Siberian Signage
Posted on July 2nd, 2006 by
The New Orleans Hornets made the first splash of the NBA’s free-agent signing period, agreeing to terms Saturday with three-time All-Star Peja Stojakovic.
Stojakovic, who last week opted to become a free agent instead of continue playing for Indiana, will sign a five-year deal worth about $64 million with the Hornets, said his agent, David Bauman.
Bauman said Stojakovic will sign as soon as the NBA’s moratorium ends next week. NBA teams were allowed to begin negotiating with free agents on Saturday but cannot officially sign players until July 12.
“The Hornets are setting their cap room aside for Peja, and Peja is taking himself off the market,” Bauman said.
Stojakovic is one of the league’s most prolific outside shooters, having hit 40 percent from 3-point range over his eight-year career. He and Seattle’s Ray Allen are the only two NBA players to make at least 100 3-pointers in each of the past seven seasons. #
Unrestricted free agent Vladimir Radmanovic plans to sign a long-term contract with the Los Angeles Lakers, his agent said Saturday.
The 6-foot-10 forward played 4 1/2 seasons with the Seattle SuperSonics before being traded to the Los Angeles Clippers last February for Chris Wilcox.
The Clippers had said they hoped to re-sign Radmanovic, but it didn’t take long for the 25-year-old sharpshooter to make another choice.
“The decision was obviously a tough one for Vlade,” agent David Bauman said from Bethesda, Md. “On the one hand, he had strong interest from the Clippers to entice him to remain. (Coach) Mike Dunleavy, (general manager) Elgin Baylor and (executive) Andy Roeser did everything conceivable to make Vladimir feel comfortable and convince him to return.
“At the same time, the Lakers and numerous other teams called just after 12 midnight Eastern time to express to Vladimir their strong interest in getting his services.”
Responding quickly, the Clippers agreed to a four-year contract with free-agent Tim Thomas, who helped the Phoenix Suns reach the Western Conference finals last season, the Los Angeles Times reported. #
I think that both trades were good for their respective teams, although both players have bounced around a lot in the last year, they are definitely talented. Too bad Tim Thomas won’t be returning to the Suns next year, he was pretty daamn good in the playoffs!
