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Thursday, October 30, 2003
Sayson: Greed’s $9M price
By Homer Sayson
Second Overtime
CHICAGO – Of the 13 players in San Antonio’s $52.8 million payroll last season, Stephen Jackson was the 12th highest-paid, taking home a $699,935 paycheck, just a tad more than Mengke Bateer’s lowest salary of $512,453.
The rate he was getting didn’t bother Jackson at all. After scouring the globe looking for his niche in pro hoops, Jackson was elated to be in the US, playing in the planet’s premiere basketball league.
The road to the NBA had been long and winding. When Phoenix did not sign him as its 43rd pick in the ’97 draft, Jackson toiled in the CBA, donning the La Crosse Bobcats colors in ’98. In ’99, he was in Venezuela suiting up for the Marinos de Oriente club. In early 2000, he traveled to the Dominican Republic, playing for San Carlos and Pablo Nuevo, before returning to the CBA to join the Fort Wayne Fury.
Jackson’s patience and hard work bore fruit on Aug. 21, 2000, when the Spurs inked him to a two-year deal worth $1.29 million. The money is chomp change by NBA standards, but Jackson couldn’t be happier. He was finally living a dream.
But all that changed this past summer when Jackson became a free agent. This time he wanted more. Unreasonably more.
Jackson had the stats to demand a decent raise. He started in 58 of 80 regular season games, averaging 11.8 points, 3.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 28.2 minutes of play. During the NBA Finals, he normed 10.3 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.6 assists. Jackson was brilliant in Game 6, scoring 17 points, including three late triples that sank the Nets, 88-77, helping the Spurs win their second title in four years.
Always a classy organization, the Spurs recognized Jackson’s contributions and immediately offered him a three-year extension worth $9 million. The new deal translates into a generous $2.3 million raise in Jackson’ annual salary until the 2006-2007 season. Incredibly, Jackson and his agent Dan Fegan said the offer “was an insult.”
Jack MacCallum of Sports Illustrated (10-27-03) reported that the greedy duo “did not return phone calls or answer e-mails from Spurs general manager R. C. Buford and coach Gregg Popovich.” Jackson waited for richer offers from teams in need of a swingman. It never came. And when the Spurs traded for Hedo Turkoglu and Ron Mercer, Jackson was doomed.
The 6-foot-8, 218-pound Jackson ended up in Atlanta, settling for a two-year deal worth just $2.2 million. His $6.8 million loss ranks among the dumbest blunders in the history of the NBA. It is also a reminder on how greed often defines us as people, on how the desire for more blinds us from our friendships and loyalties, ultimately sinking us in the end.
Although gutless as a streak shooter, Jackson isn’t consistently reliable in the clutch. He is no Reggie Miller, and therefore, was in no position to demand the big bucks reserved for the elite.
Jackson hit 356-of-818 field goals (43.5 percent) and 95-of-297 triples (32 percent) in the regular season. In the NBA Finals, he nailed only 23-of-61 field goals (37.7 percent) and went 10-of-28 (35.7 percent) from three-land.
The scarier parts of Jackson’s resume is his poor shot selection and breakdowns on defense.
Also, his turnover rate (2.2 per game during the regular season) was higher than a bank loan interest. In the Finals, Jackson set a record of 26 turnovers, including seven in a Game 2 Spurs loss.
That said, Jackson was lucky to even get an offer that carried a nearly four-fold increase in salary. But a fractured bank account isn’t the only hurt Jackson will deal with. In the next two years, his new team, the lowly Hawks, will struggle to compete for a playoffs berth while the Spurs will remain within a whiff of the Larry O’Brien trophy.
I’d like to feel sorry for Jackson, but I can’t. While he was busy doing the math, overestimating his value in a fickle market, he conveniently forgot the debt he owed to the Spurs franchise, which gave him the platform to excel in the NBA. He also forgot the bond he forged with Tim Duncan and company, wonderful teammates who carried him through when his confidence was lacking. And by arrogantly refusing to answer the calls and emails of his coach and GM, Jackson forgot his manners.
Jackson’s just 25, and if he hones his shooting, tones downs his turnovers, and becomes a presence on defense, he’ll still end up with a big contract somewhere down the road. What will be harder for him is to undo the strain he caused among his fellow Spurs.
Not only did Jackson burn the bridge that leads to San Antonio. He had charred it beyond repair.
(Questions are welcome at homsay@hotmail.com)
(October 30, 2003 issue)
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