Uncontested Shots: The Latest on Iverson, Big Baby, Leon Powe, and the Wizards

Another slow few days in the NBA’s off-season resulted in me taking this past Friday off in hopes that there would be something to write about by Tuesday.

As always, here are today’s Uncontested Shots, or should I say, things I was thinking about while reminiscing about the Sun Yue era and it’s premature ending.

LO to stay in LA

I guess it wasn’t really that slow while I was off. The Lakers and Lamar Odom finally came to an agreement that should see Odom finish is career as a Laker (or at least the remaining quality years of it).

According to TrueHoop, Odom’s deal is for a guaranteed $27 million over three years, and $32.8 million should the Lakers exercise the fourth-year option on the deal.

Definitely a win-win for both sides but especially for the Lakers. Keep in mind that Odom’s cap number for last season was around $14 million. His salary was closer to $12.5 million because of a trade kicker in Odom’s contract with the Miami Heat that counted against his final season’s salary.

With Odom now scheduled to make $7.5 million next year, his cap number is just a half a million dollars more than half of what it was last season. Considering the contracts signed by the likes of Hedo Turkoglu, Anderson Varejao, and Charlie Villanueva, the Lakers made out like bandits.

With Odom in the fold, the Lakers have their top five scorers and top four rebounders from last season returning. Their sixth-highest scorer and fifth-highest rebounder, Trevor Ariza, was replaced by a better scorer and rebounder in Ron Artest.

Is there anyone who hasn’t received an offer from Olimpiakos?

The latest big name to be associated with an offer from Greek powerhouse Olimpiakos is Allen Iverson. A Lithuanian based website, Basketworld.lt, is reporting that Iverson was offered two years and $10 million to play in Greece.

I have a hard time believing a single report from a website based in Lithuania with regards to a story about a Greek team and an American player. I have a much harder time believing that Iverson would ever consider finishing his career in Greece.

Iverson just finished playing out a six-year, $71 million contract that he signed with the Philadelphia 76ers. He’s made enough money in basketball and through endorsements that he’d feel the need to uproot his family overseas for $5 million per year.

I really see this Iverson situation playing out in one of two ways. Either Iverson sits out the start of the season and waits for the perfect situation—perhaps a devastating injury to a team’s top-scorer creates an opening. Or Iverson pulls a Latrell Sprewell and disappears quietly into the sunset rather than be insulted by the prospect of coming off the bench or playing for less than he feels he’s worth.

This Week’s Trip Down Memory Lane

It was about five-and-a-half years ago this week when Duke University and the University of North Carolina engaged in one of the best games in the rivalries storied history.

The Blue Devils defeated the Tar Heels 83-81 in overtime. One of the stars of that game was Duke’s then-center Shelden Williams, who had 22 points, 12 rebounds, and five blocks.

Williams counterpart, Sean May, led Carolina with 15 points and 21 rebounds.

May would be the 13th pick in that summer’s draft by the Charlotte Bobcats while Williams would get picked fifth overall in the 2006 draft by the Atlanta Hawks.

On Monday it was announced officially that May was signing with the Sacramento Kings for $884,881 while Williams signed a contract with the Boston Celtics that will pay him $1.306 million. Both will be making about half of what they made as rookies in a last-ditch attempt to save their respective careers.

In fact, it hasn’t been a great summer for any of the players involved in that game who are now in the NBA.

Luol Deng had to sit out the Bulls playoff series with the Celtics because of a stress fracture in his right leg. He also won’t be able to compete for the British national team in their bid to qualify for the 2012 Olympics in London.

J.J. Redick lost in the NBA Finals while Chris Duhon has had to hear all summer long about the Knicks infatuation with Choco Blanco and Ramon Sessions. Rashad McCants is a free agent who hasn’t received any interest it seems from anybody.

Raymond Felton, a restricted free agent, hasn’t received much attention either and he and the Charlotte Bobcats don’t seem at all close on an extension.

Don’t Forget About Leon

While it’s no secret that Celtics restricted free agent Glen “Big Baby” Davis has received little attention on the open market most just assume he’ll end up accepting the qualifying offer from the Celtics and hitting free agency again next summer. But one name we haven’t hear much about is Leon Powe.

Mainly that’s because Powe underwent surgery to repair an ACL that Powe had already torn twice. Powe isn’t expected to be ready to play when the season starts but he presents a great opportunity for a team to sign him on the cheap not just for whatever part of this season he plays but also for 2010-11.

Because Powe was drafted in the second round of the 2007 draft he has only made about $1.2 million in his first two seasons. Factor in agent commissions and Uncle Sam and he’s probably pocketed somewhere in the neighborhood of $400k.

While I would never advise any team to sign an injured player, I’d make an exception with Powe because he’s probably desperate and can be had on the cheap. Why not offer him $1.3 million for next year with a team option for $1.5 million for 2010-11?

If he fully recovers you’ve got a fully serviceable low-post scorer who is content with any role you give him. If he doesn’t then you cut him loose in a year and all it costs you was the $1.3.

The Cavs are reportedly interested but I’m curious what kind of deal they offer considering how desperate Powe might be at this point.

DeShawnstradamus

The alway entertaining DeShawn Stevenson sat down for a story with the Washington Post’s Michael Lee about his rehabilitation from a herniated disk that ended his season early last year.

Lee followed up his story on Monday with some more quotes from Stevenson, including this one:

“If Gilbert (Arenas) is 70 percent, we’re going win a lot of games. If Gilbert is 80 percent, we’re going to be No. 1 in the East. If he’s 100 percent, we might win a championship.”

While I don’t believe that the Wizards have any shot at winning a championship I agree with Stevenson that the Wizards are going to be good. I think they are good enough, that if healthy, they can pass the Hawks for the fourth-best record in the Eastern Conference and pose a mild threat to the top-seeded team in the second round of the Playoffs—especially if that team is Cleveland.

As of right now, here’s how I see the East seeds for the 2010 NBA Playoffs:

1. Orlando
2. Boston
3. Cleveland
4. Washington
5. Toronto
6. Chicago
7. Atlanta
8. Miami

A lot of this is contingent on how the rest of free agency will play out. If Boston retains Big Baby then I move them past Orlando and in to the top spot. If Cleveland can somehow find a way to make one more move then I might be tempted to move them up to two or even one.

Uncontested Shots will run every Tuesday and Friday from now until at least the start of the season. For up to the minute updates on all free agent happenings and random brilliant thoughts and observations follow Andrew Ungvari on Twitter.