| | ESPN.com news services
MINNEAPOLIS -- NBA commissioner David Stern called it a
"shocking" case of fraud. Minnesota Timberwolves owner Glen
Taylor claims that isn't the whole story.
An emotional Taylor, speaking at halftime of an exhibition game
Thursday night, said unusual circumstances led him to sign a secret
agreement with forward Joe Smith, though he would not say what they
were.
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| Smith |
Taylor apologized to Minnesotans for the contract that led to
the team losing its next five first-round draft picks, and he took
full responsibility for the deal with Smith, though vice president
Kevin McHale and coach Flip Saunders normally would be in charge of
basketball decisions.
"It would only happen under unusual circumstances," Taylor
said. "It happened under unusual circumstances."
Although Taylor took full responsibility, the Saint Paul Pioneer
Press reported Friday that Smith signed the secret deal in front of
McHale, according to a signed copy of NBA arbitrator Kenneth Dam's
report the newspaper obtained.
"Based on what I heard and observed, I conclude that Smith
certainly knew that he was signing something having to do with his
status as a player, especially in view of the fact that he signed
in the presence of his agent and the VP-Operations of the
Timberwolves," wrote Dam, according to the newspaper.
McHale is not named in the report, but he is the Timberwolves'
vice president of operations. Smith testified in the arbitration
hearing, but Dam did not indicate how he determined it to be
"fact" that McHale was present. A former University of Minnesota
and Boston Celtics star from Hibbing, Minn., McHale could be suspended for
his involvement.
McHale, who previously said he was unaware of a written deal,
told the newspaper Thursday that section of the report was "not
accurate."
An unsympathetic Stern stripped the Wolves of the five draft
picks and fined them $3.5 million Wednesday and was harsh in his
criticism of the Timberwolves on Thursday.
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Ordinary Joe
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The Timberwolves are paying a hefty price for a rather average player. Joe Smith made only nine starts for Minnesota last season and did not rank near the top of any major category. Even more alarming: his PPG has fallen every year since his second season, from 18.7 in 1996-97 to 9.9 last year.
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NBA Rank
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PPG
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9.9*
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100th
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RPG
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6.2
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59th
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BPG
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1.1
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35th
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* Ranked 5th on T-Wolves
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"The fact is, we gave this a lot more thought than the parties
in the Minnesota franchise who risked their future by engaging in
one of the most far-reaching frauds we've seen," Stern said.
"This was a fraud of major proportions. There were no fewer
than five undisclosed contracts tucked away, hoping they'd never
see the light of day. This is fraud that ripped to the heart of the
(collective bargaining) compact. The magnitude of this stuff is
shocking."
Stern's punishment of the Wolves could include one-year
suspensions for Taylor and anyone in the organization who took part
in the deal.
The commissioner said he hoped to schedule hearings within the
next two weeks with Taylor and other Timberwolves officials,
possibly including McHale and Saunders, to determine whether they
will be suspended.
Stern denied making examples of the Timberwolves for
under-the-table deals that supposedly are common, but Taylor said
he thought that was the impetus for the severity of the NBA's
punishment.
"Obviously, if the commissioner thought we were the first
people to do this, he wouldn't have done what he did," Taylor
said. "The commissioner must think there's a greater problem here,
and this is one way to send the message out."
Taylor also said that he did not understand he was breaking
rules of the collective bargaining agreement.
"There are always reasons things happen, though they aren't
obvious right now," he said. "If I really thought what we had
done was against the rules, it would not have happened. I don't
want to give you excuses. Things happen. They're not always as
simple as they seem."
The NBA said the fine was the stiffest ever imposed by the
league on any franchise, player or other individual and the maximum
allowed. Spokesman Brian McIntyre also said he could not recall any
team being stripped of multiple draft choices.
It's the loss of draft choices that is particularly damaging to
a franchise that will be at or near the top of the salary cap as
long as it is carrying forward Kevin Garnett's $126 million
contract through 2004. Without draft picks or the ability to pursue
high-priced free agents, management will have little room to
improve the roster around Garnett.
"We'll still want to field good teams," Taylor said. "It'll
be harder, more difficult. We always recognized we were in a small
market and it would always be more difficult to attract good
players. We'll have to be lucky. I understand that."
Dam ruled Monday that the Timberwolves signed a secret agreement
with Smith in January 1999 that was worth as much as $86 million
over seven years. Stern voided Smith's current $2.5 million
contract and his past two contracts with the Timberwolves,
preventing Smith from signing a lucrative contract with them after
this season.
Though Smith has said he would like to re-sign with the
Timberwolves, NBA deputy commissioner Russ Granik said the
arbitrator's ruling also would allow Stern to void a contract if
Smith re-signed. | |
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AUDIO/VIDEO
 Timberwolves head coach Flip Saunders says the NBA has no control over how his team attains players.
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 NBA commissioner David Stern comments the harsh sanctions he imposed on the Minnesota Timberwolves.
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ESPN's David Aldridge talks with Trey Wingo about the Joe Smith ruling on SportsCenter.
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T-Wolves analyst Trent Tucker answers on how the league found out about the secret deal with Joe Smith.
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T-Wolves analyst Trent Tucker assesses the damage Stern's punishment will have on the franchise.
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Dan Barreiro of the Minnesota Star Tribune on the severity of the T-Wolves punishment.
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Dan Barreiro of the Minnesota Star Tribune explains the situation between Kevin McHale and Eric Fleisher.
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Tony Kornheiser rants on the T-Wolves situation concerning Joe Smith's secret deal.
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