My Sprewell Option

shrink · Post #1 » by **shrink** » Tue Oct 20, 2009 5:04 pm

I don't think I've read this anywhere, but let me present one move for instant respectability - I'll call it the Sprewell Option.

For the past two years, I've been leading the parade to try to get MIN to acquire assets, and gain space under the salary cap to use as a centerpiece to bring in a major player. With other teams also below the cap, I think that our most likely course of action is to use the cap space in trade for a star on an expensive contract.

However, what if that deal presents itself before the trade deadline? LEt's make a very imaginary scenario, where Dwayne Wade demands out of a listless MIA. The Heat want to get out from under Wade's cap hold for a replacement free agent this summer, but he'd be an expensive acquisition .. he makes $15.8 mil now, and he has a 15% trade kicker. Wade will sign an extension anywhere. MIN sees this as their big chance, and makes MIA the best offer .. our expirings and some youth/picks for Wade and James Jones. Wade joins the team in February, but our cap space (and our expirings) are gone, and we're sitting at $60 mil next season

Now suppose another elite player (let's say "Bosh") wants to MIN come play with Wade, and TOR wants Rubio for him. The wolves are over the salary cap, and has used up their expirings, but Glen Taylor smells a contender and is willing to go back over the lux. What do we do?

We sign Sprewell. We can give him a deal up to about $19 mil, and though it'd have to be a league minimum 3-years, the last two can be team option. This would create an expiring we could use to salary match for another trade. DAL already did this a couple years ago with Keith Van Horn, giving him a contract that made the addition of Jason Kidd possible. We never renounced Spree's rights (or Kirk Snyder or Michael Doleac), so we maintain the option to use their salaries in a cap-matching trade.

http://www.canishoopus.com/pages/contract-info

Esohny · Post #2 » by **Esohny** » Tue Oct 20, 2009 5:27 pm

Didn't Stern say after the Van Horn incident that going forward the NBA won't allow teams to sign a player to create an expiring just for salary matching; the player actually has to be able to play?

shrink · Post #3 » by **shrink** » Tue Oct 20, 2009 5:42 pm

Esohny wrote:Didn't Stern say after the Van Horn incident that going forward the NBA won't allow teams to sign a player to create an expiring just for salary matching; the player actually has to be able to play?

You are correct, but I remain unconcerned. Spree can probably play a little, but I put my true faith in a greater power - the NBA Player's Association.

Just like with Darius Miles, you can be sure that the Player's Association is not going to sit idly by while the commissioner prevents an NBA player from getting paid, when an NBA owner wants to pay him. With the impending negotiations for a new Collective Bargaining Agreement coming soon, I don't think this is an issue where Stern would want to make a stand.

BTW, I did some quick calculations, and if MIN turned its rights into expirings, then traded them all away, they would have a payroll a little over $100 million this year, which is about $10 mil more than the highest payroll in the NBA (LAL).

john2jer · Post #4 » by **john2jer** » Tue Oct 20, 2009 5:55 pm

I'd buy season tickets for Jefferson/Love/Bosh/Wade/Flynn.

Cold Crush 24 · Post #5 » by **Cold Crush 24** » Thu Oct 22, 2009 10:08 pm

How do you expect Spree to feed his family on that? Besides, he can't pass a physical if he's breaking hands punching hookers on boats.

john2jer · Post #6 » by **john2jer** » Fri Oct 23, 2009 2:01 pm

Cold Crush 24 wrote:How do you expect Spree to feed his family on that? Besides, he can't pass a physical if he's breaking hands punching hookers on boats.

FOILED!