The Memphis Grizzlies may never again get this much press for a 10-day free agent signing.
As soon as the ink was dry on forward Darius Miles’ new contract Saturday, countless Portland Trail Blazers fans and personnel were left trying to figure out what it all meant. And where better to do so than from the beginning?
Darius Miles was traded to the Blazers from the Cleveland Cavaliers in January of 2004. That summer, he received a contract extension from then-general manager John Nash to the tune of six years and $48 million. Miles’ tenure with the Blazers was contemptuous at best: Before suffering a knee injury and enduring microfracture surgery after the 2006 season, Miles dominated headlines with off-court antics (particularly, the use of a racial insult against former Blazers coach Maurice Cheeks) and on-court disappointments. Miles averaged 13.3 points and 4.7 rebounds in 103 games in the two seasons following the contract extension, but many felt that his on-court talents – remarkable athleticism, speed and ball-handling ability from a 6-foot-9 forward – weren’t translating into team success.
Miles’ rehabilitation from his knee surgery came at the time when the Blazers, fighting off years of built-up bad publicity that turned the organization into a laughingstock, was clearing house of questionable characters and malcontents. The fan base clamored for Miles’ head within this backlash, and the team eventually released him.
But before doing so, the Blazers had Miles’ knee examined by an independent doctor (not hired by the organization or the NBA), and the resulting declaration was “career-ending.” This meant that the remainder of Miles’ contract (two years, $18 million), would still be paid by the Blazers but would be stricken from the official payroll.
The NBA employs a “soft” salary cap, which sets a number that teams can exceed under special provisions, set at $58.68 million for 2008. The Blazers have the fourth-highest payroll in the league ($82.4 million) but have committed only $46.2 million in salary for the 2009-10 season, including $9 million from Miles’ contract. Saying he has a career-ending injury reduces the payroll commitment significantly and allows Portland to add genuine talent to the roster through free agency or trade.
But 2008 saw Miles attempt a comeback to the NBA, which would place Miles’ salary drawn from the Blazers back onto the payroll. League rules stipulate that a player must participate in 10 games before officially nullifying the “career-ending” injury exemption. After playing six preseason games with the Boston Celtics and two regular-season games with the Grizzlies, Portland made a power play that many anonymous league personnel called “unprecedented.”
Team president Larry Miller issued a highly defensive e-mail to general managers and presidents of all 29 NBA teams. “The Portland Trail Blazers are aware that certain teams may be contemplating signing Darius Miles to a contract for the purpose of adversely impacting the Portland Trail Blazers Salary Cap and tax positions,” the e-mail said. “Please be aware that if a team engages in such conduct, the Portland Trail Blazers will take all necessary steps to safeguard its rights, including, without limitation, litigation.”
The e-mail had little effect. The NBA intervened and permitted teams to sign Miles, and the Grizzlies stepped forward with another contract. (Miles signed two 10-day contracts with Memphis and was waived after the second one.) Portland’s strong-arm tactics hurt the organization’s reputation among fans and personnel alike, and the Trail Blazers are expected to be fined upwards of $1 million for issuing a threat of this magnitude.
It hurts to see this happen as a follower, and the cap space would have been incredibly useful; Portland has quite a bit of room to improve as a team. But the real issue at work is the conduct of Trail Blazers owner and billionaire Paul Allen.
Allen’s attempt to open up cap room (executed with some panache by general manager Kevin Pritchard and assistant G.M. Tom Penn) began somewhere around 2002, when his $100-million Trail Blazers teams would consistently fall short of championships and the franchise was losing money. His frugality, coupled with the creativity of Pritchard and Penn, has helped to rejuvenate the franchise.
That said, the e-mail reeks of a classic Allen temper tantrum, last seen in arguments over the lease agreement with the Rose Garden and a possible relocation of the team if the city would not capitulate. Allen has influence, and he likes to exert it. I was under the initial impression, upon first seeing the e-mail, that Allen had discovered some legal loophole and was pursuing it to the fullest extent; by issuing a mandate in defense of Miles, the NBA quickly shot that down.
This reminds me of an anecdote I once read about between a sports team owner and his general manager. The owner asked about what he could do to involve himself in the franchise, and the general manager said, simply, “You’re an owner, Ed. Own.” For the past two years, Allen’s discipline exhibited from his lofty perch has been commendable. The team is on a significant uptick. He needs to have a short memory and focus on, when things don’t go the Blazers’ way, what has worked for them.
The team certainly didn’t come out distracted by this, beating the Golden State Warriors 113-100. And why should they? They all have their eyes on the prize: the Larry O’Brien Trophy.
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