CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Practice had long since ended Thursday,
and Charlotte Bobcats forward Emeka Okafor was still on the court,
playing a competitive, rotating one-on-one competition with three
teammates.
Okafor
The first draft pick in franchise history was laughing and
joking as sweat soaked through his jersey. There was little
evidence that just hours earlier Okafor had turned down a contract
offer from the Bobcats, meaning he'll become a restricted free
agent on July 1.
"I definitely want to be here long-term, and the Bobcats want
me to be here long-term," Okafor said after the workout. "It's
just the way things go sometimes. Everyone is in a great mood.
Everybody is cool."
Still, the stalemate was unexpected. In a news conference in
March, Bobcats part-owner
Michael Jordan listed "tying up Okafor"
as one of the top offseason priorities. The day before training
camp began, Okafor said "there's no doubt in my mind we'll get
something done" before the Oct. 31 deadline.
But early Thursday morning, the key cog in the Bobcats' defense
was without a deal.
"Our offer was commensurate with our respect for Emeka as a
basketball player, his overall character and what he brings to the
Charlotte community," Bobcats vice president of basketball
operations Bernie Bickerstaff said. "We both had different ideas
on economic value, but we both agree that neither were insulting."
The 6-foot-10 Okafor will make just over $5.4 million this
season in the final year of his rookie scale contract. The two
sides can't negotiate again until July 1.
And while the Bobcats can match any offer from another team next
summer, the uncertainty of Okafor being in the last year of his
deal weighs upon the Bobcats as they begin the season Friday at
home against Milwaukee.
"I don't think it's going to be a distraction for me, the team
or for Emeka," insisted Bobcats coach Sam Vincent. "He knows what
he has to do."
Bickerstaff and Okafor wouldn't reveal the financial figures of
the Bobcats' proposed deal. Okafor's agent, Jeff Schwartz, did not
return repeated phone messages during the negotiating period.
"The Bobcats made a fair offer," Okafor said.
But it was less than the maximum amount the Bobcats could give
the No. 2 pick in the 2004 draft. In July, Orlando gave Dwight
Howard, the No. 1 pick in that draft, the maximum five-year deal
worth about $85 million.
Okafor's numbers don't match up to Howard's. The former
Connecticut star has averaged 14.5 points and 10.9 rebounds in
three seasons. He's not the offensive threat Howard is, and there
are questions about his durability after he missed all but 26 games
of the 2005-06 season with an ankle injury.
Still, he's the anchor of the Bobcats' defense. The Bobcats lost
seven straight games late last season when he was sidelined with a
calf injury to end their slim playoff hopes.
Okafor, who has 347 blocks in three seasons, is not alone among
the rookie class of 2004 that didn't come to terms. Chicago's Luol
Deng and
Ben Gordon are without new deals, so is Philadelphia's
Andre Iguodala.
In other Bobcats news, forward
Adam Morrison is tentatively scheduled to
undergo surgery on Nov. 10. Morrison is out for the season after
tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee in a
preseason game.
Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press
Source: ESPN.com
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