4chuckie, that is the risk EVERY team takes when they sign players to extended contracts. There are NO guarantees that a player won't get injured. It's all part of the grand scheme. Anyhow, I think 3-4 mil per season for 2 years is adequate to keep Mobley around a bit longer. By that time he will move into a higher pay scale and make more money than if he signed a really long contract. I do not expect to see Mobley in anything but a Rockets uni next season. ------------------ The lottery sucks!
Hold on everybody...don't let aelliott scare you. The solution to the accurate info aelliott spelled out is DON'T make him a restricted agent. That is our choice. We simply don't make an offer sheet for him. Then no one can touch him until August first, and we have no offers to match. For all the reasons aelliott just spelled out, I will bet anyone here, we will not make Mobley a restricted free agent by giving him an offer sheet. That is equivalent to listing him at eBay with a reserve bid. Don't make an offer sheet. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO LIST MOBLEY ON EBAY!!! [This message has been edited by heypartner (edited April 18, 2000).]
RP: I'm not really talking about the team's risk, but rather the players risk. If a young player (like Mobley) is going to sign a short term deal I would assume he would want to take the most dollars possible in case of an injury. HP: I hope you are correct, I don't want to lose him for nothing! ------------------
From $350,000.00 to $4,000,000.00? We'd better hope that a 1100% raise clouds his perception a little bit. I am under the impression that the only reason that Chicago would invite him to their shipwreck is to try to lure Stevie a few years later. Hopefully Rudy leaves everyone with a good feeling over these last few games... ------------------
4chuckie, This is correct: Just because you can make someone a restricted free agent, doesn't mean you have to. Leave Mobley as an unrestricted free agent, with comfort in the fact no one can force us out of our range if Mobley accepts it...The difference is: unrestricted means Mobley and his agent get the final say on how much and where. Restricted means the Owners get the final say, and unfortunately, Mobley then goes to the highest bidder. Don't list Mobley on eBay!! Leave him unrestricted. [This message has been edited by heypartner (edited April 18, 2000).]
HeyPartner, I'm not really concerned with whether or not we restrict Mobley. It's pretty much of a moot point. Either way, if he wants to stay here for whatever we're able to offer him, then he will (whether he's restricted or not). Conversly, if he wants more money than we can pay, then he's gone regardless of whether he's restricted or not. ------------------
Aelliott, But, it is not a moot point. You see, Mobley has no control over where he goes if we make him a "restricted" free agent; he goes to the highest bidder. He only has control of his destiny if we leave him as an unrestricted free agent. Control over your own destiny is the difference in restricted vs unrestricted. Unrestricted means the player controls the bidding process; restricted means the league controls the bidding process. So in fact, you should care if you want Cuttino to have control over staying with the Rockets. If you want control out of Cuttino's hands, and are willing to risk being outbid, you should care about restricting him. Either way, you should care and take a stance on the restricting or unrestricting approach. Either you bet no one will outbid you past $4m and go the restricted route, or you rely on pulling a Shandon with Mobley and giving him say over his own destiny leaving him unrestricted. In no way, am I as GM risking someone won't bid past $4m. Aelliott, that is a huge risk. [This message has been edited by heypartner (edited April 18, 2000).]
To make Mobley a restricted FA, we'd have to offer him less money than otherwise. From the CBA FAQ: In order to secure their right of first refusal (and make their free agent a restricted free agent) a team must submit a qualifying offer to their free agent by June 30. The amount of the qualifying offer for players on rookie "scale" contracts is based on the player's draft position (see question number 33). The qualifying offer for all other players must be for 125% of the player's previous salary, or the player's minimum salary (see question number 9) plus $150,000, whichever is greater. The team automatically gets an exception in the amount necessary to make this qualifying offer if they are over the salary cap. This rule would keep our offer sheet for Mobley under a million, which is laughable. Everyone seems to think that Mobley already has a foot out the door. I am not at all worried myself. He wants to play here and will sign with us. (1) He's financially set: $8 million for 2 years does count as financially set. (2) He's not worth more than say $6 million, no way is he worth anything near the max. He won't be losing that much anyway. ------------------
You see, Mobley has no control over where he goes if we make him a "restricted" free agent; he goes to the highest bidder. He only has control of his destiny if we leave him as an unrestricted free agent. HeyPartner, I think I see where your coming from now, but I also believe that you're misinterpreting the rules of restricted free agency. Are you saying that if we make Mobley a restricted free agent, then he automatically goes to the highest bidder without Mobley having any say in where he goes ? If we make Mobley a restricted free agent, he still has to sign an offer sheet with another team before we have to match anything. So he's still in control of where he goes. If he doesn't want to play for team A, then he simply doesn't sign an offer sheet with team A. Here's an excerpt from the Salary Cap FAQ (btw,I just quote these, because I know how much it bugs you): Restricted free agency gives the player's original team the right to match an offer sheet the player signs with another team and keep the player. notice the bold section. The player still has to sign an offer sheet in order for a deal to get done. So, regardless of restricted free agency or not, Mobley is in full control of where he plays. The Clippers can be willing to pay him a bazillion dollars, but if he doesn't want to play there, then he simply doesn't sign an offer sheet with them. There's no down side to making Mobley a restricted free agent. The up-side is that he couldn't take less money to play somewhere else. Since that is not likely to happen anyway, I again say it's a moot point. JuanValdez, That qualifying offer is just required to retain right of first refusal on Mobley. Once somebody else offers more, then we'd be free to pay him whatever is allowable under the cap. Football does the same thing. You extend the qualifying offer in order to retain your rights and then you negotiate the real contract. ------------------ [This message has been edited by aelliott (edited April 18, 2000).] [This message has been edited by aelliott (edited April 18, 2000).] [This message has been edited by aelliott (edited April 18, 2000).]
Mobley does lose control if he wants the highest bid and remain a Rocket. It is best for him to get all offers on an open free agent market that doesn't start until Aug 1st. Plus, in the open (unrestricted) market, he can keep offers secret to get the Rockets guessing whether they need to offer him the $4m or not. Anyhow, I'm off the CBA and into auction theory, by saying he has no bargaining power if he signs a Rocket's offer sheet. Technically he does as you say, but not if he really wants to test the market and reserve the right to stay a Rocket as the same time. The main reason for this is offer sheets are made public. Unrestricted free agents can keep all bidding secret. Like I say, this is mainly auction theory. I can definitely see why you say it's moot. What's trouble is if Mobley wants to maximize $ and stay a Rocket. In that case, chances are he'll hold out for Early Bird (and $8.5 for 2 years as Juan suggested) and definitely be forced to go the unrestricted route, cause we don't want a two year.
Cato is a relatively intelligent player. Do you suppose the lack of intensity is his way of helping Houston improve its draft position? ------------------ Forget regrets or life is yours to miss.
Anyone feel like joining the "We Hate Kelvin Cato" club. No free agents, maybe no Mobley, all because Rudy decided he needed a young center who had never demonstrated any game over a long period of time. ------------------
Haven I'm in. I just hope our club is short lived and that Cato is traded very quickly in the off season!!! ------------------
Hell, guys, I still think Mobley is somewhat of a loose cannon. And I'm not so sure that he's the best player in backcourt next to Francis. Maybe Francis said he's worth more hoping that Mobley WOULD move on. ------------------ Gene Peterson on the highpoint of the Rox' 14 victory season in the 80's...
Anyhow, I'm off the CBA and into auction theory, by saying he has no bargaining power if he signs a Rocket's offer sheet. Technically he does as you say, but not if he really wants to test the market and reserve the right to stay a Rocket as the same time. Mobley can test the market all he wants. He's free to negotiate with any team in the league. If he doesn't like the offer , then he simply doesn't sign that teams offer sheet. Just because he negotiates with a team, doesn't mean that he has to accept their offer sheet (or that the team will even end up offering him one). The August 1st date doesn't really affect his leverage either. The Rockets will have made him a qualifying offer and he can go out and see what the market will pay. If he wants big bucks and somebody will pay, then he can take it. If not, the Rockets will gladly sign him to the middle class for 1 year or the early Bird for 2. It's not like the Rockets are going to low-ball him. There's also really no point in keeping the Rockets guessing about other teams offers. The Rockets can't do any better than the exceptions and they won't offer any worse. Since the Rockets can't offer any more, then why try to bluff them? As far as the issue of offer sheets being public, it doesn't matter. As I said before, you can negotiate with any team you want and keep it as quiet as you like. Once you get to the point of signing an offer sheet, you've locked yourself into a salary, so why do you care if it's public or not. If Mobley negotiates with a team and they can't come to terms, then that team isn't going to bother to issue an offer sheet that they know he won't sign. ------------------ [This message has been edited by aelliott (edited April 19, 2000).] [This message has been edited by aelliott (edited April 19, 2000).]
If Cat leaves it will suck! He does have the potential to be like Ray Allen. He should be in the All Star game a few years from now. But there are multiple questions possibly other things to think about. If Mobley goes, will that make Steve sour on the Rox? I know this defies logic, he should understand that we are strapped, but who knows how he will take it. The KT will get more PT since they have brought WW in as the 4 for match-up problems. Mobley should really negotiate a deal like Shandon Wink, wink, nudge, nudge. If he doesn't he won't be able to get the same amount of money for a while if he would do the 1 year deal. ------------------ Was that a cross over that made you buckle at your ankles?
