Rockets match Nets offer for Donuts (Updte Pg 17: Offer Pulled, DMo UFA)

[K_chile22]

Rough transcription I just wrote up of Watkins on SportsTalk 790 in Houston

I think from what I’ve been told when Donatas first signed this offer sheet on Friday there was another team involved, but they decided to sign with the Nets, then the Rockets matched it yesterday. But now this second team apparently has a larger offer. So what BJ is thinking, from what I’ve been told, is if the Rockets pull their offer, he cannot sign with the Nets for another year, but this other team, they can come into play and present an offer sheet to Donatas that would be more money, and he would go to that team.

and here is the link if anyone wants to listen to the whole interview: http://sports790.iheart.com/onair/the-bottom-line-w-jones-clanton-57128/motiejunas-a-noshow-for-physical-weighing-15365682/

Not denying its possible, but why would a beat reporter have this amount of information about something illegal so quickly? Like, who would know what BJ is thinking/doing, and then give that information to a reporter? Certainly not DMo, BJ, or anyone in BJ's agency. And certainly no one from that other team supposedly, because they would get nailed for tampering.

Considering what BJ's done to Houston here, its entirely possible they are smearing him in retaliation. I'd argue just as possible as this theory being floated around.

I doubt it. Calvin isn't particularly attached to the Rockets like some beat writers. He was 'demoted' to the Rockets from the Cowboys beat by ESPN and doesn't exactly seem like he enjoys it as much. It's not like he chose to cover the Rockets like most beat writers. He also has been the guys BJ has gone to throughout the process. Doubt he would alienate him like that if it weren't true

[FNQ]

Rough transcription I just wrote up of Watkins on SportsTalk 790 in Houston

and here is the link if anyone wants to listen to the whole interview: http://sports790.iheart.com/onair/the-bottom-line-w-jones-clanton-57128/motiejunas-a-noshow-for-physical-weighing-15365682/

Not denying its possible, but why would a beat reporter have this amount of information about something illegal so quickly? Like, who would know what BJ is thinking/doing, and then give that information to a reporter? Certainly not DMo, BJ, or anyone in BJ's agency. And certainly no one from that other team supposedly, because they would get nailed for tampering.

Considering what BJ's done to Houston here, its entirely possible they are smearing him in retaliation. I'd argue just as possible as this theory being floated around.

I doubt it. Calvin isn't particularly attached to the Rockets like some beat writers. He was 'demoted' to the Rockets from the Cowboys beat by ESPN and doesn't exactly seem like he enjoys it as much. It's not like he chose to cover the Rockets like most beat writers. He also has been the guys BJ has gone to throughout the process. Doubt he would alienate him like that if it weren't true

That's fair, I dont know this Watkins guy at all, just describing what it looks like from the outside

[YogurtProducer]

Wouldn't be surprised if he is traded soon. Seems like a toxic situation at this point.

He can't be traded this season. And I believe he has to approve any deal next season.

As for the situation, I have seen nothing but professionalism from Motiejunas. I doubt that he causes any waves in Houston. It will be fine here.

I won't be surprised if he has a new agent soon, though.

Doesn't look this way

[K_chile22]

Not denying its possible, but why would a beat reporter have this amount of information about something illegal so quickly? Like, who would know what BJ is thinking/doing, and then give that information to a reporter? Certainly not DMo, BJ, or anyone in BJ's agency. And certainly no one from that other team supposedly, because they would get nailed for tampering.

Considering what BJ's done to Houston here, its entirely possible they are smearing him in retaliation. I'd argue just as possible as this theory being floated around.

I doubt it. Calvin isn't particularly attached to the Rockets like some beat writers. He was 'demoted' to the Rockets from the Cowboys beat by ESPN and doesn't exactly seem like he enjoys it as much. It's not like he chose to cover the Rockets like most beat writers. He also has been the guys BJ has gone to throughout the process. Doubt he would alienate him like that if it weren't true

That's fair, I dont know this Watkins guy at all, just describing what it looks like from the outside

Yeah, I get how it would feel that way. Most Rockets fans don't like Watkins because he treats the Rockets like a chore
Very possible he just misunderstood what he was told though

[Bruteque]

Larry Coon weighs in on the rules:

http://cbafaq.com/blog/?p=381

At this point, I think B.J. Armstrong may have to start worrying about D-Mo filing a malpractice claim against him.

[Edrees]

The man does not want to be in Houston. Just let him go.

Why let him go and help another team get him? Rockets have all the power. If he doesn't want to play in houston, he's going to have to sit out the season. Why should the rocket do anything to help their opponents?

That wont look good to other NBA players, and will remain a consideration when attempting to sign players. Probably a minor one - cash rules all - but keep this in mind too: Andrew Bogut chose to go to the Mavs over the Rockets this offseason, he was asked by the W's where he preferred to go. It's entirely possible the Rockets have a negative image in terms of attracting players because of how Morey conducts business

So players will look at the rockets and think "So they'll match the best offer I get in RFA, which means more money for me" how exactly will that stop them from going to the rockets? I just don't see how players will think rockets did anything wrong by not being super super nice to him (beyond the call of duty)

[FNQ]

Why let him go and help another team get him? Rockets have all the power. If he doesn't want to play in houston, he's going to have to sit out the season. Why should the rocket do anything to help their opponents?

That wont look good to other NBA players, and will remain a consideration when attempting to sign players. Probably a minor one - cash rules all - but keep this in mind too: Andrew Bogut chose to go to the Mavs over the Rockets this offseason, he was asked by the W's where he preferred to go. It's entirely possible the Rockets have a negative image in terms of attracting players because of how Morey conducts business

So players will look at the rockets and think "So they'll match the best offer I get in RFA, which means more money for me" how exactly will that stop them from going to the rockets? I just don't see how players will think rockets did anything wrong by not being super super nice to him (beyond the call of duty)

This doesnt make sense. RFA's apply to players who are drafted, and they have no say who drafts them.

I'm saying this will make Morey further look like an unemotional robot, the same criticism that has potentially driven away other free agents and assets. And Bogut is a prime example of that, choosing a clearly worse team over the Rockets.

[Edrees]

That wont look good to other NBA players, and will remain a consideration when attempting to sign players. Probably a minor one - cash rules all - but keep this in mind too: Andrew Bogut chose to go to the Mavs over the Rockets this offseason, he was asked by the W's where he preferred to go. It's entirely possible the Rockets have a negative image in terms of attracting players because of how Morey conducts business

So players will look at the rockets and think "So they'll match the best offer I get in RFA, which means more money for me" how exactly will that stop them from going to the rockets? I just don't see how players will think rockets did anything wrong by not being super super nice to him (beyond the call of duty)

This doesnt make sense. RFA's apply to players who are drafted, and they have no say who drafts them.

I'm saying this will make Morey further look like an unemotional robot, the same criticism that has potentially driven away other free agents and assets. And Bogut is a prime example of that, choosing a clearly worse team over the Rockets.

I agree that Morey does a lot of things that push away players who might want to otherwise sign, but this is just not one of them.

[FNQ]

I agree that Morey does a lot of things that push away players who might want to otherwise sign, but this is just not one of them.

He didn't pay DMo what he thought he was worth (so far, so good)
He held DMo's RFA rights past the QO deadline (getting dicey)
He matched an offer that DMo clearly signed to get away from Houston (not good)

From DMo's perspective, if I'm him, I'm blaming the GM and agent equally. The agent is trying to get as much as he can and DMo probably had a price he wasn't willing to go below.. but the GM essentially held him hostage too because he wanted to recoup a small amount of value from him. And this is after trying to trade him.

So if I'm looking to sign in Houston, this factors in. Morey has historically shown not to care if he screws with people to get an asset or two. This incident is merely more confirmation of that mindset.

[Texas Chuck]

And Bogut is a prime example of that, choosing a clearly worse team over the Rockets.

Curious did Bogut and Barnes have any kind of relationship that could have been a factor?

Otherwise I would assume Dirk and Carlisle over Harden and MDA were most likely the deciding factors. Not that Dirk is better than Harden at this point obviously, but more a guy Bogut thought he'd enjoy playing with more maybe?

[FNQ]

And Bogut is a prime example of that, choosing a clearly worse team over the Rockets.

Curious did Bogut and Barnes have any kind of relationship that could have been a factor?

Otherwise I would assume Dirk and Carlisle over Harden and MDA were most likely the deciding factors. Not that Dirk is better than Harden at this point obviously, but more a guy Bogut thought he'd enjoy playing with more maybe?

Bogut/Barnes: nothing that stuck out. All the W's seemed to get on.

I think you are right about Dirk/Carlisle being major factors, but I also know that Bogut is really about honesty and respect, and I think he knows that he would be walking into a favorable place for players in Dallas and not so much in Houston. Its hard to know, because even as straight-forward as Bogut is, he isn't stupid and won't say anything that he doesn't have to.. but I tend to believe everything player-friendly about Dallas made it a far more attractive option. It's speculation, for sure, but the only fact is that Bogut chose a team that looked to be clearly worse off, as far as win-now goes.

[MaxRider]

then why sign an offer sheet that Morey told him he will match with so many trade restriction?

The only reasonable way to explain the events here is DMO doesn't want to play for Houston. The contract Brooklyn offered is worse than the one Houston offered if we look at it from a career perspective. DMO was willing to accept playing for cheap, but just not in Houston. Therefore, he signed the BKN sheet with the hope that the no trade clauses will make Morey pass on matching, because it will cause Houston some cap issues in the 2017 free agency.

Or BJ and DMO are both smoking crack while negotiating.

what make him think Rockets won't match?
Morey told him they want him back
if he doesn't want to stay in Houston but still want to play in NBA
best option is sign one year qualify offer and be unrestricted free agent next year

[Lost Angel]

another question. wouldnt he enjoy playing for MDA? just jacking up 3's?

[Bruteque]

I agree that Morey does a lot of things that push away players who might want to otherwise sign, but this is just not one of them.

He didn't pay DMo what he thought he was worth (so far, so good)
He held DMo's RFA rights past the QO deadline (getting dicey)
He matched an offer that DMo clearly signed to get away from Houston (not good)

From DMo's perspective, if I'm him, I'm blaming the GM and agent equally. The agent is trying to get as much as he can and DMo probably had a price he wasn't willing to go below.. but the GM essentially held him hostage too because he wanted to recoup a small amount of value from him. And this is after trying to trade him.

So if I'm looking to sign in Houston, this factors in. Morey has historically shown not to care if he screws with people to get an asset or two. This incident is merely more confirmation of that mindset.

Morey deals fairly with his players and are willing to work with his players as long as Morey doesn't have to screw himself backwards to do it. Just listen to what the Morris twins say about the guy's willingness to work with agents to find favorable solutions.



I don't see how any of this is Morey's fault.

1) The injury concerns have made D-Mo a low-value player. That much ought to be obvious by this point of the fiasco. How is it Morey's fault for not screwing himself by offering a bad contract for than what the player is worth that nobody else is offering? D-Mo was held hostage by his agent's conceit, nothing else. He was free to sign for his market value at any time.

2) Of the three confirmed contracts offered, Morey was the one who coughed up the two most favorable to D-Mo. How is it Morey's fault that B.J. Armstrong's gets D-Mo to sign the least favorable contract of the three? Low-balling D-Mo? Huh? The only contract the only other team offered was less favorable to D-Mo than the two Morey offered.



3) Are GMs suddenly supposed to just release their assets for nothing at the whims of the players not happy with their contracts or playing time? I'm pretty sure that none of the GMs got that memo.

[K_chile22]

I agree that Morey does a lot of things that push away players who might want to otherwise sign, but this is just not one of them.

He didn't pay DMo what he thought he was worth (so far, so good)
He held DMo's RFA rights past the QO deadline (getting dicey)
He matched an offer that DMo clearly signed to get away from Houston (not good)

From DMo's perspective, if I'm him, I'm blaming the GM and agent equally. The agent is trying to get as much as he can and DMo probably had a price he wasn't willing to go below.. but the GM essentially held him hostage too because he wanted to recoup a small amount of value from him. And this is after trying to trade him.

So if I'm looking to sign in Houston, this factors in. Morey has historically shown not to care if he screws with people to get an asset or two. This incident is merely more confirmation of that mindset.

Morey deals fairly with his players and are willing to work with his players as long as Morey doesn't have to screw himself backwards to do it. Just listen to what the Morris twins say about the guy's willingness to work with agents to find favorable solutions.



I don't see how any of this is Morey's fault.

1) The injury concerns have made D-Mo a low-value player. That much ought to be obvious by this point of the fiasco. How is it Morey's fault for not screwing himself by offering a bad contract for than what the player is worth that nobody else is offering? D-Mo was held hostage by his agent's conceit, nothing else. He was free to sign for his market value at any time.

2) Of the three confirmed contracts offered, Morey was the one who coughed up the two most favorable to D-Mo. How is it Morey's fault that B.J. Armstrong's gets D-Mo to sign the least favorable contract of the three? Low-balling D-Mo? Huh? The only contract the only other team offered was less favorable to D-Mo than the two Morey offered.



3) Are GMs suddenly supposed to just release their assets for nothing at the whims of the players not happy with their contracts or playing time? I'm pretty sure that none of the GMs got that memo.

Most of the people who make arguments like this would be the absolute worst GMs

[Bruteque]

He didn't pay DMo what he thought he was worth (so far, so good)
He held DMo's RFA rights past the QO deadline (getting dicey)
He matched an offer that DMo clearly signed to get away from Houston (not good)

From DMo's perspective, if I'm him, I'm blaming the GM and agent equally. The agent is trying to get as much as he can and DMo probably had a price he wasn't willing to go below.. but the GM essentially held him hostage too because he wanted to recoup a small amount of value from him. And this is after trying to trade him.

So if I'm looking to sign in Houston, this factors in. Morey has historically shown not to care if he screws with people to get an asset or two. This incident is merely more confirmation of that mindset.

Morey deals fairly with his players and are willing to work with his players as long as Morey doesn't have to screw himself backwards to do it. Just listen to what the Morris twins say about the guy's willingness to work with agents to find favorable solutions.



I don't see how any of this is Morey's fault.

1) The injury concerns have made D-Mo a low-value player. That much ought to be obvious by this point of the fiasco. How is it Morey's fault for not screwing himself by offering a bad contract for than what the player is worth that nobody else is offering? D-Mo was held hostage by his agent's conceit, nothing else. He was free to sign for his market value at any time.

2) Of the three confirmed contracts offered, Morey was the one who coughed up the two most favorable to D-Mo. How is it Morey's fault that B.J. Armstrong's gets D-Mo to sign the least favorable contract of the three? Low-balling D-Mo? Huh? The only contract the only other team offered was less favorable to D-Mo than the two Morey offered.



3) Are GMs suddenly supposed to just release their assets for nothing at the whims of the players not happy with their contracts or playing time? I'm pretty sure that none of the GMs got that memo.

Most of the people who make arguments like this would be the absolute worst GMs

Actually, most of the people who thinks most of the people who make arguments like this would be the absolute worst GMs would make the absolute worst GMs: GMs who don't reason things through logically and bid against themselves are the absolute worst GMs.

[BallerTalk]

I'm saying this will make Morey further look like an unemotional robot, the same criticism that has potentially driven away other free agents and assets. And Bogut is a prime example of that, choosing a clearly worse team over the Rockets.

Hmm... not according to Bogut.
It was about playing time (Houston has Capela), his potential to re-sign in free agency this summer, and D'Antoni's style of play being more demanding than Carlisle's.

I'm sure the Rockets/Warriors chippy rivalry dating back to 2013 may have had a little something to do with it too.
Morey, not so much.

[FNQ]

Morey deals fairly with his players and are willing to work with his players as long as Morey doesn't have to screw himself backwards to do it. Just listen to what the Morris twins say about the guy's willingness to work with agents to find favorable solutions.

Yes, this is why Morey's one of the more respected GMs in the league in terms of likability and why free agents flock to Houston. So proof is in the pudding, is it not?

1) The injury concerns have made D-Mo a low-value player. That much ought to be obvious by this point of the fiasco. How is it Morey's fault for not screwing himself by offering a bad contract for than what the player is worth that nobody else is offering? D-Mo was held hostage by his agent's conceit, nothing else. He was free to sign for his market value at any time.

2) Of the three confirmed contracts offered, Morey was the one who coughed up the two most favorable to D-Mo. How is it Morey's fault that B.J. Armstrong's gets D-Mo to sign the least favorable contract of the three? Low-balling D-Mo? Huh? The only contract the only other team offered was less favorable to D-Mo than the two Morey offered.



3) Are GMs suddenly supposed to just release their assets for nothing at the whims of the players not happy with their contracts or playing time? I'm pretty sure that none of the GMs got that memo.

1) He is a low value player. However when the value of said player and his perceived value are very, very far apart, and you as a GM want to keep the asset, you have to work a deal. And if there's no deal to be worked, you cut bait. Sullinger was let go by the Celtics. Bayless by the Raptors. Not because of a pending FA deal, because 2 of the best GMs in the league decided that it was better to let them get paid without worry than to try and squeeze value out of someone at their expense.

2) Entirely irrelevant. DMo took an offer he thought would likely land him more playing time as evidenced by the conditions that no longer apply in the Rockets deal. It might be that playing, and being wanted, was more important to DMo than they money. Or that if he was going to be riding pine in Houston, he'd want to be better paid for it.

3) Better GMs than Morey have released better players than DMo because of this. They embraced the human element and, unsurprisingly, retain most of the free agents they want and are rebuilding consistently successful teams.

4) (I wanted to be in on it)

[quatin]

what make him think Rockets won't match?
Morey told him they want him back
if he doesn't want to stay in Houston but still want to play in NBA
best option is sign one year qualify offer and be unrestricted free agent next year

I think it was Dantoni that said he wanted DMO back.

The deal is structured such that DMO can't be traded for 2 seasons. This forces the Rockets to drop someone else if they need to clear space for the 2017 summer free agency. DMO might have gambled that Morey would not match to retain cap flexibility and he would get out of Houston this season.

I'm not saying this is a smart move and I don't know if DMO would still have pulled this had he known it would go this way, but this is the only reason I can think of other than they're both insane.

[MaxRider]

what make him think Rockets won't match?
Morey told him they want him back
if he doesn't want to stay in Houston but still want to play in NBA
best option is sign one year qualify offer and be unrestricted free agent next year

I think it was Dantoni that said he wanted DMO back.

The deal is structured such that DMO can't be traded for 2 seasons. This forces the Rockets to drop someone else if they need to clear space for the 2017 summer free agency. DMO might have gambled that Morey would not match to retain cap flexibility and he would get out of Houston this season.

I'm not saying this is a smart move and I don't know if DMO would still have pulled this had he known it would go this way, but this is the only reason I can think of other than they're both insane.

in his interview after he signed Nets offer sheet
he mentioned he can be playing for either Houston or Brooklyn
then this happened
i just feel this is his agent playing game