All this Lewis specualtion I've read and heard in the last week is starting to make my head spin. MAX Dolllars and Rashard Lewis' name have parted ways and even Rashard has realized it. That being said, it looks like Lewis & the Sonics are playing Chicken w/ eachother. Lewis says, "I'll go home for the MCE if I don't get payed." And the Sonics are saying we'll just get Marshall or someone else to take your place. The Sonics are the only team that can afford to pay him more than the MCE w/o a sign&trade and the intrest for Lewis is pretty low. The Bulls & the Rockets are about it. I read somewhere online that they only want to pay Lewis 6-8mil MAX b/c they know he's not a 9-10mil a yr. player. Lewis only has 2 options; take the 6-8 from the Sonics or come over to Hou. for the MCE and get a raise to 6-8mil after this season or maybe even walk then. I think that gives us a shot at Lewis. It would not be a stretch for Lewis to come back to his hometown for a couple of mil less than he would get from the Sonics w/ the understanding he would get a raise to 7-8mil after the season or he could leave after the year when there will be more teams w/ money to play w/ than this year. I, like everyone else, would not try to give Lewis MAX dollars but I would have no problem paying him 7mil a year to average 17 and 7.
New bottom line...... Would you rather have an all perimeter team where they are making the majority of the money or Would you rather have an inside out combo? I am not assuming anything. I am saying that in this climate, you must be smart with your $$$. My point is that Rashard is a three point shooting player who can rebound. But will he ever develop into a low post player? Can he? Should he? Griffin and Ming have the possibilty of both being low post threats ...in the future of course. I would hate to NOT be able to resign them if we are hampered by the signing of Rashard to a max contract. As well as Francis' raise. Nowhere in the media or otherwise has Rashard or his agent said he would take less to come back home. He only said that with the addition of Ming, Houston looks very inviting. I like Rashard and I believe that he could help this team. I just don't think he is worth the max. His agent seems to think he is and his agent using all the leverage he can to get his client the biggest contract he can..as well he should. I like Rashard and I would love to have him but not at max $$$ If he would come here for less and stay here for less...lets go and get him! It is a moot point since Seattle can give him more and Rashard would have to force a S&T with Houston. CD will not pay him the max unless we unloaded serious salary in return...I don't see Seattle accepting that either.
I don't know if this was posted elsewhere or on this certain thread, but this is from today's ESPN Insider As of late Tuesday night there wasn't much more news to report. Sonics coach Nate McMillan told Insider that the team is still negotiating with Rashard Lewis. With the salary cap dipping by $2 million, the Bulls will no longer have the cap room to make a competitive offer to the Sonics, meaning Lewis' options are now strictly limited to re-signing with the Sonics, working out a sign-and-trade deal or just settling for a three-year, mid-level contract somewhere else. IMO, I think we should just leave the team just like it is and just go after a backup SG.....Lewis is not going to fit here, team wise and salary cap wise....
is it possible to trade MoT and Nachbar for Shard? i know id do this deal if i were the rox and i think the sonics would so they could get something in return for shard. this would solve are logjam at the PF spot and wed get a proven SF in shard, but would the sonics do this?
AzCkr:- What a lot of rubbish! I dont consider Lewis an established SF.player, he is a soft player, reasonable on 3 pointers ,poor on defence. I would never do that trade in a year of Sundays!! He is worth no more than 7 mil./Yr. We have 5 forwards already.
Maybe Lewis might want to talk now with the Rockets regarding a middle class deal: http://www.tribnet.com/sports/story/1449324p-1567643c.html Lewis annoyed by Sonics' latest attempt to sign him Frank Hughes; The News Tribune Seattle SuperSonics free-agent forward Rashard Lewis is extremely unhappy with the team's efforts at re-signing him, sources say, and is considering leaving for another team. According to one source, the Sonics offered Lewis $49 million, less than half of the $102 million contract he is seeking. Lewis also recently learned that the most the Sonics can offer him while staying below the luxury tax threshold is $56 million, and he became extremely disappointed, a source said, to the point where he is considering signing a short-term contract with another team for its mid-level exception. The source of Lewis' displeasure is that he believes that the Sonics are being disloyal to him after he displayed the loyalty they sought two summers ago. Then, Lewis had a six-year, $46 million offer from the Toronto Raptors that he turned down because he believed the Sonics indicated to him that if he re-signed with them, they would pay him in the future. At the time, Lewis signed a three-year, $13.2 million deal with an escape clause after the second season, which he exercised in June. Now, the Sonics are believed to be offering Lewis only a few million dollars more than he had turned down from the Raptors even though he has two more years of experience, including last season, when he averaged 17 points and seven rebounds a game. It appears the Sonics' approach to this negotiation is that no other team can offer Lewis as much money as they can, so they are willing to chance that Lewis will make the sound financial decision of a long-term deal rather than make decisions based on emotion. "It's not the first year of the contract that counts," Sonics general manager Rick Sund said. "It's the size of the total package. "If Rashard wants to go to another team, there is nothing I can do about that." Lewis is asking for $90 million from Seattle because that is equivalent to the seven-year, $86 million contract that Vin Baker has, and Lewis - whom the Sonics have tabbed as a future cornerstone - believes he contributes more to the team than Baker. But what has Lewis nearly as frustrated with the Sonics' opening offer, a source said, is that the team agreed to a contract Wednesday with center Jerome James for three years and $15 million, with an opening salary of $4.5 million - only $500,000 less than Lewis's opening salary would be, despite James averaging 5.6 points and 4.1 rebounds. James and Lewis had been in contact talks for the past week, sources say, and when James called Lewis on Wednesday to tell him he had come to an agreement, James asked Lewis if he would accept a contract for $54 million. Lewis, the source said, was so upset that he had to end the conversation. If Lewis does not re-sign with the Sonics, he has several options. He could take a three-year, $15 million deal from another team to earn his Larry Bird rights, which would enable him to re-sign with that team for any amount. Or, he could sign a one-year, $4.5 million contract and go back into free agency next summer, when six teams will have substantial money under the salary cap to pursue a list of free agents that include Jason Kidd, Tim Duncan, Alonzo Mourning and Jermaine O'Neal. Sources say Sonics management has heard rumors of Lewis' displeasure and are doing everything they can to reassure him he is part of their future. But for now Lewis is concerned more with the size of his contract than what he thinks are empty promises.
My response to this thread as a whole... Seems like a bunch of bargaining ploys to me. Any person who thinks the rockets would be better with Rice, a Rookie, and the rest at Small forward, than with Lewis is crazy. Winning pays a lot of bills, if the team can bring home the trophy(s) Les will spend the LTax on the players.
I do not think Lweis is worth the Max, but if we could get rid of either: Rice, Cato or Taylor contract then by all means bring Lewis home to H-Town. That 5 way trade Utah, Toronto, Atlanta, Houston, and Seattle? IF we could send Cato and Rice and bring in Lewis then hot dang! I guess is is wishful thinking but that team would be a force in the West or East. C-Ming PF-Griffin SF-Lewis SG-Mobley PG-Francis Moochie Nochbar Taylor Thomas
Lewis is not very smart to be comparing his contract situation to Baker's. He does contribute more than Baker, but that point is moot. Baker is overpaid for his play, but the Sonics had no control over how much money Baker earned this season - he signed the contract a long time ago. Rashard Lewis does not deserve the max.
