Billups' deal poses problems for Heat, others

Wolves point guard Chauncey Billups had the Heat, not the Pistons, ranked higher on his free-agent wish list when the negotiating period began July 1st. So why has he already agreed to a contract with the Pistons?

The Heat had interest, but dragged their feet. Billups was anxious to get a deal done as soon as possible, and the Pistons obliged.

"I have the philosophy that you have to strike early, even if it's a big field," Pistons GM Joe Dumars told the Sun Sentinel. "It was a limited field this year. We felt, 'You know what? We better jump on this guy immediately, not wait.'"

With Billups to formally commit July 17, it reduces the Heat's (and everyone else's for that matter) top-tier free-agent options to Travis Best, Jeff McInnis and incumbent starter Rod Strickland. The Warriors, Clippers, Nuggets, T-Wolves, Wizards, Knicks, Magic, Nets and Pacers are all in the market for a solid point guard this summer.

The second tier of point guards includes Jacque Vaughn, Tim Hardaway, Chris Childs, Mookie Blaylock, Greg Anthony, Troy Hudson, Damon Jones and Rafer Alston.

Billups no longer available
Ira Winderman / South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Heat still dragging feet on deal for a guard
Israel Gutierrez / Palm Beach Post
Baron Davis, Hornets still in stand-off

Hornets point guard Baron Davis has a six-year, $84 million contract extension sitting in front of him, waiting to be signed. He plays on a team that has as good a shot as any of winning the Eastern Conference next year. His team, which played before an empty home arena last season, is moving to New Orleans, where the excitement (at least initially) should surpass anything Davis has ever experienced.

So what, exactly, is the problem?

"He'd like to weigh all his options," agent Jerome Stanley told the New Orleans Times Picayune. "That's what he's interested in. . . This is the second place he's played in his NBA career. He's interested in exploring his options."

Stanley and Bob Bass, the Hornets' executive vice president of basketball operations, spoke Monday, according to Bass, and have spoken several times since the team offered Davis the deal last Monday.

Davis has been pushing for a trade to the West Coast, preferably to the Clippers, so he can be closer to his ailing grandmother. While Staley has come out an publicly demanded that the Hornets trade Davis, he's come as close as you can get.

"It's pretty obvious what he [Stanley] is saying," Bass said Tuesday evening, "but he's under contract to the New Orleans Hornets, and we have no intention of trading him."

If Davis refuses to sign an extension he'll become a restricted free agent next summer. Given that the Hornets have shown their willing to pay him the max, they would, in alll likelihood, match any offer sheet tendered to Davis. That means, if Davis really wants to bolt New Orleans, he'll have to wait until the summer of 2004 when he becomes an unrestricted free agent.

If the stalemate continues, Staley said Davis won't hold out. "Whatever team holds Baron's rights for this season, he will play for and will play up to the maximum of his abilities," Stanley said. "He'll play wherever the contract is. Last year it was in Charlotte. This season it's in New Orleans."


Davis weighing options
Jimmy Smith and John Reid / New Orleans Times-Picayune
Where are Chris Wilcox, and Melvin Ely?

Clippers GM Elgin Baylor faced the media Monday, and with a straight face claimed that Chris Wilcox and Melvin Ely were the Clippers' guys all along, despite numerous reports, including one from inside the Cavs' war room, that suggested that the Clippers botched the draft while trying to finalize a deal with the Cavs for Andre Miller.

While Baylor claims that Wilcox and Ely will stick with the Clipps, their just released summer league roster begs to differ. Both Wilcox and Ely were left off.

Of the 28 first-round picks taken in this year's draft, Wilcox and Ely were the only available players who aren't playing in the summer league. Three players, Yao Ming, Nene Hilario and Nenad Kristic, also aren't playing but that is due to international commitments or contract problems in Hilario's instance.



Summer League Update

The L.A. Summer Pro League and the Orlando Pro Summer League (I like how they really shook up those names) were both underway Monday.

Kareem Rush rebounded from a shaky debut to score 23 points on 10 of 18 shooting. Mark Madsen added 14 points and nine boards but the Lakers fell to the Mavs, 75-72. Undrafted rookie Lynn Greer had 18 points for the Mavs and veterans Jaren Jackson and Tariq Abdul-Wahad added 19 points and 16 points and 11 rebounds, respectively.

Over at the Orlando Pro Summer League, Ronald Murray, Rasual Butler and Mehmet Okur showed that second-round picks can play.

Rodney White led all scorers with 21 points, as Detroit defeated New Orleans, 76-61, in the opening game. Turkish big man Mehmet Okur recorded 15 points and a game-high eight rebounds for the Pistons. Jerome Moiso led the way for the Hornets with 19 points.

Rasual Butler poured in 24 points, while Sean Lampley added 19, as Miami defeated Milwaukee, 93-75, in Game 2. Mike James added 18 points for the Heat. Milwaukee's Ronald Murray led all scorers with 29 points on 11 of 20 shooting from the field. Lottery pick Marcus Haslip scored 15 points and Joel Pryzbilla pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds. Caron Butler didn't play because of an injury.

The Magic beat the Pacers in the nightcap, 79-64. Point guard Jeryl Sasser led the way for the Magic with 16 points and seven rebounds. First-round pick Ryan Humphrey added 14 points and six rebounds. The Magic got bad news when Stephen Hunter and Rashard Griffith combined for just twp points, four rebounds and four turnovers. Pacers first-round pick Freddie Jones chipped in 11 points for Indiana.

Check out Insider's Pro Summer League and Orlando Summer Pro League pages for rosters, leaders and box scores.