Hey, remember that Jason Kidd-to Dallas thing? Sure you do. It was about to be another blockbuster deal, but it was killed by a delusional Devean George deciding he'd rather be a Maverick. While the team spent most of yesterday trying (unsuccessfully) to convince George to relent and pack his bags for Jersey, it appears now that the trade wouldn't be immediately approved even if Devean changed his mind.
Comments made by Jerry Stackhouse implied that a side deal had already been negotiated to bring him back to Dallas after a buyout from the Nets. His exact quote was, "I get 30 days to rest then I'll be right back. I ain't going nowhere." This is in clear violation of league rules, so if the trade does get resurrected, it's very possible that it wouldn't get immediately approved, and it's probable that at this point, Stack wouldn't be allowed back in Dallas.
The NBA will investigate the possibility the Mavericks and Stackhouse violated league rules with a prearranged agreement for the forward to return to Dallas after reaching a contract buyout in New Jersey and sitting out the 30-day waiting period, sources said. Several league sources said the NBA will consider forbidding Stackhouse to re-sign with the Mavericks this season as punishment for public comments the forward made on Wednesday that suggested tampering could have occurred.
If that's the case, and Stackhouse couldn't come back to the Mavericks, then this deal really is dead. Mark Cuban has said that he wouldn't pull the trigger unless he wasn't really losing Stack, which makes complete sense. But what doesn't make sense is how loose-lipped both Cuban and Stackhouse have been with regards to this little side deal. They had to know the commissioner wouldn't allow something like this to go on, at least if they were going to flaunt it to the rest of the league like this. By openly admitting to circumventing league rules, Cuban will have no one to blame but himself if the Kidd trade ends up falling through. Which at the moment, seems extremely likely.
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Reader Comments ( Page 1 of 1)
1. Open mouth, insert foot.
Posted at 1:01PM on Feb 15th 2008 by david eisele
2. That's an absurd rule! If the Nets want to pay the buyout, and Stack wants to resign with Dallas as a free-agent, what's wrong with that?!
That's a weak-ass definition of collusion in my book... it's not creating an unfair advantage in the least!
Posted at 1:08PM on Feb 15th 2008 by August West
3. Right now, Dallas has Jerry Stackhouse and his $6.75 mil salary on the cap.
30 days from now, Dallas would still have Jerry Stackhouse, but this time for the veteran's minimum (I'm guessing).
I'd like to see this trade get done as much as anyone, and I think Dallas is giving up a lot either way, but that's where the "advantage" comes in.
Posted at 1:25PM on Feb 15th 2008 by Cyanide
4. Cyanide,
That's not an unfair advantage though, in my mind. Buyouts are the norm, and immediately signing with whatever team wants your services is common. Players have done this exact thing in the past, but admitting it is a violation? It doesn't make sense to say the admission of intent is a competitive advantage... so where's the rub?
Posted at 1:40PM on Feb 15th 2008 by August West
5. Yeah, I don't necessarily agree with it, but the league is saying that there is a difference. If Stack was waived and went back to Dallas, nobody would be able to say (conclusively) whether or not this was the plan all along (though obviously it's the conclusion one jumps to off of basic common sense). But the collusion aspect comes into play with Stack talking about it, essentially revealing he's talked with Cuban about re-signing with the Mavs after leaving the Nets, which gets into I guess what would be called pre-emptive tampering.
Yeah, I get that it happens, and I'm not opposed to it. I guess I'm just standing up for the league's view that it's essentially a deal for Stackhouse's contract, allowing them to trade numbers rather than the player himself. You would think the 30 days without him would be enough of a penalty anyway, but it's Stern's call.
Posted at 1:54PM on Feb 15th 2008 by Cyanide
6. Great, punish a guy for being honest. Nice job there, David Stern!
Posted at 4:44PM on Feb 15th 2008 by nickstoli
7. Mark Cuban and Jerry Stackhouse should meet Kevin McHale and Joe Smith.
Posted at 6:08PM on Feb 15th 2008 by Martin
8. It's perfectly within the rules, but Stern is well.. stern. He doesn't want anyone to muss up his tidy NBA image.
As if all those buyout candidates just HAPPEN to make their way back to their original teams. Give me a break.
The rule is there to give the teams a small penalty. If they're willing to wait on the guy, they get him back for free. And the player gets a small extra payday. Win-win.
Posted at 11:50PM on Feb 15th 2008 by grover
9. The trade is a very dumb deal... I live in the Metroplex and believe me about 90 percent of the people here hate this deal totally.... Why would you give up a possible rising star for a definitely setting one... It makes no sense... Even with Kidd they would not be any closer to winning a championship than they would with the talent they have...Let the young man get back from the injury and you will be winning like you were before he got hurt....The talent is there to win, so do it and quit making excuses...
Posted at 7:07PM on Feb 16th 2008 by bernartsltd
10. Let's see, Dallas trades Steve Nash, now they want to trade for Jason Kidd....Makes no sense to me...
Posted at 12:20PM on Feb 17th 2008 by atlas