Just the facts: Josh Childress has been in greece since yesterday. He did indeed bring loads of luggage with him (and seems like he's there to stay) He had dinner with Olympiakos's management and coach last night. His transfer is expected to be announced today. The contract is for 3 years at 4.2million euros per year after tax. This is approximately 6.7 million USD per year after tax which would correspond to something like a 10-10.5 million USD contract gross in the NBA. Also note that he will have a house/car/etc already paid for him. I think that will be the highest contract in Europe if it happens (Sarunas is the highest currently at 4million a year I believe. He also has an out clause for the first 2 years to return to the NBA at the end of each season.
If those numbers are correct wow!! He could make 8mil or so a year here next season. Or he could make 10mil/year in Europe now? (10mil roughly translated because the money is after tax). Ok I dont think any stars or borderline stars would leave but rotational guys, 6th man etc might find better contracts in Europe than here. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.
Here is the way I think about it: Bottom Line: A few European teams are making offers that, all things considering, is equal to better than the MLE in the NBA. Some more are offering amounts which are below the MLE, but are certainly above the league minimum. What does that mean right now? 1. At the very top level (the max or near max), not much yet. European teams are willing to pay Carlo Delfino twice what he would make in the NBA, but they are not yet offering, say, Elton Brand or Gilbert Arenas twice their NBA salary. 2. For players who would get above the MLE in a less FA market, the European teams operate as a few additional NBA teams with, say, $8 million in cap room. Childress is the classic case of this. Since most teams are over the cap, unless a player signs with his own team-- or get his team to do a sign-and-trade-- there are few teams who can offer him an contract above the MLE. This gives teams substantial leverage in negotiating with their own players, even not considering the effect of restricted free agency: You wanna go elsewhere and make more than the MLE, Josh? Have fun in Memphis! The European teams basically operates as a few more teams with cap room who can offer more than the MLE. 3. For restricted FAs of all prices up to the upper limit of European club's price range, this is even more leverage. The fact that the original clubs don't have matching rights on European offers could scare the club into making a more favorable offer, rather than just wait and match. 4. For guys who wouldn't get close to the MLE in the NBA, the European options are a welcome relief from the squeeze they feel under the luxury tax system. Because of the luxury tax, teams tend to spend little on guys who are the 8th/9th-12th (15th?) man on the squad. They basically have to take, collectively whatever teams got leftover under the tax threshhold after paying its stars and main role players. The Euro teams, for these guys, serve as more NBA squads that are over the cap, but have room under the tax limit so that they don't have to worry about spending $2 million, $3 million or even $5 million or whatever for a guy at that talent level. 5. For late first round rookies, I wonder if an European club will be stealing those away from the NBA by offering much more than the league scale. Doubt it, except in limited cases like already-proven productive Europeans like Splitter. Don't think a Donte Greene would get that kind of offer. Overall, what we are seeing now is mostly an effect on the depth of the NBA squads. A number of 8th-12th man types are getting higher offers in Europe. It's speculative as to whether any MLE-or-above level guys like Childress would be affected significantly in the near future. But the top or near top of NBA pay scales should remain largely the same.
rome had heritage, swiss watch makers had heritage, oil companies have heritage, ect.... things change, and when the paradigm shifts everyone starts back at zero.
As long as America is around and keeps putting out the top talent, the NBA will continue to dominate. The only way the "paradigm" could shift is if some European country grew 27 10 foot tall monstars to challenge the NBA.....
He's gone! http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sports/hawks/stories/2008/07/23/childress_hawks_greece.html By SEKOU SMITH The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Published on: 07/23/08 Atlanta Hawks fans won't have to fret over the fate of restricted free agent swingman Josh Childress anymore. That's because Childress is no longer a Hawk. He said he agreed to terms Wednesday morning on a three-year contract with Olympiakos of Greece that is worth far more than $20 million initially reported. "It's official, I just signed," Childress said by phone Wednesday morning from Athens, where he and agent Jim Tanner will be until Friday. "I think it was . . . a situation where I didn't know who to expect coming in, coming over to Athens. But it's a great city and a great organization. They do whatever they can to make you feel at home." The deal is the most lucrative current contract in European basketball and the biggest in Euroleague history. It's also another step in the globalization of the game, a trend that got a huge boost recently when the top-rated U.S. high school player, California native Brandon Jennings, opted for a contract with an Italian team over playing at Arizona. Childress' move is a blow to the Hawks, who have no recourse to match an offer made to a restricted free agent by a non-NBA team. The Hawks are also in negotiations with their other restricted free agent, Josh Smith. The Hawks retain Childress's NBA rights for at least two years, but they lose one of the league's best and most efficient sixth men without immediate compensation. The Hawks, per the rules of restricted free agency, had the right to match any competing offers from NBA teams. Childress representatives and Hawks officials negotiated for weeks on a contract extension but could never come close to agreeing to terms. The Hawks offered Childress a five-year deal with a starting salary in excess of the mid-level exception of $5.5 million. But Childress, 25, spurned the Hawks' $33 million offer for a more lucrative deal with Olympiakos. With no salary cap for European teams, Olympiakos could offer whatever they wanted to entice Childress to leave the NBA for the international game. Childress will, however, have the option of opting out his contract with Olympiakos at the end of each season, which gives Childress maximum flexibility were he to choose to return to the NBA after this season. Childress's playing time dipped last season by seven minutes, from 36.9 to 29.9 a night, from the previous season. He averaged 11.8 points on 57 percent shooting. He was one of just six players in the league to average at least 10 points and 4 rebounds while also shooting better than 50 percent (.571) from the floor and making 20 or more 3-pointers. Shawn Marion, Lamar Odom, Mike Miller, Grant Hill and Andre Kirilenko were the others. In four years with the Hawks, Childress averaged 11.1 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.8 assists as one of the league's best sixth men, he finished sixth in the voting for the Sixth Man award last season. Chosen by the Hawks with the sixth pick of the 2004 NBA draft, Childress was one of the cornerstone's of a rebuilding effort that also included Smith, picked 17th in that same draft. They both helped the Hawks end nearly a decade of struggles with the franchise's first postseason bid in nine years, which ended in a Game 7 loss to the eventual NBA champion Boston Celtics in May.
It'll be interesting how this affects their dealings with Josh Smith. According to the same writer Sekou Smith the Hawks haven't offered Smith anything more than a contract starting at $9 million. They've been playing hardball with both Joshes.
Atalanta has several players on Rookie Contracts as does Portland, but the Hawks don't have as deep a financial backing to afford renewing too many at the higher end of the salary scale.
Man, one of my favorite players (real life and fantasy basketball) is gone. He always seemed underappreciated for the little things he did, and he did them extremely well. I would have given an arm and a leg to get him on the Rockets and if it weren't for Landry, I think Morey may have gone after him too. Looking at statistics, he is definitely one of the best all around. Pugs
Unbelievable. Well, being a Hawks fan just got that much harder to stomach again. No draft picks, no moves this offseason and now standing pat isn't even an option!
Maybe I missed it, but did the Hawks ever simply offer Childress the MLE and lock him up? If not, why not??
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3501488 That's the price the Hawks have to pay when they essentially told Childress to take a backseat and wait until they signed Josh Smith first.
Wow, I didn't expect him to leave. Although if the contract is actually larger than the $20 million initially reported it's a no-brainer for him. The expectations on him over there are going to be huge.
The Hawks probably have the most dysfunctional ownership situation in all of the major sports. It's completely insane. On the other hand, the Blazers are owned by a guy worth more than the entire NBA, multiple times.
Wow! Thanks for the info. I don't get why they waited if they were offering over the MLE anyway. It's not the same situation we face with Landry. Well, their loss! (wish we could have grabbed Childress ourselves)
