From HoopsHype.com:
Sources tell HoopsHype.com free agent guard Von Wafer signed this afternoon a two-year contract with Olympiakos worth $4.2 million without taxes – approximately $10 million gross. He has an opt-out clause to return to the NBA after the first season.
Wafer, a journeyman who has played with five NBA teams in four years, averaged a career-high 9.8 ppg with the Rockets last season.
Olympiakos signed Lithuanian forward Linas Kleiza earlier in the day for $5 million, also without taxes.
Mike Dunleavy met with Wafer last week, but there was little talk of Wafer actually becoming a Clipper. Wafer will leave the NBA this year and will team up with Clippers 2003 second round draft choice Schortsanitis Sofoklis. Olympiakos reportedly courted Allen Iverson earlier this offseason, but the Wafer signing will effectively end the pursuit. There is a newly imposed limit of 3 american players for each Greek A1 club, and Wafer will serve as the team’s third american. The other two american players are former Atlanta Hawks forward Josh Childress and former Washington State standout Thomas Kelati.
With Olympiakos out of the running for his services, Allen Iverson may seriously begin to consdier lowering his asking price. In return, some general managers may begin considering Iverson as long as the monetary risk decreases. At what dollar amount (if any) does the potential reward of bringing in Iverson outweigh the risk?
16 Responses
I don’t think there is any price low enough to outweigh the risk of bringing in Iverson if you intend to compete for a playoff spot. He has the potential to ruin a team for the entire season and cost a coach his job. He won’t play within a system, he won’t make sacrifices for the good of the team, he won’t listen to a coach. If he’s not happy he’ll be a locker room cancer.
Now, if you have a lower-level team that isn’t trying to compete for the playoffs and you want to sell a few tickets and create the illusion that you’re trying to win, then have at it.
Posted on August 10th, 2009 at 5:44 pm
von wafer wouldve been a good 1-year deal for the clips but now he’s out of the picture so hopefully they can grab sessions without giving up too much before the knicks do
Posted on August 10th, 2009 at 7:11 pm
Too bad the Clippers couldn’t land Wafer. He would have been a nice spark off the bench. I’m still hoping the Clippers can add more wing depth at the SG/SF positions. Rodney Carney or Gerald Green are still out there. Both are athletic and still have potential to grow with our young core. They shouldn’t cost too much. Do something Dunleavy.
Posted on August 10th, 2009 at 11:54 pm
Wafer is the replacement of Kellati who have injury problems and will not be signed.
So there is a free spot for an American, therefore AI or a similar one is still on the table.
D.J. Foster Reply:
August 11th, 2009 at 9:59 am
http://thehoop.blogspot.com/2009/07/olympiakos-announced-thomas-kelati.html
This is where I got my information regarding Kelati- did he injure himself after July 18th? Do you have a link to where it says he’ll be cut? I visited Olympiakos website, and it had a picture of him next to newly signed Von Wafer on their roster page. If you have any links to Kelati getting released, I would really appreciate it if you could post it. Thanks for your contribution!
rod Reply:
August 12th, 2009 at 1:26 am
With Kellati there are three options for Olympiakos: cut him because he didn’t pass his physical, keep him as a fourth American for Euroleague games only (the 3 American rule applies only in the Greek league) or wait for him to get a Polish passport (his wife is from Poland) and play in all competitions. Whatever happens, Wafer’s status will not be affected in any way. And since there was mention of Big Sofo, there are some promising news for Clippers fans: He is in the best shape of his life, having lost 50 pounds and has started very strongly in the Greek national team training camp for the Euro championships. Check out this photo from yesterday’s game against Romania:
http://www.thrylos-fans.net/forum/showthread.php?p=605044
D.J. Foster Reply:
August 12th, 2009 at 12:53 pm
Great stuff- thank you Rod. It will be interesting to see if Olympiakos continues to pursue american born free agents this summer.
Posted on August 11th, 2009 at 12:26 am
Iverson brings excitement. The Clips aren’t winning a championship anyway, so why not take the risk. Detroit screwed up trying to play Stuckey at PG. If he was so good, then the Pistons would have gone further in the playoffs than they did. Stuckey is a 6th man. Don’t judge A.I. by Detroit’s errors. The man can play – and if nothing else, brings energy and excitement to the game.
Posted on August 11th, 2009 at 6:25 am
Knicks will work out Troy Hudson, looks like Sessions might be out of their reach due to cap space for next season.
Posted on August 11th, 2009 at 3:21 pm
the knicks are still in favor because the starting pg role would e a given and te knicks also worked out jason williams but couldnt sign him. maybe the knicks are playing smart ball and trying to make sessions camp lower their offer. hopefully they do sign hudson so the clips could sign sessions for $4/year
bootstrenf Reply:
August 12th, 2009 at 8:24 am
would sessions really sign for 4 mil per?
i would think that he could command more than that….
Posted on August 11th, 2009 at 5:42 pm
Clippers have traded a second-round pick to the Hornets for Rasual Butler.
Posted on August 12th, 2009 at 9:55 am
The butler did it!
Posted on August 12th, 2009 at 10:17 am
I saw BUTLER and thought Caron. Who the hell is Rasual?
Posted on August 12th, 2009 at 10:40 am
G/F for the Hornets it’s a nice pick-up and keeps a hot seat on Thorton. Anyone have more info.
Posted on August 12th, 2009 at 10:42 am
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