| | Associated Press
PORTLAND, Ore. -- Apparently ready to join the Atlanta
Hawks, free agent Greg Anthony has instead signed a multiyear
contract to stay with the Portland Trail Blazers. The team would not disclose terms of the deal Sunday.
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| Anthony |
Anthony, 32, has served as the backup to starting point guard
Damon Stoudamire in Portland the last two seasons. His decision has left the Atlanta Hawks unhappy. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that Anthony reneged on an oral
agreement to sign with the Hawks.
The newspaper said Anthony was to have flown to Atlanta Sunday
to sign a two- or three-year contract and would have been
introduced at a Monday news conference.
"We had an agreement," Hawks General Manager Pete Babcock told
the newspaper. "We arrived at it 12:30 a.m. on Thursday. Greg
wanted to be here, to compete with Jason (Terry) for a starting
job. (Agent David Dunn) called me Saturday and said he wasn't going
through with it."
Asked whether, in his NBA or Major League Baseball experience,
an agent has ever backed away from an oral agreement, team
president Stan Kasten said, "No. Absolutely not."
The Hawks offered Anthony their $2.25 million exception, double
his salary for last season, with a 10 percent raise in 2001-02.
Anthony is a better defender than Stoudamire and his
contributions in relief were instrumental for the Blazers last
season. Coach Mike Dunleavy said after Portland lost to the Lakers
in Game 7 of the Western Conference finals that he wanted Anthony
back with the team.
"We are happy to have Greg back on the Blazers' roster," said
Bob Whitsitt, Portland's team president and general manger. "He's
a strong force for us in the back court and brings success,
leadership and experience to the court and in the locker room."
Last season, Anthony was one of three Blazers to play in all 82
games. He averaged 6.3 points and 2.5 assists in 18.8 minutes. He was second on the team in 3-pointers made with 88. Anthony has averaged 7.4 points and 4.1 assists during his
nine-year career in the NBA.
Anthony's signing leaves four players in Portland who are free
agents: Brian Grant, Stacey Augmon, Antonio Harvey and Gary Grant.
But it appears Brian Grant is headed to the Miami Heat in a
sign-and-trade deal involving Portland, Miami and Cleveland that
could also end with Gary Grant in Cleveland.
Reports indicate Portland will sign Brian Grant to a seven-year,
$90 million deal and send him to Miami. The Heat would ship
forwards Chris Gatling and Clarence Weatherspoon to the Cavaliers,
who would send Shawn Kemp to the Blazers.
Gatling's inclusion in any possible deal means the trade could not
be official until at least Aug. 26. The Heat obtained Gatling from
Denver in June and league rules do not allow a player to be traded
twice within 60 days. | |
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