Free-agent signing date pushed back
With the NBA’s new collective bargaining agreement still not finalized, the league’s free-agent signing period was delayed indefinitely Wednesday.
The league sent a memo to its 30 teams saying they will not be able to sign free agents Friday, the original target date established by the league and the players’ union for getting the new six-year labor deal into writing.
NBA official Tim Frank said no new target date was set, but a spokesman for the union said he expected the agreement to be finalized and free agents to begin signing by the middle of next week.
One free agent that will have to wait to sign a new deal is former Seattle SuperSonics guard Antonio Daniels. ESPN.com reported that once the agreement is finalized, Daniels will sign a five-year contract with the Washington Wizards for about $30 million.
Daniels, 30, averaged 11.2 points and 4.1 assists last season in Seattle, and he was considered one of the top point guards on the market after former Wizard Larry Hughes agreed to a deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Teams have been negotiating with free agents for nearly three weeks, and many prominent players have already reached tentative agreements on new contracts. Among them are sharpshooters Ray Allen and Michael Redd agreeing to stay in Seattle and Milwaukee, forward Udonis Haslem staying in Miami and center Zydrunas Ilgauskas remaining in Cleveland.
Among other players planning to change teams, forward Donyell Marshall from the Raptors is moving to the Cavs and center Jerome James from the SuperSonics to the Knicks.
Also, former overall No. 1 draft pick Kwame Brown will be dealt from Washington to the Los Angeles Lakers in a sign-and-trade deal for Caron Butler, free agent forward Stromile Swift will move from Memphis to Houston and forward Bobby Simmons will go from the Los Angeles Clippers to the Bucks.
Pistons make coaching Flip
Flip Saunders reached an agreement to become the new coach of the Detroit Pistons, who wasted no time replacing Larry Brown.
The hiring of Saunders, the former coach of the Minnesota Timberwolves, was confirmed by an Eastern Conference official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the team planned to announce the deal at a news conference today.
The Detroit News reported Saunders will receive a four-year contract worth between $4 million and $5 million per season.
Brown’s agent said he expects the unemployed coach to make a decision on his future in the next couple of weeks, and the New York Knicks are already hard at work trying to sign him.
The New York Daily News reported that the Knicks were prepared to offer Brown as much as $60 million over five years.