NBA executives don’t trust Mikhail Prokhorov after Nets sign Kirilenko on cheap

[alh1020]

Dan Feldman
Jul 12, 2013, 3:00 PM EDT

Andrei Kirilenko opted out of a Timberwolves contract that would have paid him $10.2 million next season, and he accepted a contract with the Nets that starts at $3.18 million.

Kirilenko is Russian, as is Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov.

Apparently, NBA executives have connected those facts, and they’re mad, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports:

Within the NBA, there had long been those promising that deals would start popping up involving Prokhorov that made no fiscal sense, theorizing that high-end players could take less within the constraints of the salary cap and still make up the difference in clandestine pacts.

“Brazen,” one Western Conference GM told Yahoo! Sports.”Let’s see if the league has any credibility,” one NBA owner told Yahoo! Sports. “It’s not about stopping it. It’s about punishing them if they’re doing it.”Another Eastern Conference GM: “There should be a probe. How obvious is it?”The telephone calls and text messages kept coming on Thursday night and Friday morning, and the reason was simple: Few trust Prokhorov to honor the NBA’s salary-cap rules and regulations. He made his $15 billion fortune in the wild 1990s in Russia in what he called, “cowboy territory with no sheriff.” Bribes were part of the business culture, and Prokhorov confessed to his part in it.

This strikes me as way too prejudiced.

What was the higher-paying offer Kirilenko rejected as a free agent? Once he opted out, that $10.2 million was no longer on the table. Kirilenko wouldn’t be the first player to misdiagnose the market when deciding on a player option, and the fact that he took a one-year deal with a player option for a second season suggests he wants to try free agency again sooner than later. He also wouldn’t be the first player to join a contender for less than market value.

Nearly everyone agreed Paul Millsap should have gotten more money as a free agent. Millsap and Hawks co-managing partner Michael Gearon Jr. are both American. Did Millsap accept less money as part of an American conspiracy?

Andray Blatche took less money to spite Ted Leonsis, the American owner of the Wizards. Is Blatche anti-American?

Not every signing is a statement on international relations – including Kirilenko’s.

Link to article: Report: NBA executives don’t trust Mikhail Prokhorov after Nets sign Andrei Kirilenko on cheap | ProBasketballTalk

[Rzarector7]

I can see why, definitely shady business going on there.

[MRJONESIII]

Be nice if the league made Minny revisit the trade for AK and Spurs and forced them to make the deal if foul play was involved. And then issued a huge fine!

[joyner]

Originally Posted by MRJONESIII

Be nice if the league made Minny revisit the trade for AK and Spurs and forced them to make the deal if foul play was involved. And then issued a huge fine!

Doubtful that there was any foul play by Minnesota. After AK opted out, they had no control.

[MichaelWi101]

Minny didn't want to do a sign and trade with the Spurs for him, BUT if he had wanted he still could have signed with the Spurs for more than what the Nets gave him.

You know this deal is going to give him a whole lot more after he's done playing

[katyspursfan]

I don't think that there is any way that the NBA lets ANY extra promise be fulfilled.

They are going to be watching this like the Minnesota Joe Smith deal was a weekend picnic.

[Rzarector7]

Originally Posted by katyspursfan

I don't think that there is any way that the NBA lets ANY extra promise be fulfilled.

They are going to be watching this like the Minnesota Joe Smith deal was a weekend picnic.

I hope they get penalized like that too in the end for it!

[grizzly_bexar]

I can understand how they caught the Minnesota Timberwolves, but somehow I don't think the NBA's crack investigative team is up for the challenge piercing a Russian billionaires Financial dealings.

[thesuspence281]

I dont know if theres any way for the NBA to do anything if Kirilenko magically gets like a $7-10m marketing or endorsement deal in russia a year or so after he retires for doing a commercial or something.

[drcantgetright]

Solid player but not a star...NBA cant touch what he does in Russia...NBA is not going to do a thing. Thankfully the league is not loaded with Russian players.

[alh1020]

Originally Posted by MichaelWi101

.....You know this deal is going to give him a whole lot more after he's done playing

That’s why deals like James and Bosh going to Miami, Howard going to Houston, Duncan/Robinson resigning with the Spurs and other questionable deals in the past where players sign for mere pittance of their worth give me pause to wonder, what verbal promises might have been made that are not in print, like “we’ll take care of you later..………”

[Uwe Blab]

Or, here's a crazy thought. What if they threatened AK47's family in Russia if he didn't join the team on the cheap? I may have stumbled onto something here. If you don't hear from me they may have already gotten to me.