Give the Hawks credit…

[DrReality]

Petty amazing ink:

In this edition of the NBA PM: Give the Hawks credit….

Rick Sund Being Crafty: It's time to give out some general manager credit to Atlanta Hawks negotiator Rick Sund. With three key pieces of the fourth-best team in the Eastern Conference last season as free agents (point guard Mike Bibby, forward Marvin Williams, and center Zaza Pachulia), Sund was able to lock all three of them up at relatively modest amounts.

Bibby cost them $18 million for three years – not bad at all for a starting point guard. Williams cost them up to $40 million over five years, with the team banking on the fact he continues to blossom and become more consistent. Pachulia cost them about $21 million over four years, solid money for a big man even if he isn't starting.

But, it's not just that Sund was able to get all three of them for less than $80 million; he also got them to agree to sign contracts that DECREASE in value in 2010-11. All three of these players will make the same amount in years one and three of their deals, but in year two is scales downward. For Williams and Pachulia, it scales upward again in year four.

Why is this significant? Because not only does it mean the trio will cost the Hawks about $2 million less in 2010-11 than in 2009-10, it also allows them to have a little bit of flexibility next summer if they want or need it.

The Hawks also reportedly have a four-year, $60 million contract extension offer on the table to All-Star guard Joe Johnson, who will be an unrestricted free agent next summer. The Hawks would love to lock him up as soon as possible, but Johnson is considering hitting the market.

It takes quite a bit of convincing for a player to sign a contract that will decrease. Even if all three players go out and have the best seasons of their lives, they will end up making less money the next year – it's easy to see how uninspiring that might be. However, it also takes a lot of trust on the part of Hawks management to believe they can convince the players to sign that kind of deal and still bring 100% every night, knowing they will get a pay decrease.

If Sund gets Johnson to sign an extension (which given likely structure of a four-year, $60 million contract would probably mean Johnson would make less than this year's $14.98 million in 2010-11 as well) and the Hawks continue to improve as they have over the last two years, he has to be in the discussion for Executive of the Year with Toronto's Bryan Colangelo (if everything works out there as well). Sund also was able to trade Speedy Claxton and Acie Law for Jamal Crawford to strengthen the bench and bring in a big rookie point guard in Jeff Teague.

Discount the Hawks in 2009-10 at your own risk – they are quietly making themselves even better.

Edited August 22, 2009 by DrReality

[AHF]

Nice article but this:

It takes quite a bit of convincing for a player to sign a contract that will decrease. Even if all three players go out and have the best seasons of their lives, they will end up making less money the next year – it's easy to see how uninspiring that might be. However, it also takes a lot of trust on the part of Hawks management to believe they can convince the players to sign that kind of deal and still bring 100% every night, knowing they will get a pay decrease.

doesn't account for the possibility they will be getting more in year 1 of the deal than in a contract where it goes up every year for the same total money. That is something easy to sell.

[txsting]

Nice article but this:

doesn't account for the possibility they will be getting more in year 1 of the deal than in a contract where it goes up every year for the same total money. That is something easy to sell.

I noticed this as well with Zaza and Bibby's deals. They make a higher amount in 2009, then dip in 2010, then rise back up for the remainder of the contract.

I'm happy to see Marvin get structured the same way. We are in the catbird seat coming into the next two years, with tons of assets at reasonable contracts, and secondary assets such as Houston's 2nd rounder next year, rights to Childress, etc.

If a BIG deal comes our way, chances are we have the flexibility to snare it.