Clippers C DeAndre Jordan yesterday "backed out of a five-day commitment" to the Mavericks, re-signing with his current team for four years and $87.6M "during one of the wildest days in franchise history," according to Bolch & Turner of the L.A. TIMES. Several Clippers players and execs remained at Jordan's home in Houston until midnight "to stave off any last-minute attempts" by Mavericks Owner Mark Cuban to "persuade Jordan to fulfill his pledge." There "are no formal NBA rules against players backing out of commitments, but it is widely frowned upon because it disrupts plans made by teams throughout the league" (L.A. TIMES, 7/9). YAHOO SPORTS' Adrian Wojnarowski cites sources as saying that a Clippers contingent, which included President of Basketball Operations and coach Doc Rivers, Owner Steve Ballmer, F Blake Griffin, G Chris Paul, F Paul Pierce and G J.J. Redick, "had a short meeting with Jordan" yesterday afternoon, and it "became clear they didn't need to sell him hard on reneging" on his verbal deal with the Mavericks. Sources noted that Jordan "reached out in the past 48 hours to Rivers and expressed uncertainty about his decision to choose" the Mavericks. The meeting in Houston took place "without the presence" of Jordan's agent, Relativity Sports' Dan Fegan (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 7/9). ESPN L.A.'s Ramona Shelburne tweeted, "Heard there was an agent present when DJ signed tonight. It was a representative from his agency, but not Dan Fegan" (TWITTER.com. 7/9).
ACCESS, DENIED: Cuban today shared a CyberDust message that read in part, "There will be a time when I detail everything I know regarding the last 48 hours. I don't think the time is right to say anything beyond the facts that [Jordan] never responded to me at all yesterday. Not once. To this minute I have not heard anything from him since Tuesday night" (THE DAILY). NBA.com's Scott Howard-Cooper reported an attempt to "convince Jordan to stick with his first instinct" and join the Mavericks "never happened, until ... Cuban began to inform his front office the new starting center would not be coming" (NBA.com, 7/8). USA TODAY's Amick & Zillgitt report the Clippers "dealt directly with Jordan to coordinate the meeting, which is notable considering it's not typical protocol." There is "no written NBA rule preventing NBA teams from re-entering conversations with a player who reached an agreement with another team, but it is not common," as there is a "spirit of the law that most teams follow." Former Nets Assistant GM Bobby Marks tweeted, "I understand that LAC is in a tough spot. But DJ committed to DAL over 5 days ago. Pick up the pieces and move on" (USATODAY.com, 7/9).
END OF AN ERA? ESPN DALLAS' Jean-Jacques Taylor wrote the Mavericks "might never recover" from Jordan's decision on an emotional level, and are "in disarray because a 26-year-old free agent changed his mind." The franchise "had a heck of a 15-year run, but it's over." Jordan, who "was supposed to be the link to the future, a piece the Mavs could build around," will instead "forever be known as the man who destroyed the franchise" (ESPNDALLAS.com, 7/8). In Dallas, Eddie Sefko writes this "could be an event that will rank with Roy Tarpley’s drug suspension as the darkest days in franchise history." It "could impact everybody from coach Rick Carlisle to franchise icon Dirk Nowitzki and all in between" (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 7/9). Yahoo Sports' Wojnarowski said Jordan not signing with the Mavs is a "devastating turn of events for them." Wojnarowski: “There’s not a lot left on the market for them to go back into. They have $20 million in cap space and they were left scrambling today to go out and start pursuing other players. ... This really will set that franchise back” (“Fox Sports Live,” FS1, 7/8). In Ft. Worth, Mac Engel writes Jordan "was the Mavs’ entire off-season." Without him, this team "is going to absolutely stink." For his part, Cuban "had a plan, he tried, and it has exploded in his face." Engel: "Even when free agents want to come here they don’t want to be here. And I have no idea why they hate us. ... Cuban wasted Dirk Nowitzki’s final good years" (FT. WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM, 7/9). ESPN DALLAS' Tim MacMahon wrote the best-case scenario for the Mavs next season is to "be as bad as possible" and "tank" (ESPNDALLAS.com, 7/9). ESPN's Jason Whitlock said Cuban "will be arguing" with NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, because the team’s “entire off-season has been ruined and he’s going to want something in return for having gone through this” (“PTI,” ESPN, 7/8).
NOT A GOOD LOOK: In N.Y., Scott Cacciola writes for the Clippers, Jordan’s decision "was a competitive coup -- even if they appeared to engage in behavior that is generally frowned upon" (N.Y. TIMES, 7/9). In L.A., Bill Plaschke writes there "will be much chattering in Dallas -- and among Lakers fans -- about broken promises and bad ethics and lost honor." Plaschke: "Please, people. Jordan never signed anything with the Mavericks. He verbally agreed ... [and] both he and the Mavericks knew that agreement officially meant nothing" (L.A. TIMES, 7/9). In Ft. Worth, Dwain Price writes usually, once a player "verbally commits to a team, other franchises across the league don’t pursue that player any more." However, sources said that since it was Jordan "who first contacted notified the Clippers of his thoughts, the team then figured, why not see what he has to say?" (FT. WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM, 7/9). SI.com's Rob Mahoney writes there was "nothing at all noble about what the Clippers did" (SI.com, 7/9).
RIVERS WITHOUT A PADDLE? FS1's Bill Reiter said of the Clippers' move with Jordan, "It's a terrible look for the Clippers. Like this violates all of the rules, but it’s not a great look for DeAndre either. You're a man of your word in the NBA. It won’t affect him as much as it will the Clippers because this really violates the codes between agents, GM’s and other owners." Reiter: "Good luck, Doc Rivers, making deals going forward.” Rivers has "tarnished his reputation in that league, and that’s non-negotiable, and that won’t change. That's a problem for him going forward." FS1's Ephraim Salaam said, "The front office of the Clippers, now they have a problem because now all of the other owners and GMs are looking like, ‘Hey, do we really want to do business with an organization that can turn their backs on you?’” (“America’s Pregame,” FS1, 7/8). NBA TV's Brevin Knight said of Rivers retaining Jordan, "It takes Doc the GM off of the hot seat, but it puts Doc the coach then back on the hot seat" ("NBA GameTime," NBA TV, 7/9). The Washington Post's Kevin Blackistone said one has to "start to wonder" about Rivers in charge of basketball operations and "not just being a coach" ("Around The Horn," ESPN, 7/8).
UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES: CBSSPORTS.com's Ken Berger writes the NBA's eight-day moratorium, when deals "can be discussed and agreed to but not signed, is silly for a lot of reasons." Still, it is "actually quite beneficial in that it allows players and teams to take a reasonable amount of time to discuss business and conduct it in a mature, adult manner." Jordan "isn't the first free agent to back out of a commitment, but he was certainly the most egregious." The alternative "would be to get rid of the moratorium, but that would only invite more chaos -- with teams pressuring players to sign deals on the spot at 12:01 a.m. ET on July 1." In most cases, players "having time to conduct meetings, weigh their options and make intelligent decisions without being pressured is probably better." If anything, "look for the negotiating period to be shortened." Three to five days "should be enough time" (CBSSPORTS.com, 7/9). The L.A. Times' Plaschke said it is "ridiculous to have these moratoriums” and the “bottom line is he hasn’t signed a contract yet.” Plus, Ballmer "doesn’t really play by the old boy rules" ("Around The Horn," ESPN, 7/8). Marks said Jordan's reversal "shows the danger of the moratorium, which is just too long." Marks: "There are verbal commitments and they usually are firm and go through to completion" (N.Y. POST, 7/9). In Oklahoma City, Berry Tramel writes Silver "has to wonder what his league has begat." Tramel: "Is this what Silver wants? The loss of common civility? The loss of accepting someone’s word?" This saga "is great for newspapers and Twitter and sportstalk radio" but not so much "for league morale." If players and teams "can’t trust each other, it’s anarchy on this week" (OKLAHOMAN, 7/9). ESPN's Mike Wilbon said the NBA "has to do away with the eight-day moratorium. What’s the point of it?" ("SportsCenter," ESPN, 7/8).
