Anyone who has ever taken a look at the salaries of some of the players in the League has surely thought to themselves, “Man, some of these dudes are stealing money”. *Cough* Jerome James *Cough*. The truth of the matter is that it’s not their fault that League execs are dumb enough to sign them to such outrageous deals.
There’s a great story in the Rocky Mountain News today about GM’s handing out boatloads of cash to guys they no longer want to play for them. You should read the whole thing; there’s some jaw-dropping stuff in there. For instance:
Money can buy love in the NBA, especially when a player is handed a big check just because he can make a trade work.
Gary Grant, who was 35 and had scored 12 points over the previous two seasons, got a free $1.4 million when he was tossed into a three-team deal in 2000 in which Portland got Shawn Kemp, and then Cleveland waived Grant. Then there was the $1.2 million retirement gift Joe Kleine got in 2000, just $35,000 less than the top seasonal salary of his 15-year career.
God, I wish I was a little bit taller…
(Via: True Hoop)
