Warriors general manager Garry St. Jean has said he wants to sign restricted free agent Marc Jackson. According to Jackson, St. Jean has a strange way of showing it. Jackson said Monday neither he nor his agent has spoken to the Warriors since late July, the beginning of the free-agent signing period. In addition, Jackson said the Warriors' silence already has sabotaged his chances to sign with another team. "They've been avoiding our calls," said Jackson, who averaged 13.2 points and 7.5 rebounds per game for the Warriors last season. "It's obvious they don't want me there. They haven't been returning calls from other teams, either, about what they're (the Warriors) willing to do and not do. Since Day 1, they haven't wanted to talk to us." Because of the rules regarding restricted free agency and a looming luxury tax, the Warriors have the upper hand in dealing with Jackson. And they're using it. Jackson can sign an offer sheet with any NBA team, but the Warriors have 15 days to decide whether to match the offer. Golden State can match any offer up to $4.5 million per season. Also, beginning next season, teams will be taxed on a dollar-for-dollar basis in the amount their payrolls exceed a certain amount -- expected to be approximately $52 million. St. Jean has acknowledged that the Warriors have kept quiet with regard to what they're willing to match or even if they would match an offer at all. But he said that is the standard M.O. when it comes to dealing with your own restricted free agent. Jackson, who played power forward and center last year for the Warriors, has visited several teams this summer -- including Orlando, Seattle, Detroit, Houston and Indiana -- but has yet to receive an offer. Part of the reason for that, according to Jackson, is that teams don't want to spend time negotiating with him, then have the Warriors simply match the offer. "I'm not going to sit here and say anything bad about the Warriors," said Jackson, who finished third in the Rookie of the Year voting last year. "They came in with a strategy and we came in with a strategy and theirs is working. Whether it was because of this or that or whatever, their strategy has been better than ours. I can't be mad at them. It's a business." St. Jean didn't return phone calls. According to a league source, Jackson's strategy early in the free agent signing period hurt him. Jackson, who made $316,969 last season, was asking for a six-year contract in the $30 million range. Orlando wound up signing veterans Patrick Ewing and Horace Grant to two-year contracts, and Detroit signed two Yugoslavian centers with no NBA experience. Jackson's agent, Joel Bell, didn't return phone calls, but Jackson said they've been willing for the past several weeks to deal exclusively with the Warriors. Jackson, who missed 27 games last year because of a groin injury, said he still is confident "something good is going to happen." He said he has been willing to deal exclusively with the Warriors for the past several weeks. The Rockets, who balked at signing Jackson to an offer sheet earlier this summer, are said to have renewed interest because power forward Maurice Taylor will miss the entire season with a torn right Achilles' tendon. Portland also is said to be interested in Jackson because center Arvydas Sabonis, who suffered broken toes this summer, is contemplating retirement. Jackson said he now is healthy and is in better shape than at any time last year. He has been working out in Philadelphia with players such as Allen Iverson, Alvin Williams, Aaron McKie, Jumaine Jones, Malik Rose, Speedy Claxton and Cuttino Mobley. He also expressed disappointment in the perception he could have returned late last season from a groin injury. Jackson missed the final 20 games and played only 48 games in all. "I injured my left groin in late November, early December," Jackson said. "I kept playing and then I hurt my right one. But at that point, I wanted to keep playing because I was finally playing. It was a sharp pain. I sat out about two weeks and then came back. But it got to the point where I couldn't do it. It was like someone was stabbing me with an ice pick. For people to ask, 'Why didn't you play?' It was because of the pain."
That article is very old. It was way before we signed Jackson to an offer sheet. I have no idea why you're posting it.
