Nikola Pekovic 

Post#58 » by Murphs56 » Wed Jan 23, 2013 10:35 am

Klomp wrote:
Murphs56 wrote:Money talks people. He's going to sign that offer sheet where he gets paid the most like every other player does

There are factors other than money. Money isn't the most important thing in everybody's life.


Sure. Well if the Wolves act quick and give him something comparable to the open market, he might sign. But if his agent tells him to wait to see what's out there, then he'll wait. Even if he wants to come back, his agent will make sure he finds out what he's worth on the open market. And if that takes signing an offer sheet to make the Wolves act, well then that is what's going to happen
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Re: Nikola Pekovic 

Post#59 » by southern wolf » Wed Jan 23, 2013 11:19 am

Murphs56 wrote:Money talks people. He's going to sign that offer sheet where he gets paid the most like every other player does


I don't know, I think Pek likes it in Minny. I could definitely see him staying for less there, like I've said before. It's ice cold and he's surrounded by Europeans, it's the closest lifestyle to home he could possibly get in America!
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Re: Nikola Pekovic 

Post#60 » by LedeniZZZ » Wed Jan 23, 2013 3:27 pm

If it's close and Minny offer less... he is going to stay in Min. But if it's bigger diffrence in salary then he is going to take better offer.
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