Atlanta Hawks: Waiting on J.J. (UPDATE: J.J. expected to accept offer in second meeting)
Assuming he can use an extra $25 million or so, J.J. willl be back. (Bob Rosato/SI)
(UPDATE: A person with knowledge of the process said the Hawks are to meet with J.J. again in L.A. with the expectation that the two sides will work out the details of a contract agreement.)
What’s up, blog people? Shaking off the cobwebs after staying up way too late and obsessively checking the Blackberry for some confirmation that J.J. accepted Atlanta’s maximium contract offer. No official word on that yet but my prediction that there’s no way he (or any other older free agent) leaves that much cash on the table is looking pretty good. I’ll update as the day goes along.
After Rick Sund met with Joe and his agent to extend the offer, the Knicks made their pitch to him. The Heat also are trying to get in the running. The Mavs also want to get an audience with Joe even though they have no cap room.
None of those teams has Atlanta’s $27 million advantage. Sure, J.J. could try to force a sign-and-trade to one of those teams and still get his Bird rights money, but that would require an agreement between the Hawks and the new team. Why go through all of that when a max offer is sitting in front of him?
Also, while the Hawks aren’t a championship-level team, they are better right now than any of the teams with the cap space to offer J.J. the max. Sure, those teams all can get better by making moves, but this is another area where J.J. has what he wants in front of him so why take a chance somewhere else? The Hawks are going to have to get creative to improve the team once J.J. re-signs but they already have a good team.
It seems much of the league was surprised that the Hawks offered the maximum. I couldn’t find anyone who predicted J.J. would re-sign in Atlanta, probably because no one believed ASG would spend the money. NBA.com’s David Aldridge says Sund and his people (who’ve always been big J.J. fans) had to convince the owners to make the investment. Aldridge also amplified what I said in yesterday’s blog about future trading possibilities for J.J.:
“And if the Hawks don’t break through in the East in the next couple of seasons, Johnson will only be 31 in the summer of 2012, and still have a lot of teams interested in his services. You can always trade him, the argument went; someone will rise up in the next few years into contender status, and teams on the rise tend to be more willing to go all-in for a year or two and make a trade for a high-priced player.”
That happens all the time in the NBA. It’s why when Michael Gearon Jr was lamenting that Jermaine O’Neal was overpaid last season, I was thinking that O’Neal still got traded along to Toronto and then later to Miami after the Pacers gave him a big-money deal. This was after he proved to be injury-prone and unable to get them over the top.
Aldridge ended his post with a sentiment I saw expressed by other reporters on Twitter last night: “It no doubt also came up that it’s highly unlikely that the current Atlanta Spirit ownership group will still be in charge of the Hawks in six years. Johnson’s due bill will be someone else’s problem by then.”
If that indeed is part of their rationale, it’s obviously a cynical point of view. From a practical standpoint it’s also risky since no one is lining up to buy sports teams nowadays. More likely, the Hawks figure they can always move J.J. later and start over if things don’t work out. It’s not an unrealistic expectation.
MC
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444 comments Add your comment
ReddJonn68
July 1st, 2010
9:14 pm
Hey Luke why are you making excuses there’sno cryin in B-ball !!!
Simpdawg
July 1st, 2010
10:06 pm
There’s a rumor out on RealGM.com stating the Hawks are shopping forward Marvin Williams, according to a report in the San Francisco Chronicle. Golden State has contacted Atlanta about Williams and the Warriors could call the Rockets if Trevor Ariza and Shane Battier hit the trading block.
Simpdawg
July 1st, 2010
10:10 pm
This is old news. I’m sorry I didn’t read the earlier post. My bad!!!
gohomejoe
July 1st, 2010
11:39 pm
worst idea ever. really…………..??
falco
July 2nd, 2010
12:07 am
I’m still holding out hope for sign and trades on both JJ and chill. Otherwise, we won’t have the money to keep Horford when his deal ends and Chill will leave with nothing in return (Hawks have no money to match offers). I like the idea of getting some more good young pieces and develop our already good young core instead of locking in a second tier all-star to a max contact into his mid 30s. If JJ left, Marvin might even start showing some progress (he is only 24, don’t write him off yet).
love da hawks
July 2nd, 2010
12:22 am
this move puts the hawks in a situation to repeat last year. the problem with that is repeating last year isn’t enough for me to purchase season tickets again. i love the fact that the team improved each year. but the lack of a go to guy in the playoffs scares me away from spending anymore of my dollars. yes that are finally back to competing in the nba but with what expectations. are they only wanting regular season success or do they want to make a solid run. i know it takes time to build a good team but this seems to be a step back vs forward.
dll
July 2nd, 2010
12:44 am
the hawks need a leader with the attitude of get them before the get me. i would love to see them trade bibby and marvin and get sum true role players. look what the bucks did to us in the first round. they had role player. we have (me me me me me) players on our team
cdog
July 2nd, 2010
1:44 am
rondo, i am not angry.its all in fun.i don’t have problems with you.i think you do a tremendous job with you’re blogs.keep up the good works.have blessed late and tommorow.
Tarheel Marv
July 2nd, 2010
1:57 am
DONT GIVE UP MARVIN!!!! Im feeling this is his year. Ive always been a Marvin fan and think he has the talent. Woody has been decreasing his minutes played for the past 2 years thus decreasing his rebounds and ppg. Most people want him traded but not me. There are some people in Atlanta that want you Marvin.
indo501
July 2nd, 2010
2:29 am
I don’t get why the hawks are doing this all our other guys are young, we could still rebuild, this move will guarantee we won’t have a title contender for the next 7 years
Joe
July 2nd, 2010
2:51 am
Why is Joe getting that much cheddar? What is wrong with this ownership, look at what other players are signing for. He is not James, Wade or Bryant. He is not that much of a difference maker. Let him walk and spend the money on a REAL top free agent.
PaulieOldschool
July 2nd, 2010
3:02 am
At this point, all I can hope is that JJ falls on his head and, stunned, turns down the Hawks’ offer. What a horrible set of handcuffs management has put on this team for the next forever number of years. Better they had let this tier II player leave for another city. Damn!
Update: Joe not going anywhere « control+ATL+delete
July 2nd, 2010
3:28 am
[...] done. As Lee Corso would say, “Not so fast my friend.” As Michael Cunningham reports, Joe is expected to take the money off the table, and why wouldn’t he? After all, with ownership of his Bird rights, the Hawks were able to [...]
Notso Fast
July 2nd, 2010
4:57 am
Bad deal. We didn’t get out of the 2nd round with him this year and if we pay him the max then we probably will not be able to add anybody else. With the same team as last year, then we can’t expect any giant steps in performance.
Eric B
July 2nd, 2010
6:49 am
Hawks management is stupid to give JJ that kind of money. Had it not been for Crawford who really put a scare in JJ of losing his starting position, JJ would not have performed up to the level that he did last year. The best the Hawks will ever achieve with this line-up is a quick exit out of the playoffs – 2nd round for the next 6 years.
djtruk
July 2nd, 2010
7:22 am
I can’t believe the hawks are going to pay that much money for a guy who fails to show up especially during playoffs. I hope this is a sign an trade. Can you imagine the fans booing him for non performance this year. We could get two players for that money.
JEWELL ROLLEN
July 2nd, 2010
7:39 am
NO BRAINER JOE…WHAT’S THE HOLD UP? MAN, ARE WE OVERPAYING!!! AND NO ONE IS GOING TO TRADE CP3 FOR MARVIN!!!
keeping it real
July 2nd, 2010
8:18 am
Once again the Hawks do something stupid. What else is new? They let Wilkins go in a trade for freakin’ Danny Manning….now they want us to embrace a total winer and quitter….Joe Johnson will never be a superstar #1 or even #2….he plays with no heart….the Hawks will never challenge for a Championship with him on the roster!!!!
Robert
July 2nd, 2010
8:27 am
JJ doesn’t sell tickets nor is he a fan favorite. When will ownership realize they will not increase revenue until they get a player to carry this team. Not going to happen with JJ.
Iceman
July 2nd, 2010
8:48 am
This is the stupidest thing EVER…$119 million for one guy, six years.
Say goodbye to extending Horford’s contract, and to picking up decent free agents in years to come.
yeah c'mon
July 2nd, 2010
8:53 am
You’ll all eat your words about JJ after this season. He is motivated by $$$ so expect good things this up coming season. Just wait he’ll drop 25 a game during the reg season. The Hawks will breeze through the 1st round of the playoffs and somehow manage a 2nd round upset. Only to be pounded in the Eastern Conf Finals. Hawks Hawks Hawks! Yeah C’mon!
nbahelp
July 2nd, 2010
8:56 am
The Hawks will never win because they make deals like this with JJ. He is not worth even half of the offer. Let his bad attitude go somewhere else and be overpaid. The Hawks management/ownership doesnt know the game and this act is from fear not control.
Peter
July 2nd, 2010
9:01 am
Bad deal for the hawk fans……. forget about a championship as long as JJ is here !
SAD DAY FOR HAWKS FANS !!!!!!!!!!!
Byron J
July 2nd, 2010
9:22 am
Who’s letting JJ rob the bank in Atlanta?? He ought to be arrested for impersonating a Super Star!
Peter
July 2nd, 2010
9:22 am
Hello…………What are we going to do about a center ?
nobody
July 2nd, 2010
9:35 am
http://realgm.com/src_wiretap/4/
CP3 to Portland trade proposal down near the middle. Thats it? Andre Miller, Pryzbilla, Bayliss and a pick? man. thats cheap for a superstar.
KD
July 2nd, 2010
9:45 am
Unbelieveable! I am not hating on Mr. Johnson, bless you, but I have not seen him put this team on his back and carry them. Simply bput, he’s not a beast. I know he’s a great player and everyone in the league know this, but no opposing team fans hates him. Opposing team fans hate ‘beasts’ ie, Kobe, Dwight, Lebron, Wade, etc.
michaelprick
July 2nd, 2010
9:56 am
JJ won’t take this deal. He’s tired of the city and the fans booing him. He’ll go to the Knicks.
Knicks Close In On Signing Stoudemire » New York Sports Bum
July 2nd, 2010
9:58 am
[...] Mike Miller possibly heading to the Lakers, and Joe Johnson seemingly a lock to take the max deal Atlanta is offering, the Knicks options seem to be dwindling. Their hope is that by signing Amare, they can entice [...]
James
July 2nd, 2010
10:09 am
Insane..
Billy Bob
July 2nd, 2010
10:27 am
Not as bad as Hewitt’s, but still not good.
Sara
July 2nd, 2010
10:31 am
What a colossal waste of money on a lazy thug.
kelvin davis
July 2nd, 2010
10:40 am
Yea we are definitely paying Joe Johnson way to much and its not worth it. Yea he’ll get us to the playoffs if he comes back but its not worth it. He needs help in order for this team to win and he doesn’t have it. He looked bad against Orlando because their whole defense focused on him. Its tough for a player to score when he has the whole defense watching him and he has no help. Bibby is terrible, Marvin is terrible, Josh has the same moves every year, and Horford isn’t an every night type of scorer. Jamal is the only one I saw making things happen but its still not enough
SPX
July 2nd, 2010
10:42 am
How I wish someone – ANYONE – would buy the Hawks and the ASG would just GO AWAY!!!!!
ICECOLD
July 2nd, 2010
12:10 pm
the Hawks should give zaza, mike bibby, marvin williams, josh childress and next years first round pick, and that three million dollars we got, for chris paul and aaron grey..
how the hornets will benifit
so they can get a couple of expiring contracts and a decent player in marvin williams and a veteran point guard. then with that first round pick they will get from us they can draft a person to build on, like another point guard.. or they can work out trades wit all those players or keep em and have a decent team.
how the hawks will benefit
the hawks will finally get another superstar with joe johnson and would really be championship contenders. not to mention a point guard who they dont have to guest rather or not if he is going to be good or not.
the hawks will dump all their dead beat players ( except mike bibby, he is still good to me buti you cant have three starting caliber point guards ) and pick up two that will contribute tremendously
and aaron grey is a seven foot center who is use to not starting but can play the position behind al horford.
with chris paul we really shouldnt have a big slow center because he throws a lot of alley oops and josh smith and al horford would be perfect for those.
starting five would be
chris paul
jamal crawford
joe johnson
josh smith
al horford
six man would be
jordan crawford.. get him a lot of playing time so we can trade jamal next year for a starting center or keep him depending on how we do.. and let jamal and joe train jordan crawford so he can be a combination of both of them..
bench would be
1. jeff teague
2. jordan crawford
3. mo evans
4. randolph morris( i dont know pick up a veteran minimum )
5. aaron grey.
and fill the rest with othelo hunter, and mario west
championship!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
( hopeful wishing and thinking out loud )
Bobbito Heat
July 2nd, 2010
12:30 pm
Would a package around Teague and Marvin get CP3 in a Hawks uni?? Need more… How about next years 1st round pick?? If the money doesn’t work… whynot throw in Zaza or the rights to J-Chill?
Everyone of you is hesitant to give up Teague in the deal, but he will have even less playing time to develop if CP3 come to the ATL. Plus, I think he would entice New Orleans to make that deal.
Chris Paul would fit into LD’s point guard led offense, take pressure off JJ, and improve the play of Josh Smith (i.e. Tyson Chandler)…. Oh yeah, I forgot… AND MAKE US A CHAMPIONSHIP CONTENDER!
CP3 Bibby
JJ Jo. Crawford
Ja. Crawford Mo Evans
Smoooooove
Horford (Mid-Level Exception for a Big-man, C or PF)
ASG and Rick, Please make this deal!
atownhawk23
July 2nd, 2010
12:59 pm
actually who cares whose coming in the league. they aint nobody. what they go do. huh. I’m just saying. AND WHY DO Y’ALL DUMB BROADS CARE ABOUT HOW MUCH MONEY JJ IS MAKING ITS NOT COMING OUT OF Y’ALL POCKETS. SHOOT Y’ALL JUST MAD BECAUSE Y’ALL CAN’T EVEN BE MILLIONAIRE. SO WILL Y’ALL JUST SHUT THE HECK UP AND ENJOY THE DARN SHOW OR GO TO SUPPORTING SOME LAME TEAM THATS A WANNA BE ATLANTA HAWKS LIKE THE OKC THUNDER. SHOOT JUST LIKE JJ I COULD CARELESS IF Y’ALL FOLKS DO SUPPORT THE HAWKS BECAUSE THE PHILLIPS ARENAS IS DOING JUST FINE WITHOUT YOU PEOPLE ANYWAY. SO BYE THEN!
BYE BYE BE GONE YOU BANDWAGONS AND HATERS. YOU WANNA KNOW WHOS BEING CHEAP JUST TAKE A LOOK AT YOURSELF FOR ONCE. YOU WANNA KNOW WHAT THINK ABOUT YOU SO CALLED HAWKS FANS. WELL I THINK YOU ALL ARE THE CHEAP ONES OF THIS BUNCH. Y’ALL FOLKS DON’T APPRECIATE NOTHING PEOPLE DO FOR Y’ALL.
BTW THERES NOW BANDWAGONS OR HATERS OR CHEAP IN FAN OR TEAM.
SO GET A LIFE!
nunna!!
July 2nd, 2010
1:04 pm
bobbito!!
u better get bibby out of your mouth,this is teagues time and his year..trust..
he will be fine and if we do get cp3 most likely teague will back him up..if not,teague will start..
———————————————–
icecold!!
i like that trade but we need to keep marvin williams..
this guys upside was hampared by the coach..
when joe was out for 4 or 5 games,marvin averaged 29+ppg,14FT attempts,and shot almost 50% from the field..What drew will do is start an inside out game with the hawks and joes points will go down dramatically,watch and see..
and horford needs to move back to the PF spot..no more playing the 5!!
AND DON’T FORGET,ONLY 3 THINGS WILL HAPPEN WITH JOE JOHNSON..
1.HE’LL SIGN AND PLAY WITH ATLANTA..
2.HE’LL DO A SIGN AND TRADE DEAL WITH THE HAWKS..
3.HE’LL SIGN WITH ANOTHER TEAM..
Mystikal
July 2nd, 2010
2:22 pm
@MC 2 questions: First, it doesn’t matter now but do you think JJ would of scoffed had hawks only offered $105 to $110 mil over 6 years? Was the full max also supposed to send a message that ASG is willing to spend now?
Secondly, ASG said they would spend for a “quality” starting center. Of whom i’ve seen there’s Brendan Haywood, Brad Miller, Jermaine O’neal, and a very aged Shaq. Between there being numerous teams with cap space left and the rarity of the position these guys are going to get a lot of money thrown there way. Are hawks really willing to overpay? Unless they try to hit up Lakers, Clippers, Magic, or one of the other teams with multiple centers?
J from the A
July 2nd, 2010
7:16 pm
Sometimes it can be very disheartening to be a Hawks fan. This is one of those times when it is especially hard … not because of the JJ deal, but because, as a Hawks fan, I will automatically be associated with the most pessimistic biggest bunch of ***** *** whiners known to the sports world.
Now, let’s get JJ wrapped up, see if we can make a couple of other moves to bring in a bit more depth, and most importantly, GO HAWKS!!!
Dashizz357
July 2nd, 2010
7:29 pm
Somewhere Coach Woodson is smiling at this mess!!!!!! LOL 1st it was Jon Koncak & now Joe Johnson…… The Hawks are messing up the league.
Kwijibo
July 2nd, 2010
11:06 pm
I have been following the Hawks since the 70’s and this team has as much promise as any team in the history of the franchise since moving to Atlanta. I am typically let down by the negativity of Atlanta sports fans, so am not surprised at this blog about Ju Ju Joe. The guys scores 20+ points a game, plays excellent defense and doesn’t shoot people at night clubs. Granted, he is not a floor leader or motivator, which prevents him from becoming a player like Kobe, Wade, LeBron or Pierce. Horford can be the guy we need in that role. Locking him up as an anchor for 6 years would be a great thing.
With the Woody thing taken care of and Billy Knight gone, no bad blood still exists to prevent Childress from resigning. He can play 2 or 3 and provides additional energy off the bench. Won’t affect salary cap or luxury tax as he is already counting against the cap as a restricted free agent with a qualifying offer.
So, we need a center for matchups like Dwight Howard. Yep. Sign Shaq for a reasonable amount of money with the pitch to ‘come win a championship’.
Could that group be as good as anyone in the league?
Teague/Bibby/Jamal
Joe/Jamal/Jordan Crawford
Marvin/Chillz/Joe
Josh/Joe Smith/Othello/Horford
Horford/Zaza/Shaq
Frank
July 3rd, 2010
6:14 am
Everybody knew you could beat the Hawks in crunchtime by doubling JJ. The standaround, wait-for-JJ-to-score or perhaps kick to an open 3-shooter, while effective at times, became too easy in the playoffs to defend. This past year, the Hawks’ new wrinkle of adding Jamal Crawford gave them two players who can run that “play”. Too predictable.
Maybe Mr. Drew has some tricks up his sleeve that were all-too-often ignored by the late great Al Woodson on the sideline-he’ll have to to continue the streak of better records.
The fact remains that this young, talented group of millionaires needs to play like men when it counts. The lack of consistent effort in the playoffs was their ultimate undoing, not X’s and O’s. Hopefully the new coach can get them to run through walls together. With the league in upheaval(Lebron moving?, Boston aging, etc.) keeping this team together is not a terrible thing. The only real obstacle is Orlando. We need strong PG play and an offense that keeps people guessing. Defense and talent is already here. If we can’t get a legitimate center(they aren’t plentiful) to move Al to PF, we have to use Boston’s model as a way to overcome Howard’s dominance if we want to make it through the East this year.
We need a Rondo-type distributor/defender to keep the scorers happy. Teague has potential to be that for his teammates, just like Rondo did, if the coach will stand behind him. Look at what happened when CP went down-the Hornets found out they had a pretty great rookie in Collison. Bibby’s injuries were never severe enough to get that kind of look at Teague, but he’s been brilliant at times. Good luck Hawks!
(Also-if they do sign/trade JJ, I assume they’ll get another 2-guard in return, so most of what I said still applies…the business side of it all mystifies me, but I still love the game!)
Unique
July 3rd, 2010
11:17 am
This has to be the most retarded move I’ve seen.. giving a 2nd-rate player a 1st-rate NBA salary. Johnson is a great player but he is not on the same level as a LeBron, Dewayne or Kobe. With salaries like this a lockout is inevitable.