Lakers pull offer to Lamar Odom
Writes the LAT's Broderick Turner:
Lakers owner Jerry Buss is upset that Odom and his representative, agent Jeff Schwartz, haven't made contact with the organization regarding its $9-million per season offer for three years, according to one source...
...Odom and his agent have been seeking $10 million for five years.
Neither Schwartz nor Odom could be reached for comment. Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak said, "I wouldn't comment on negotiations."
The source also said Buss was not happy that Odom and Schwartz have been having talks with the Dallas Mavericks and Miami Heat about a deal, but have refused to talk to the Lakers..."
Obviously this isn't the news fans want to hear, but it also doesn't mean the negotiations are over. Not by a long shot.
Because there's so little chatter coming out of each camp, the true depth of tension is tough to read. For me, at least. I believe, though- and this is important- that neither side will get so emotional as to scuttle the process unnecessarily (i.e. there's unlikely to be what Lakers fans now call "A David Lee Moment"). Certainly Odom wasn't throwing bombs when Andy spoke to him Monday night, and for the most part both the Lakers and Schwartz have wisely kept the negotiations out of the media.
Most people seem to believe the sticking point has less to do with yearly salary, and is more about the length of the deal. The Lakers are (understandably) concerned about committing big money to Odom as he gets deeper into his 30s, while Odom is (understandably) looking to get the most out of what will likely be his last big NBA deal.
It's an interesting negotiation, since neither party appears to have a viable Plan B at hand. There isn't a big money suitor readily available for Odom via free agency, and sign-and-trades are always a tricky prospect. The Lakers, meanwhile, will be hard pressed to use the open market to fill his spot should Odom leave. I can say this with some confidence, though: LO isn't going to get 5 years and $50 mil, but I can't believe that's their line in the sand.
Nobody wins if this goes totally off the rails. Odom will be away from the city he loves, and less likely to win more rings. The Lakers, meanwhile, will lose a vital cog in the championship machine. Free agency is a strange game, and like Global Thermonuclear War, the winning move may be simply not to play.
Learn, people! Learn!
As a side note, computers have really come a long way, you know? Today, you could fit most of the stuff in that war room on my cell phone.
BK
Say it ain't so. Arrrgh!
Posted by: Charles | July 14, 2009 at 09:31 PM
9M per year in 3 years is not that bad. is this what happen after a great playoff play? dammit LO, please come back
Posted by: domz | July 14, 2009 at 09:35 PM
Buss folds....whatcha gonna do now LO???....I sure hope that mitch has a plan B....
Posted by: Xyz | July 14, 2009 at 09:38 PM
Umm this is bad news ... taking the offer away seems to me to mean we're done negotiating ...
Otherwise how is it different from we're negotiating but far apart ...
Bye-Bye Odom
Posted by: Taliq | July 14, 2009 at 09:41 PM
man...the blog have become like regular news on tv the past 2 days....only have depressing news to report.. :*)
Posted by: bangdangvn | July 14, 2009 at 09:42 PM
I guess at the end of the day, owners/GM determine the value of a 30-yr old veteran based on his career and not just the performance in a single year or one playoff series notwithstanding it was the most important one. anyone knows any NBA history where key players were dropped from a championship team and went on to win the following year? i need some inspiring stories.
Posted by: JH | July 14, 2009 at 09:42 PM
Good for you, J Buss...
I don't blame the LAL organization for this move...
I understand that this is business and negotiation.... but, the way it has gone is pretty ugly... and it turns the public against the Odom camp...
Odom could have pulled Bynum and said "enough is enough" and "get the deal done" to his agent.
He didn't and is not doing that.
I see Odom's value to the team, and have been an ardent supporter of his... but,not like this...
This smells an awful lot like TA situation...
Who needs an unhappy player in the locker room for several years anyway, while you are spending upwards of $16 milllion to $20 million per year depending on where it settles (incl. luxury tax).
Good bye, Lamar. You are being absolutely STUPID on this one... and the Busses made a big good will gesture, which was thrown in the mud.... too bad...
Posted by: RK | July 14, 2009 at 09:46 PM
Lamar Odom can be such a space cadet.
What? He can't feed his children on $27 million and the $63 million he was previously overpaid? That's $90 million total. And he can make more after that contract.
If he leaves such a good situation as what he has with the Lakers, I would only think about him as an Air-Hole, Air-head.
Championships just don't mean much to him, I would guess.
$9 million a year for three years is a very generous offer. Afterwards, he can get the mid-level exemption for another $35 million. That would make it $125 million for his career.
If he leave, I guess he just doesn't know how to live on $125 million. And he can't feed his children on it as well.
Posted by: James Katt | July 14, 2009 at 09:52 PM
Is a sign and trade for Carlos Boozer a possibility?
I've ALWAYS been a huge supporter of Lamar, but
that trade would make me feel better right away.
Posted by: CarlosB | July 14, 2009 at 09:53 PM
I dunno - Buss didn't like it when Shaq screamed about a contract extension and let him go. LO isn't screaming, that's for sure, but I mean, c'mon - LO needs to bend a little. Buss did, now LO should.
I hope they do. I really want LO back.
Posted by: longtimelakerlover | July 14, 2009 at 09:54 PM
5 yrs @ 40mm or 4yrs @36mm should at least be offered ... cuz rite now 3 yr @ 9 gives a guranteed contract less than the MLE ... lakers can make a better offer
Posted by: Taliq | July 14, 2009 at 10:00 PM
C'mon people. We can figure this out. Collectively, we can find the compromise between money and years that will satisfy both sides.
My first thought is 5 years at 34 mil. First 3 years at 28 mil last 2 years at 3 mil each LO's option on last 2 years.
Ok, improve on this. Tell me why this can't work.
Posted by: Tom 2d2 | July 14, 2009 at 10:00 PM
Incredibly greed by ownership and bus.
DO you really think the Lakers come out better if they don't sign him than if they sign him to 10mil for 4+ years? They are goign to look like idiots giving up the draft picks, getting Kobe to wait on an extension, getting the extra playoff money and retaining neither free agent.
Do you really think the Lakers don't have the money to pay Odom?
Also, the whole salary cap "zomg it's 2x because of the cap" argument is for total idiots. The salary cap penalty should be looked at proportional to all the salaries on the team not just Odoms.
If Odom goes somewhere for mid-level Buss and the GM will look like idiots. They do not win in this case.
Posted by: BobbieT | July 14, 2009 at 10:02 PM
This is BS..The Lakers obviously had no intention of signing him. Money is more important.
Posted by: zen | July 14, 2009 at 10:02 PM
Well done Dr. Buss. This dude had been all year long saying that he loved to stay a laker, be a laker for life, that he would take a pay cut etc etc etc....all so that lakers didn't get his back rear end traded to another team.
Now what the hell, he doesn't think he's worth $27 million 3 years in this economy?.
Odom may have been really good in some games, but I would see myself most of the time hitting my head against the wall for his idiotic decisions, lack of fire and underachieving play.
He was told many times by PJ to go use the summer to improve his play but he never did anything outside the scope of the regular season to become a better player and contribute to his team in a more extended role.
Can't believe the guy who wants the Lakers to pull an eye out of their own face for his service is the guy who couldn't sacrifice a month of vacation in 5 seasons to get better.
Selfish, dumb, heartless, underachieving.....
I can't wait to see this guy come in another's team uniform for the Staple's crowd to destroy him
Posted by: dAVID | July 14, 2009 at 10:02 PM
Plan B is a sign and trade, talk to the bulls about a heinrich, thomas deal, and ship LO,s inconsistant gehind out of here. I truly believe tyrus thomas will improve well enough to help this team and defensively getting both players is an upgrade form what LO provides on defense.
look at the potential starting five Heinrich,Bryant,Artest,Gasol & Bynum, with a bench of Fisher,Thomas Walton farmer the machine & Brown. That is stil a championship team to me and it would be much better defensively.
Posted by: The Big Chill | July 14, 2009 at 10:03 PM
Wow. Odom might be the most foolish man in America if he signs with Dallas or Miami for 10 mill, just to get booted out of the playoffs in the first round. while he could get 9 mill to sing in LA and compete for a title. Nothing LA can do about it if Odom wants to be foolish.
Posted by: Fake_Black Mamba | July 14, 2009 at 10:04 PM
Nooooooo!!! Kupchack u need to sign Odom!!! Odom wise up and take 9 mil over three years!!!
Posted by: Lakers Fan | July 14, 2009 at 10:06 PM
First Ariza's agent drops the ball and now Odom. 9 mill a year when you have been overpaid. That is gift, they should jump on it.
Posted by: darren m | July 14, 2009 at 10:07 PM
woah that post was pretty angry.. I guess I should probably relax a little on the situation huh
Posted by: BobbieT | July 14, 2009 at 10:08 PM
If what we are reading is true, it was disrespectful for Lamar's camp not to respond to what is a very respectable offer.
Posted by: jwbrent | July 14, 2009 at 10:09 PM
Buss didn't fold. Buss called Lamar's bluff. Is Lamar going
to just take a deal for MLE cash & walk away?
Posted by: Long Time Laker Fan | July 14, 2009 at 10:13 PM
Well, that's not good news.
I think I will go to bed and sleep on this.
Posted by: Fatty | July 14, 2009 at 10:14 PM
"I can say this with some confidence, though: LO isn't going to get 5 years and $50 mil, but I can't believe that's their line in the sand."
U so sure abt that? a 5 year CTT starting at 9 mio rounds out to 54 w/10% annual raises - which the lakers can offer him.
do u even follow the nba?
Posted by: mike | July 14, 2009 at 10:15 PM
In this game of chicken, I wonder -- are both sides at their decision point, or have the cars crashed?
Posted by: Craig W. | July 14, 2009 at 10:15 PM
So this is where deals get saved, apologies and conversations. Diplomacy instead of demands. All too often, negotiations become about personalities instead of numbers. This should have been a simple deal. Now it's going to take some extra work.
Posted by: dave m | July 14, 2009 at 10:17 PM
Maybe the Candy Man wants to go play baseball instead? Offending Buss is a huge mistake.
Along with age-of-the-team issues, I can't see the Lakers signing LO to a 5-year deal given that the last deal he had (5 or 6, right?) he didn't play well until the final year and a half of the contract ... and even then only for 20-30% of the games ... (but I do very much want to see LO back on the team as those games he does play well are quite important to overall success).
LO and the Lakers, star-crossed lovers ....
Posted by: kt | July 14, 2009 at 10:17 PM
LO was successful as a Laker because he got less attention than Kobe and Pau from opposing defenses. I only wonder if he be as effective with other teams as he has been as #3 option with the Lakers?
Posted by: FS | July 14, 2009 at 10:19 PM
Are you guys sure it's 3yrs/27 million? Ramona Shelburne of the LA Daily News said LA offered either 4 yrs/36 milllion or 3 yrs/30 million. LO rejected both deals.
If that's accurate, wow. LO must be on a bender or something.
Posted by: Ted | July 14, 2009 at 10:21 PM
There has to have been a Plan B -- since Mitch went public with this yesterday. They began putting the screws on yesterday, then they didn't get a response (apparently) from LO's camp and so now they have gone into more of an "All In" posture.
No (wise) gambler does that unless he sees a window of opportunity. And it is not simply that "we are bluffing to make Lamar put his chips in the pot" (i.e. come back to us with a compromise to get a deal done).
The FO has to have some idea of how they are going to make life work w/o Lamar, or else this is the dumbest move they've made in quite a while.
They have proven over the last 3-4 years that they really don't act impetuously, without some plan in mind. so, I would imagine we will see the other shoe drop in the next 24 hours.
But . . . whatever that might be, we fans may not like it and/or it may take some time to wrap our heads around it.
Next year could be more challenging than we thought, trying to integrate 2 (or 3) new pieces into the triangle.
Posted by: t_sensei | July 14, 2009 at 10:21 PM
Lamar is a fool.
Lakers offer to Odom was either three years and $30 million or four years and $36 million. Odom rejected both.
He rejected both those offers?!? How much does he want?!
Posted by: cinz | July 14, 2009 at 10:22 PM
This is the right move by the Lakers organization. Three years and $28 million for a guy who averaged a hair over 9 points a game when coming off the bench (a role he will be back to next season with a healthy Andrew Bynum) is actually an absurdly generous offer. As proof, consider:
1. Nobody else in the league has offered LO this kind of money; and
2. The seasoned Jerry Buss is pissed that Team Odom hasn't recognized the generosity and pulled the offer.
Buss was ready to overpay for this BENCH PLAYER, but he isn't willing to overpay to the tune of 5 years. LO is not a starter on this team, and his value to the team will decline as the starters improve over last season. In fact, LO wasn't all that valuable last year when coming off the bench. His value was in stepping in when Drew went down. You can't justify $20 million (with taxes) to buy more insurance against Bynum going down again.
Kobe could have opted out and gotten more money; Artest could have signed elsewhere for more money; and Shannon Brown could have gotten more money with another team. Each of those players will make less money next year than they could have, but they understood the value of winning and playing in LA.
For all his talk of wanting to "be a champion" and taking less money to stay home, LO has proven himself to be as inconsistent in the offseason as he is in the regular season. I'm sure Ron Ron will be happy to autograph next year's championship season DVD for LO in 12 months....
Posted by: Andrew Bernard | July 14, 2009 at 10:23 PM
What about a S&T with the Bulls? Lamar for Hinrich
Posted by: cinz | July 14, 2009 at 10:23 PM
so let me get this straight?!?!
LO just passed up 9MIL at 3 years for 4-5 years at midlevel???
am i missing something here?? at the end of 3 years lamar will be 33 and probably still be good for another midlevel deal.
i dont blame buss. eventually you gotta stand your ground and not let him suck you for every penny.
now the balls back in lamars court... give up the ring and get less elsewhere or come begging buss back and pray the 9MIL will still be on the table.
DUMBA$$$$$$!!!!!
Posted by: yellofever | July 14, 2009 at 10:26 PM
At these numbers, popular opinion is swinging against LO. Time isn't on his side. Especially as attitudes harden. When it all falls apart, the Lakers's options are better than Lamar's. He should have gone to Vegas and the WSOP instead of Farmar. Is it guts or stupidity? It is starting to tilt to the latter.
Posted by: David | July 14, 2009 at 10:28 PM
Interesting times.
Posted by: Otis | July 14, 2009 at 10:28 PM
What is going on here?
Come on people, get this done, throw in a few crates of Hubba Bubba and get on with it. Do you think Kobe's going to last forever? Get it done.
Posted by: Laker Justice | July 14, 2009 at 10:29 PM
hard to believe that Buss turned to be so emotional. He should be a very successful businessman. Usually should be cool, right?
Posted by: abc | July 14, 2009 at 10:31 PM
Man lamar is dumb, he stated time and time again that he would take a paycut in order to be a laker and look at him, money talks. So many athletes are so greeedy like if 3 years 27 million dollars isnt enough for him! This is exactly like the trevor ariza situatiion. Lamar is gonna regret leaving the lakers! The best city, and the best team in the leage, with the greatest basketball player in the world. I dont know what else he wants. Maybe he doesnt like winning champiobships thats probably why he's so inconsistent! Hopefully the lakers can pick up another quality big man that can play behind gasol and bynum because i dont trust bynums weak knees to last a whole season!
Posted by: frank | July 14, 2009 at 10:31 PM
The LO "negotiations" have been like auto-erotic asphyxiation...Lamar and his people are feeling the thrill of the haggle and edginess of how far this can go but in the end, they run the risk of choking to death...Odom can't possibly be serious about playing for the Heat again and his hometown Knicks aren't coming through that door...it could get ugly for both sides a la David Carradine...
Posted by: Mario DiLeo | July 14, 2009 at 10:32 PM
so greedy u cant live off 9 mill a yr when we have people with no jobs fighting to pay their bills with this bad economy. sign and trade sounds good...he isn't gonna sign for the mid level so we at least get something back.
Posted by: eric | July 14, 2009 at 10:33 PM
I just assume that one of the assumptions underlying the discussion here is incorrect: management has a second option to pursue other than Lamar Odom. They wouldn't pull a David Lee on Odom like this if they weren't prepared with a decent fall-back position.
Posted by: Schlieren | July 14, 2009 at 10:34 PM
lamar i hope the lakers give you a good deal that benefit both partys. what ever you do i wish you the best,i just got your jersey lucky#7
Posted by: charles simmons | July 14, 2009 at 10:36 PM
"Buss didn't fold. Buss called Lamar's bluff. Is Lamar going
to just take a deal for MLE cash & walk away?"
If that's what happens, then he's deserves what he gets for being so stupid.
Greed is not good...
Posted by: jwbrent | July 14, 2009 at 10:37 PM
Odumb was overpaid for 5 straight seasons and can't get now a deal that pays him probably more than what he's really worth it.
LAME
don't let the door hit you on the way out
Posted by: betttsss | July 14, 2009 at 10:37 PM
Why do so many fans think only players can be greedy?
this is WAY WAY WAY more a case of Buss being greedy. He made 15-25 million off of the playoffs this year(2 million just per home game) along with the 4.5 million from draft picks. He lost Ariza and picked up Artest (net loss of 2 million from last season on that).
You guys are getting played thinking Odom is being greedy. Also, you guy are being ridiculous thinking Odom isn't holding the cards. There is no way the lakers would have won this year without Odom and the second Bynum has troubles (if) this year they'll be in bad shape. Whose going to match up vs Richard Jefferson? there are ton of these questions to be asked.
I just wish the media did a better job finding out how easy it would be for the Lakers to give Odom 10 per
Posted by: BobbieT | July 14, 2009 at 10:38 PM
According to the LA Daily News:
"After raising their offer to Odom to either $30 million for three seasons or $36 million for four years - his choice - the Lakers have pulled their offer from the table after the versatile forward declined each."
Posted by: Charles | July 14, 2009 at 10:38 PM
Odom is a moron. If he was so concerned about not getting 5 years he should have negotiated for 8 mil for 5 years of 40 mil. Lakers might have given that to him. but noooo.... he is talking to Dallas or Miami for a 34 mil 5 year contract? I always knew he was dumb when he made all those bad decisions on the court but I didnt know he was so dumb that he couldnt recognize whats good for him. Lakers will still be the team to beat with Artest. If Lakers offer 8 mil to David Lee who averages 15 and 10, that would more then suppliment Odom. Mitch, move on and go for Lee. He is younger, more consistent and more important of all smarter.
Posted by: lifan23 | July 14, 2009 at 10:40 PM
Also, 9 mil/year for the 6th man is a ton of do-re-mi. He'd be highest paid bench player. I'm fine w/ letting him go as long as there's someone else coming back to replace him.
Posted by: Fish Guy | July 14, 2009 at 10:48 PM
lamar, you're a f'ing greedy b**ch. u are not worth $10M per yr for 5 yrs u dumbass! dr. buss good for you, u gave lamar legit generous offers. lakers repeat in 2010 with or without you lamar. 'nuff said.
Posted by: Charles Alikin | July 14, 2009 at 10:51 PM