Isn't this tampering?

Dunkenstein · Post #1 » by **Dunkenstein** » Sat Jun 22, 2013 6:29 pm

From today's Houston Chronicle:

Rockets players have a thread that allows them to share text messages as a group this offseason. Parsons, however, added a separate thought for Los Angeles Lakers center Dwight Howard, the Rockets’ primary free-agent target. “After watching that last night,” Parsons said, “I hit him with, ‘Come to Houston. That could be us.’?” That wasn’t anything new for Howard. He has heard plenty from Parsons this offseason.

“I talk to Dwight every day,” Parsons said. “I’ve created a relationship with him, where I feel like we’re very close. He hits me up about everything. I’ve covered pretty much every question he’s had. I basically tell him, ‘We have a chance to be really good without you next year. We’re going to have a good season. Why not come and join us, join our core guys who are for sure to be here and make us great, make us contend for a championship?’

Post #2 » by **bondom34** » Sat Jun 22, 2013 7:34 pm

I read the same thing, and had the same thought. I saw a post on the GB that said it may be OK, and it was said that players can do this b/c hypothetically they could just be good friends, which would mean you're basically just talking to a friend about his job. However, from every site I've seen it should be. Coon's FAQ uses for an example of tampering:
After Will Perdue left San Antonio in the 1999 offseason to sign with Chicago, he commented to the press about the possibility of the Bulls signing Tim Duncan and/or Grant Hill in 2000. The league considered this to be tampering, and issued Perdue a warning.

That seems like basically the same to me. Could this be why HOU was reportedly fined a few weeks ago, or was that separate?

comingbacktousa · Post #3 » by **comingbacktousa** » Sun Jun 23, 2013 7:11 am

Organizations can't contact players on other teams or use their names in any official way(pressers or letters to fans). Players can do whatever as long as they aren't officially representing the team when they do it.

Dunkenstein · Post #4 » by **Dunkenstein** » Sun Jun 23, 2013 1:20 pm

comingbacktousa wrote:Players can do whatever as long as they aren't officially representing the team when they do it.

Not true. The Uniform Player Contract Section 5(f) specifically prohibits a player from one team from trying to persuade a player currently under contract to another team to enter into negotiations for services as a player with the first player's team.

comingbacktousa · Post #5 » by **comingbacktousa** » Mon Jun 24, 2013 11:28 am

Dunkenstein wrote:
comingbacktousa wrote:Players can do whatever as long as they aren't officially representing the team when they do it.

Not true. The Uniform Player Contract Section 5(f) specifically prohibits a player from one team from trying to persuade a player currently under contract to another team to enter into negotiations for services as a player with the first player's team.

Under an official capacity. The NBA can not regulate what players say or don't say to each other when they are hanging out together, texting, etc. Irving can call Lebron tomorrow and say wouldn't it be nice if you came back to Cleveland and tried to win one for the city. That isn't against the rules. What is against the rules is for Irving to put him on speaker with Cleveland management and then have that conversation. Players talk all the time about playing together, a lot of them are friends it is only natural.

d-train · Post #6 » by **d-train** » Mon Jun 24, 2013 10:22 pm

Parsons could be looking forward to his contract in 2015. Parsons negotiating position is much stronger if Rockets use all their cap space on Howard. Parsons or any player on a good team holds great negotiation leverage over their team if their team’s only alternative to resigning their players is a reduction in talent.

Yeah, Parsons should be calling Howard every day to tell him how great it would be if he came to Houston.