May 20, 2013

NBA Free Agency: Alonzo Gee “Underwhelmed” by Cavs Qualifying Offer

July 5, 2012 by 44 Comments

On the cusp of the NBA free agency period, the Cleveland Cavaliers extended an olive branch to small forward Alonzo Gee, ensuring that the team would have the ability to match any offer he received in order to keep the athletic swingman with the team.

Fox 8′s John Telich reported on Tuesday evening that Gee is “underwhelmed” by the team’s offer — one that he has yet to sign — and is considering not participating in the team’s Summer League program which is set to tip of in Las Vegas later this month.

Gee is one of three Cavaliers to receive a qualifying offer. Power forward Luke Harangody signed his earlier this week while center Semih Erden opted to sign a two-year contract with Turkey’s Anadolu Efes. Since the qualifying offer is a set amount, Gee must have expected the Cavaliers to have already offered a long-term deal prior to allowing the other 29 teams to set a market price. Naturally, this move could backfire in the event a third party offers the small forward a deal that would be too cumbersome to match.

Cavaliers’ general manager Chris Grant recently called re-signing Gee a “prioirty” of this team’s offseason, considering him one of the core members as they rebuild toward contention. Opting to draft a shooting guard and center last month, Gee would seemingly be the team’s starting small forward assuming no notable free agents are added during the duration of the offseason.

[Related: Danny Ferry Wasting No Time Shaking Up Atlanta]

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  • JeBron_Lames

    I’m okay without Gee. Gerald Green is cheaper, Nicolas Batum is better. Take your pick. Don’t waste money on a backup.

  • http://twitter.com/Pelderskelter Patrick Elder

    They’re not getting Nic Batum. Not sure how people don’t get this by now.

  • http://www.facebook.com/beth.nicholas.79 Beth Nicholas

    I like our frugality in free agency. Overspending on middle tier players is the golden ticket to eighth seed for the next five years.

  • On the bench and off the court

    Gee might not even have an nba career if it wasn’t for the cavs, i say he takes whatever they give him and he still has to prove himself. These players are payed to much anyways so i’m kind of biased.

  • on the bench and off the court

    like this page to keep in touch with cavalier and nba news and analysis

    http://www.facebook.com/OfftheBenchBallTalk

  • SoCal Kardiac Kid

    Please. Gee is a fringe player who would never see the court on a decent team.

  • Damage

    For what Batum wanted (is getting), it would be ridiculous to place a bid. Landry Fields just got 3/20. Gee is much better than fields but he’s not worth 6+ mill per year.

  • Harv 21

    “Naturally, this move could backfire in the event a third party offers the small forward a deal that would be too cumbersome to match.”

    Scott, what does this mean? I would think the real risk is that Gee feels the qualifying offer is so low that he actually accepts it in order to be an UFA next year. But if he signs it to test the market, we can match regardless of the size of the qualifying offer. So the amount we offer now is irrelevant; we’re testing the market for him just like he is. If we say we like him and intend to match another team will turn it’s efforts elsewhere, or try to blow us out of the water regardless of our offer size. Or maybe I’m missing your point.

  • Brett

    I dont understand why Gee is so upset by this. Why is it wrong for a team to see how the market shapes, but it is fine when a player does it every single year in every single sport. If any other team gives him 4 million then we will give him 4 million. Dont take it so personally Alonzo.

  • common sense

    Payed “too” much compared to whom? The owners? The hot dog vendors? The CEOs of the companies that advertise during the game broadcasts? The players are entertainers, and you and everyone else here pays to be entertained by them. The market sets their salaries.

  • mike

    Love Irving and Waiters thrilled with Zeller, but who is going to replace the 30 points a game they got from Jamison and Parker,,,not to mention their veteran presence…we cant count on Waiters to fill it up….but I guess as long as we have Harangody,,, we are good….for 27-55
    mike… mlisthe1@yahoo.com

  • Kildawg

    Imagine his fit if the Cavs DIDN’T extend a qualifying offer, which shows that we like the player enough to possibly overspend to retain him. Not extending a qualifying offer is the equivalent of saying ‘goodbye’ or similar phrase.

  • BenRM

    Middling SF unhappy with offer? Cleveland problems.

  • The_Real_Shamrock

    This team can’t afford to not resign Gee. They have carried Gibson for years who has been completely worthless now is not the time for the Cavaliers to become cheap. Besides that look at all of the activity happening in the NBA it’s not like anyone is going to come to Cleveland so they need to retain one of the few bright spots.

  • saggy

    Fields hasn’t been anywhere near consistent but he has already played at a higher level than Gee ever will.

  • http://www.waitingfornextyear.com Craig Lyndall

    The idea is the Cavs could have offered him a real deal instead of the placeholder. If the Cavs and Gee had come to an agreement it is possible that it would be for less than what he’ll get offered in free agency. In that respect it is a risk for the Cavs.

    I tend to think that when you trust some of the dummy GMs out there to set the market price for a guy like Gee you might be asking for trouble. We’ll see. I can’t figure out why Gee would be troubled or underwhelmed at this point though.

  • Bryan

    I am happy to be proven wrong, but I am pretty sure the Cavs HAD to make the qualifying offer to ensure Gee was a restricted free agent. If they had tried instead to negotiate a separate long-term deal and not made the qualifying offer, Gee would have become an unrestricted free agent which would be much worse (even Boozer-esque).

  • porkchopexpress

    The goal shouldn’t be replacing Jamison and Parker’s actual scoring, but getting close while not taking the number of shots and allowing the points that those guys gave up. Jamison generally needed at least 18 shots plus 6 free throws to get 25 points, he also got beat by every power 4 that was either bigger or faster then him on D. Parker probably cost Irving a full assist a game average over the course of the season as he clanked 3 after 3. The point is there are a lot of players you can plug in and not lose as much as a box score would indicate.

  • JeBron_Lames

    Why not?

  • BenRM

    Not if they’re just going to match anyway. They start the bidding low, now.

  • Blue_Guybrush

    I’m with ya on that idea, but unfortunately local taxpayers are indirectly on the hook for their salaries since they are forced, by compulsory taxation/theft, to subsidize the arenas in which they play. These are highly expensive projects which, since the league or teams are not rightly made to bear the costs of on their own, distort the market.

  • Blue_Guybrush

    We shouldn’t overpay for mediocre, undrafted talent that wouldn’t even start on another team. Send Gee back to th Dee (league)!

  • Dan

    The point is, if he get a 5 year $40M offer, Cavs will probably not match that offer because they dont think he is worth it and then we dont have a SF. As opposed to signing him to a contract of $5M a year or something like that to avoid this all together. That’s were the risk is.

  • BenRM

    No one in their right mind would offer Gee that kind of deal. If they do, more power to them.

  • Harv 21

    The proverbial dummy GM will set the market even if we start with our best shot. Maybe Scott meant a negative tone is set that will affect the future player/FO relationship. But this particular player’s market value is uncertain enough that starting low to hedge outweighs a player reacting irrationally. If Gee is really upset (doubtful) he’ll get over it when he gets his first real money, just like Varajao did despite stories he, his brother, etc. were furious at Ferry.

  • steve-o

    By not signing the offer does mean that Gee can’t talk to other teams about potential deals? If that’s the case then he’s just hurting himself by sitting on the sidelines while teams fill up their cap space signing players they actually can negotiate with.

  • Steve

    The Cavs can’t afford to sign a borderline starter for one of the absolute worst teams in the league? What? Gibson’s salary has nothing to do with whether they should keep Gee, and now is the perfect time for the Cavs to go cheap. Find as much cap room as you can and, at some point, you just may be able to sign a real difference maker, and not have to keep hoping your next D-league call up can actually make it.

  • Steve

    Taxpayers vote to build these stadiums. They aren’t forced to subsidize them, they choose to.

  • Steve

    *can’t afford not to sign*

  • Steve

    If Gee was going to be offered 5/40 (or anything close), his agent already knows that, and they wouldn’t be considering the Cavs 1/5 offer.

    Or do you think that Boozer was operating in good faith with Gund, and the Jazz just happened to take a chance that he might be interested in joining them?

  • BrownsFanSF

    Batum just got 4 years/40 and Lin 4 years/30 (and Hibbert a max!). Never underestimate the stupidity of NBA GMs

  • BenRM

    Fair point.

    Hibbert should probably command close to a max deal anyway.
    Batum’s deal is insane.
    Lin’s deal only makes sense if you decide that you are “signing Asia.” You want the marketing more than the player.

  • Harv 21

    as I understand it, Gee signing the RFA qualifying offer means he plays for us at that amount for one year, then becomes a UFA in 20113-2014 season. Not signing it means he can then entertain other teams’ offers, which we have a right to match.

    Just remembered how insanity reigned 20+ years ago when Hot Rod Williams didn’t sign the Cavs qualifying, and Miami went nuts with an offer Embry felt he had to match. Hot Rod instantly became the NBA’s highest paid player and the second-highest paid athlete in any team sport. He made more than freaking Patrick Ewing in his prime. And (imo) he stopped playing as hard after that.

  • bigbaby

    U right

  • bigbaby

    Parker can go to d league

  • The_Real_Shamrock

    I’m not going to understate Gee’s development nor his contributions to the team like you. The guy made tremendous gains during his time as a D-League call up and could definitely have a role on the Cavaliers. No reason he shouldn’t get a decent deal. Nothing outrageous but certainly no low ball deal either.

  • Blue_Guybrush

    This would be true if only the people who voted for the new stadium measures payed the tax on them.ets say a million people vote against a new tax to subsidize a stadium and 1,000,001 vote for. One half of the population is being forced against their will to pay for a product that the other half actually wants or uses. This frees the team/league from paying its own bills and able to inflate player salary with the money extorted from the people not watching as opposed to paying their bills with the money of the people who are using the product, as freely exchanged through ticket sales, merchandising et al.

  • BrownsFanSF

    Hibbert deal is tough for me, on one hand he is a one of the true body banging, paint defending, build your defense around 7 footers left in the league. On the other hand he only puts up 13 and 9 on sub 50% shooting while playing less than 30 a night.

    Personally I wouldn’t give him a max. The Lin point w/ the Asian market makes sense, but the guy has shown he can play a quarter of an NBA season at a reasonably high level (in the most PG friendly offense in history). That contract could end up being Rashard Lewis/Baron Davis bad.

  • BrownsFanSF

    just ask the Warriors, who were ham-strung by their Biendris/Maggette contracts for years. They still haven’t recovered from those deals

  • BrownsFanSF

    Cause he just signed a $45 million monstrosity that made Rashard Lewis go “that dude’s overpaid”

  • Harv 21

    funny

  • Grammar Police

    Methinks you don’t know the meaning of the phrase “extend an olive branch.”

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Max-Forstag/706995181 Max Forstag

    I just don’t get why the Cavs don’t consider Gee a building block. He’s young, athletic, and still refining his game. If he can develop a bit more consistency with his jumper, he could easily be a 15 PPG scorer. Give this guy his money. The fact that we took Waiters is fine in addressing the SG spot, but now that Teletovic signed with Brooklyn, Gee has GOT to be our starting 3.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Max-Forstag/706995181 Max Forstag

    Hmm. Think you’re a little off base there. Just ’cause Alonzo Gee was one of the best players on a weak Cavs squad doesn’t mean he’s a bad player.