Yes. Remember the Rockets getting fined $100k for taking the entire team to Las Vegas in 2004-05? This is considered "salary" and against the CBA.
Charlie P on 790 -- funny -- just said something to the effect of (paraphrasing): "If Bibby is going to opt out, Adelman would know. Because the Rockets would NEVER have any contact with Bibby. They would NEVER talk illegally with his representation. [Pause for effect] The hell they haven't. IF they like Mike Bibby that is. And relative to Rafer Alston, how could you not."
I don't know why Bibby and Artest are always talked about going to the same place. They don't like each other and don't get along in Sacramento. Unless they get stuck there together, I don't see them ending up on the same team next season.
Bibby can opt out of his contract, loose out on some cash (hell he''s already made 60 mill), but he will reunite w an old coach, leave headcase Artest and the other losers, and join the top 4 team in the NBA.
Never underestimate the value of appealing to a man's ego, especially a man who came SO close to a championship a few years back. If you look at the other great players who have taken major paycuts to come to a contender (Barkley, Malone, Payton), they ALL got close to winning a championship. Mike Bibby could be a major story, a savior for a down franchise who helps elevate it to championship status. Or he can languish on a crappy, in-fighting team and pray for ping pong balls. The choice is yours, Mike.
Doesn't he make like 14 million per for the next two seasons? Take an 8-10 million dollar pay cut, for two seasons? Highly.........doubtful.
What makes you think that the Rockets will be a contender for a title now? Suddenly we are going to excel...many faces will be the same...faces that were hand picked for a different system. Be prepared for the same transition to take place that happened when JVG took over for Rudy T. Frustrating season...1st round loss if we even get that far.
http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/players/3245 40% FG, 36% from the arc... I figure the Rockets should go after someone who shoots better than Rafer?
Bibby has two years and 28 million left. No way he opts out. Even if he has banked over 60 million there is no way that he turns down 28 over two. If he opts out he is looking at 4 yrs 33 or the full mle. It doesnt make any financial sense, especially when in two years after making 28 million he can still sign for the mle somewhere else.
I actually don't think the Rockets would have to drastically change their rotation next season beyond getting Bibby: Adelman will succeed where JVG didn't by utilizing Yao's passing skills in the high post, much like Adelman did with Chris Webber, Vlade Divac and Brad Miller in Sacramento. Bibby and T-Mac are capable of scoring from anywhere on the court, and Adelman's offense will actually help keep T-Mac from taking too many 3s, which has been a weakness in his game. Battier is actually capable to knocking down mid-range jumpers and scoring on cuts to the basket. He only limited his offense to shooting 3s because that is what was asked of him. If the Rockets cannot upgrade at power forward, Juwan Howard has the skill-set (however diminished it is becoming) to work in an Adelman offense. If anything, his productivity should increase under Adelman. Rafer's game may struggle, but he'd be one of the top backup PGs in the league, able to bring a more up-tempo style with the second unit. All in all, the Rockets' acquisition of Mike Bibby would be possibly the greatest single roster move to make the transition from a JVG offense to an Adelman offense.
While still playing at the high level, they were still near the end of their careers. Barkley was traded here and still had a good contract until he took a paycut at age 34/35 to sign Pippen with the understanding that he will get a bigger contract the next two years (which the Rockets totally backed out of and gave only him one year, might be why he hate the Rockets). Gary Payton was 35 when he signed with the Lakers for less. Karl Malone was 40 when he signed with the Lakers. Bibby just turn 29 a few days ago and entering his prime. He still has one more big contract and 6 years left before he should be considering joining an "elite team" and take less money. Not a lot of players entering their prime are willing to give up that last big contract for a chance to win, it's usually after the age of 35 that they start making the trade off.
that's only for one year remember that. A full mid level would actually be worth more in the long run
http://hoopshype.com/salaries/sacramento.htm Bibby has two more years for a combined 28 million left on his contract
That's assuming that he won't get anything after his current 2-year contract is up. I don't really think Bibby is going to take the huge pay cut it would take to bring him here.
I write this (just as I did when creating this thread) with the qualification that Mike Bibby opting out of his deal was unlikely to happen, but . . . Let's say Bibby stays in his deal and his skills steadily decline. When his deal is up in two years, he will likely have to scrap to get a portion of some team's MLE. Let's assume he signs for 3 years, $9 mil. That means that Bibby's total salary for the five years would be $37M. Now, let's say Bibby opts out and signs a full MLE deal with the Rockets. It would be a 5-year deal, worth approximately $29.3M (assuming a starting MLE salary of ~$5.5M with 8% annual raises). Under this hypothetical, Bibby would only be making about $7-8M less over the five years. I realize that the time value of money (by getting most of the money early if he doesn't opt out) bumps that figure up. And I realize that he may very well get more than a $9M deal when he's finally done with this big contract. But this just shows that the money would not be ridiculously different if he were afraid that he might not get another big contract when his current deal is up. Just something to think about.
additionally there is no income tax in Texas, while in California the income tax is a b tch and the cost of living in texas is cheaper... and he is eligible for the moving tax exemption which will be good for a cool 2 grand if hes shipping in from Sacramento... did I forget anything?
Bibby is NOT opting out, that's for sure... However, how about a trade? Alston+Howard+Sura works out salary-wise and the Maloofs would save a few mils from Sura's contract. Except that it's a highway robbery talent-wise and the Malloffs would never give up so much to save a few mils... If the rumors are true that they would give up Ronnie for next to nothing, they are obviously thinking rebuilding and would be looking at young talent. V-span/Luther of course is not nearly enticing and neither is our pick... The only reason for them to do it is to make Bibby happy and to improve their cred among players... It's all dreamcasting, anyway...
