Peja Anyone?

[.:DaYg0sTyLz:.]

The Toronto Raptors and Peja Stojakovic on Thursday completed a buyout that puts the former All-Star sharpshooter on the open market.

The team did not disclose the financial details of the buyout in announcing it had released Stojakovic, now in his 13th season.
 
Sources close to the situation told ESPN.com that Stojakovic is determined to return to the Western Conference and join a playoff contender once he clears waivers and becomes a free agent, with three teams at the top of his list: Dallas, New Orleans and the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Raptors publicly acknowledged almost immediately after acquiring Stojakovic from New Orleans that a buyout would be considered if no follow-up trade could be swung. But the Raptors, reluctant to take on long-term salary, were unlikely to find a workable trade, with Stojakovic earning $15 million in the final season of an original five-year deal he signed with the Hornets in the summer of 2006.

"We were clear from the beginning that our trade with New Orleans was made with the future in mind, so a buyout or trade of Peja's contract was a likely option," Raptors general manager Bryan Colangelo said in a prepared statement. "Although he did not fit into our plan of developing our young core talent, I'm sure that Peja will add significantly to any veteran team that signs him."


The Mavericks, sources say, are considered the favorite to land Stojakovic. They have minutes to offer at small forward and a well-chronicled need for perimeter shooting. And joining the Mavericks would enable Stojakovic to live within short flying distance of his wife and children, who remained in New Orleans after he was dealt to the Raptors.


Both the Mavericks and the Lakers have a need on the wing thanks to injuries, with Dallas losing Caron Butler to a season-ending knee tear and the Lakers losing newcomer Matt Barnes for two months to a knee injury.

Stojakovic made three All-Star appearances as a member of the Sacramento Kings and sports a career success rate of 40.1 percent from 3-point range. He's been plagued by knee trouble this season and has only appeared in two games for the Raptors, but he did leave an impression on the Mavericks by scoring 17 points in 19 minutes in Dallas on Nov. 15, just days before New Orleans sent the 33-year-old and Jerryd Bayless to Toronto for Jarrett Jack, Marcus Banks and David Andersen.

Stojakovic forfeited roughly $440,000 from a trade bonus in his contract to make the salary-cap math work in the deal that sent him to Toronto.


http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=6041580

[Chamillitary Click]

Go to Miami lol.

[OG Hack Wilson]

go to Dallas peja

[.:DaYg0sTyLz:.]

go to Dallas peja

Thats where I could see him signing the most.

[OG Hack Wilson]

go to Dallas peja

Thats where I could see him signing the most.

he'd be a great fit on that bench too

[.:DaYg0sTyLz:.]

go to Dallas peja

Thats where I could see him signing the most.

he'd be a great fit on that bench too

Well that was fuckin fast...


The Dallas Mavericks have quickly received a verbal commitment from the just-released Peja Stojakovic that he intends to sign with Dallas upon clearing waivers, according to sources close to the situation.

Sources told ESPN.com that the Mavericks, meanwhile, are closing in on a separate trade with Toronto -- sending little-used center Alexis Ajinca to Toronto -- to create a roster spot for Stojakovic without having to let newcomer Sasha Pavlovic go. A trade call with the league office to secure final approval was scheduled for Thursday night.

The Raptors formally waived Stojakovic on Thursday afternoon after completing a buyout of the 33-year-old's $15 million expiring contract.
 
Sources told ESPN.com that the Mavericks secured permission from Toronto last week to speak to Stojakovic's agent, David Bauman, to see if the former All-Star sharpshooter would have interest in playing in Dallas after his eventual buyout, which had been anticipated since November when Raptors president Bryan Colangelo immediately raised the possibility of letting Stojakovic go after acquiring him from New Orleans in a Nov. 20 deal that landed Jarrett Jack and Marcus Banks with New Orleans.

"We were clear from the beginning that our trade with New Orleans was made with the future in mind, so a buyout or trade of Peja's contract was a likely option," Colangelo said Thursday in a statement. "Although he did not fit into our plan of developing our young core talent, I'm sure that Peja will add significantly to any veteran team that signs him."

Ajinca, meanwhile, will be dealt to the Raptors along with cash considerations and a 2013 second-round pick that Toronto had sent to Dallas in last year's draft. In return, Dallas will receive the rights to 2007 second-round pick Georgios Printezis (who plays in Spain and is no longer considered an NBA prospect) and create a salary-cap exception equal to Ajinca's $1.5 million salary.

The Mavericks have been shopping Ajinca almost from the moment he arrived last summer as a throw-in to make the salary-cap math work in Dallas' deal with Charlotte for center Tyson Chandler. Although the Mavs like Ajinca's shooting touch for a big man, they have three centers ahead of him -- Chandler, Brendan Haywood and Ian Mahinmi -- and had promised Ajinca's agent (Dallas-based Bouna Ndiaye) months ago that they would try to find a new home for him. The Raptors, sources said, have been tracking Ajinca for some time.

Still looking for small forwards after Caron Butler's season-ending knee injury and impressed by Pavlovic's performance Wednesday night as a surprise starter with 11 points in a win over the Lakers on the last day of his 10-day contract, Dallas had to move Ajinca immediately to ensure that it had the roster room to keep Pavlovic to pursue Stojakovic. Pavlovic was signed Thursday to a second 10-day deal and will have to be signed for the remainder of the season or let go when the 10-day expires.

ESPN.com reported earlier Thursday that Stojakovic is determined to return to the Western Conference and join a playoff contender once he clears waivers in 48 hours and becomes a free agent, with the Mavericks at the top of his list along with the Los Angeles Lakers and a potential return to New Orleans.

But Dallas was always Stojakovic's preference, according to sources close to the veteran swingman, since the Mavericks have minutes to offer at small forward in the wake of Butler's injury and given their well-chronicled need for weak-side shooting to flank franchise forward Dirk Nowitzki. Playing in Dallas will also enable Stojakovic to live within short flying distance of his wife and children, who remained in New Orleans after he was dealt to the Raptors.

Yet it remains to be seen how much Stojakovic will be able to contribute immediately after missing the past 26 games with a sore left knee.

The 33-year-old appeared in only two games with Toronto after the Nov. 20 trade, but Stojakovic did leave an impression on the Mavericks by scoring 17 points in 19 minutes in Dallas on Nov. 15, just days before New Orleans sent the Stojakovic and Jerryd Bayless to Toronto for Jack, Banks and David Andersen.

Stojakovic made three All-Star appearances as a member of the Sacramento Kings and sports a career success rate of 40.1 percent from 3-point range. He forfeited roughly $440,000 from a trade bonus in his contract to make the salary-cap math work in the original deal that sent him to Toronto.

Ajinca, 22, averaged 2.9 points, 1.7 rebounds and 7.5 minutes in 10 games for the Mavericks. The 7-foot-2 center was selected No. 20 overall by Charlotte in the first round of the 2008 draft.

http://sports.espn.go.com/dallas/nba/news/story?id=6041580

[OG Hack Wilson]

good pickup for the Mavs


man i cant wait for the playoffs to unfold...lets hope the Spurs are that #1 seed

[.:DaYg0sTyLz:.]

good pickup for the Mavs


man i cant wait for the playoffs to unfold...lets hope the Spurs are that #1 seed

Yeah, we have a brutal 9 game road trip coming up. But should be ok. Its just a matter of staying healthy.

Btw...I find it funny how the last two years, when we had tons of injuries all season (Dunca, Manu, Parker...etc)...everyone wanted to call the Spurs "old". Now that we are healthy, and teams who are older than us like the Mavs and Lakers have some injuries (mostly the Mavs)...no one calls them "old". They just call them injured lol. The media hates that the same Spurs team (with very few changes to their lineup) are the best team in the league now that they are finally healthy.

Right now Id say the Spurs and Celtics are definitely the two best teams in the league. But there's a long way to go. The Mavs will pick it back up, the Heat will still get better, etc.