With the lack of big name free agents, the conservative salary cap projections for next year, and the well publicized salary cap cutting for the summer of 2010, this NBA off-season has not been the most exciting. However, one of the more intriguing free agent stories of the summer has been that of the New York Knicks and their restricted free agents David Lee and Nate Robinson.

In any negotiation, it is all about leverage. As an agent you need leverage mostly in the form of a player’s productivity, his overall value to the team and interest from other teams. This off-season’s climate has made Mark Bartelstein and Aaron Goodwin’s (Lee and Robinson’s respective agents), job significantly more difficult. Both players had the most productive season of their careers, with Robinson averaging 17ppg, winning his second dunk title and finishing third in Sixth Man voting, and Lee averaging 16ppg and 11.7rpg and finishing the year with an NBA best 66 double-doubles. Interestingly enough, neither player received an offer sheet from any other NBA team.

With the likes of LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh, etc. hitting the open market next summer, NBA GM’s are simply not willing to offer players long term deals and tie up valuable cap space. Players like Lee and Robinson, who in other circumstances may have cashed in on the free agent market after a productive year, are now being forced into accepting one year deals.

So with no other offers on the table for their players and no acceptable sign-and-trade agreements to be had, both agents were left with few options. It looked as if the Knicks would be able to get away with giving both players one year deals for their “qualifying offer”, $2.6 million for Lee and $2.9 million for Robinson. However, Donnie Walsh signed Lee for $7 million and Robinson for $4 million. Bartlestein himself even seemed surprised and deemed the deals “unprecedented”.  We can only speculate on the nature of the negotiations, but Walsh a 20 year NBA front office veteran, certainly would not have overpaid out of generosity.

While they were unable to secure the long term deals that they hoped for, both agents were able to land their clients one year deals exceeding their qualifying offers, and they will be eligible for the significantly more lucrative free-agent market next year. The Knicks also were able to retain two of their most productive players from last year, who are familiar with the system and will help them stay competitive, without having to cut into next year’s cap space.

Perhaps more importantly, they are also able to retain their two most marketable stars, both of whom are fan favorites and significant sources of revenue. Robinson and Lee’s jerseys were the # 10 and 14 best selling for the 2008-2009 season according to an NBA press release in January. Their marketability certainly must have helped make Mr. Walsh feel a little more generous with the Knicks checkbook. After all, someone has to help sell season tickets before LeBron and/or D-Wade arrive.

• #51 – Lon Babby, Partner, Williams & Connolly
• #49 – Andy Miller, President and Founder ASM Sports
• #48 – Aaron Goodwin, CEO of Goodwin Sports Management
• #45 – Bill Duffy, Founder, BDA Sports
• #44 – Mark Bartelstein, CEO and Founder, Priority Sports
• #38 – Leon Rose and Henry Thomas, Creative Artists Agency

Obviously this list is highly subjective.  I have no problem with the way that the agents are ranked in this grouping.  The only question I have is whether Duffy might deserve a higher spot.  Like him or not, the guy has had a very strong influence on basketball.

This year’s draft class has seen many non-senior talents withdraw themselves from the draft, which has led many analysts to claim that this year’s pool is mediocre at best.  Writers are already frothing at the mouth in anticipation of next year’s class, which is supposed to be extremely deep.  Don’t forget your life preservers!

The most recent players to bow out of this year’s draft are: Tasmin Mitchell (LSU), Nic Wise (Arizona), and Dwayne Collins (Miami).

Here is the most updated list of agent signings that I have:

• Aaron Goodwin – Terrence Williams, Demar DeRozan
• Aaron Mintz (Priority) – Tyrese Rice, Jeff Adrien
• Andre Buck (CAA) – Dionte Christmas
• Andrew Vye (ASM Sports) – A.D. Vassallo
• Andy Miller (ASM Sports) – B.J. Mullens, Daniel Hackett, Eric Maynor, Alonzo Gee, Rudy Mbemba, Robert Vaden
• Arn Tellem – Wayne Ellington, Gerald Henderson, Tyreke Evans
• Austin Walton (Dynasty) – Terrance Woodbury
• Bernie Lee (Lee Basketball Services) – Patrick Beverly, Dmitris Verginis
• Bill Duffy (BDA Sports) – Brandon Jennings, Hasheem Thabeet, Darren Collison, Jordan Hill, Josh Akognon
• Bill Strickland (BEST) – Kevin Rogers, Curtis Jerrells
• Bob McClaren – Josh Carter
• Brad Ames (Priority) – Ben Woodside, Joe Ingles
• Brian Elfus (Elfus & Siegel Management) – Connor Atchley, Marcus Thornton, BJ Raymond, Kyle Spain
• Charles Grantham (Ceruzzi Sports) - Jeff Pendergraph
• Chris Emens (Octagon) – Lee Cummard
• Chris Luchey (CGL Sports) – Eric Devendorf, Dar Tucker
• Dan Fegan (BEST) – Earl Clark, Ricky Rubio
• Dan Tobin (WMG) – K.C. Rivers, Aaron Jackson, James Johnson
• David Bauman (DB Hoops Management) – Josh Heytvelt
• David Falk – Toney Douglas, Alade Aminu
• Doug Neustadt (The Neustadt Group) – Jerel McNeal
• Eric Fleisher – Chris Johnson
• Happy Walters (Immortal Sports) – DeJuan Blair, Kevin Rogers, Curtis Jerrells, Tasheed Carr, Tyrell Biggs, Robert Dozier
• Herb Rudoy (Interperformances) – Stefon Jackson
• Jamie Knox (Strategic Sports Management) – Courtney Fells
• Jeff Schwartz (Excel Sports Management) – A.J. Price
• Jeffrey Fried (Peake Management Group) – Ty Lawson
• John Hamilton (Performance Sports Management) – Garrett Temple
• Justin Zanik (ASM Sports) – Sergio Llull
• Keith Glass – Luke Nevill, A.J. Abrams
• Kevin Bradbury (BDA Sports) – Chase Budinger, Jordan Hill, Dominic James
• Lance Young (Octagon) – Lester Hudson, Jack McClinton, Wes Matthews, Sam Young, Stephen Curry, Brandon Costner
• Leon Rose (CAA) – Nando De Colo, Paul Harris, Jonny Flynn
• Mark Bartelstein (Priority) – Jeremy Pargo, Micah Downs, Leo Lyons, DeMarre Carroll, A.J. Abrams
• Marc Fleisher – Brandon Ewing
• Merle Scott – Nate Miles
• Michael Hodges (Rice Sports Management) – David Holston, Lawrence Kinnard, Courtney Pigram
• Michael Siegel (Elfus & Siegel Management) – Ahmad Nivins
• Michael Whitaker (REID Entertainment) – Jermaine Taylor
• Mike Naiditch (Naiditch EntertainmenT) – Joe Krabbenhoft
• Rob Pelinka (Landmark Sports Agency) – James Harden
• Sam Goldfeder (Excel Sports Management) – Blake Griffin, Taylor Griffin
• Sam Porter (Sportstars, Inc.) – Russell Hicks, Tony Gaffney, Marc Egerson, Chavis Holmes, Travis Holmes
• Thad Foucher (WMG) – DaJuan Summers

Have anything to add or information about a change? Email me.

Have anything to add or information about a change? Email me.

Octagon (unsure of primary agent) – Sam Young, Wes Matthews, Brandon Costner, Jack McClinton

Have anything to add or information about a change? Email me.

Draft Express has done a great job of compiling information thus far, and will continue to provide valuable nuggets of knowledge leading up to the 2009 NBA Draft.  I have extracted the confirmed underclassmen and senior agent signings from the web site:

• Andy Miller (ASM Sports) – B.J. Mullens, Daniel Hackett
• Brad Ames (Priority) – Ben Woodside (good write-up on Woodside here)
• Brian Elfus (Elfus & Siegel Management) – Connor Atchley
• Chris Emens (Octagon) – Lee Cummard
• Dan Fegan (BEST) – Earl Clark
• Dan Tobin (WMG) – K.C. Rivers, Aaron Jackson, James Johnson
• David Bauman (DB Hoops Management) – Josh Heytvelt
• Keith Glass – Luke Nevill, A.J. Abrams
• Lance Young (Octagon) – Lester Hudson
• Leon Rose (CAA) – Nando De Colo
• Mark Bartelstein (Priority) – Jeremy Pargo, Micah Downs
• Michael Siegel (Elfus & Siegel Management) – Ahmad Nivins

Right off the bat, it looks like WMG is racking it up again.  Interesting to note that it is Dan Tobin making big moves with the underclassmen instead of Arn Tellem or B.J. Armstrong.  Priority has some nice names, as does Octagon.

In actuality, now that everything is settled, the contracts are more of an indication of the kind of jobs agent Scott Boras and agent Mark Bartelstein did for their clients given the circumstances of the players and teams.

Ramirez’s agent Boras had been lobbying hard for a longer deal and an increase in salary for his client. He wanted around six years and $20-25 million per year. And the Dodgers clearly needed Ramirez throughout free agency after he initiated a resurgence of the team and the city following his trade from Boston. So how did Boras whiff on getting a better deal (and the answer is not the economy)?

While on the other hand, Warner’s agent Bartelstein started off in a difficult position as Warner stated the only other option other than re-signing with Arizona was retirement. But Bartelstein used the media and a trip to the 49ers to leverage a two-year $23 million deal that is more in Warner’s favor.

Boras spent time using his tricks and ploys, chipping away at Los Angeles owners Frank and Jamie McCourt and GM Ned Colletti, but the Dodgers refused to budge. A week after the Dodger’s initial offer of two-years $45 million in the beginning of November, Boras issued the statement, “On behalf of Manny Ramirez, we will, for the first time, begin accepting serious financial offers on Friday.”

Throughout the process, Boras was unable to solicit an offer from another team to pressure the Dodgers and four months later, Ramirez has a $0 increase from the first two-year $45 million offer.

In fact, according to Fox Sports’ Mark Kreigel, the present day value of Ramirez’s deal is actually $1.5 to $3 million less than the original Dodger offer.

At the end of last month, Bartelstein told the media that his client deserved to be paid among the top five quarterbacks in the league. The final deal fell short of that number, which according to Bartelstein is $14.5 million, but he managed to get an increase from the $10 million per year the Cardinals were first willing to pay and Warner still has the luxury of Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin.

Plus, Warner was never going to leave in the first place, already entrenched in Arizona with his family and happy with the situation with the Cardinals. He probably didn’t want to retire either, after having one of his most successful seasons in a few years. The meeting with 49er brass was a smart move to push negotiations along and find a suitable deal for both parties.

Bartelstein didn’t have much to work with, but he still coerced Arizona to up the offer. Everyone has their off days, and this time around, Bartelstein just flat out beat Boras.

In two days, the Arizona Cardinals will take on the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Super Bowl.  Honestly, I don’t care which team wins.  I have no clients on either team, and did not grow up rooting for either of them.  However, I think I’ll be pulling for the Cardinals, because of one player.  That man is Kurt Warner, who has many interesting stories that were not sexy enough to be asked about during Media Day.

Kurt Warner used to bag groceries.  He played in the AFL (which is taking at least a year off) and NFL Europe (which has been absolved) before getting a chance in the NFL with the St. Louis Rams.  He picked Mark Bartelstein of Priority Sports as his agent because Bartelstein’s name was on the top of a list of approved NFLPA agents (last name starts with “B”).  And he has quite a story to tell about how he met his wife:

In a supermarket, Kurtis the stock boy, was busily working when a new voice came over the loud speaker asking for a carry out at register 4.  Kurtis was almost finished, and wanted to get some fresh air, and decided to answer the call.  As he approached the check-out stand a distant smile caught his eye, the new check-out girl was beautiful.  She was an older woman (maybe 26, and he was only 22) and he fell instantly in love.

Later that day, after his shift was over, he waited by the punch clock to find out her name.  She came into the break room, smiled softly at him, took her card and punched out, then left. He looked at her card, BRENDA.  He walked out only to see her start walking up the road.  Next day, he waited outside as she left the supermarket, and offered her a ride home. He looked harmless enough, and she accepted.  When he dropped her off, he asked if maybe he could see her again, outside of work.  She simply said it wasn’t possible.

He pressed and she explained she had two children and she couldn’t afford a baby-sitter, so he offered to pay for the baby-sitter.  Reluctantly she accepted his offer for a date for the following Saturday.  That Saturday night he arrived at her door only to have her tell him that she was unable to go with him.
The baby-sitter had called and canceled.  To which Kurtis simply said, “Well, let’s take the kids with us.”

She tried to explain that taking the children was not an option, but again not taking no for an answer, he pressed. Finally Brenda, brought him inside to meet her children. She had an older daughter who was just as cute as a bug, Kurtis thought, then Brenda brought out her son, in a wheelchair.  He was born a paraplegic with Down Syndrome.

Kurtis asked Brenda, “I still don’t understand why the kids can’t come with us?” Brenda was amazed.  Most men would run away from a woman with two kids, especially if one had disabilities – just like her first husband and father of her children had done.  Kurtis was not ordinary – - – he had a different mind set.

That evening Kurtis and Brenda loaded up the kids, went to dinner and the movies. When her son needed anything Kurtis would take care of him.  When he needed to use the restroom, he picked him up out of his wheelchair, took him and brought him back.  The kids loved Kurtis.  At the end of the evening, Brenda knew this was the man she was going to marry and spend the rest of her life with.

A year later, they were married and Kurtis adopted both of her children.  Since then they have added two more kids.  So what happened to Kurtis the stock boy and Brenda the check-out girl?

Well, Mr. & Mrs. Kurt Warner now live in Arizona , where he is currently employed as the quarterback of the National Football League Arizona Cardinals and his Cardinals are headed for the Super Bowl.  Is this a surprise ending or could you have guessed that he was not an ordinary person.

It should be noted that he also quarterbacked the Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI.

There seem to be some inaccuracies, but the story is still an amazing read.  Kurt met Brenda at a country bar, not a grocery store.  They got married five years after meeting, not one year later.  Brenda’s son was not born with Downs Syndrome, but did have serious physical infirmities after being dropped by his birth father.  All in all, you have a fan in me Mr. Warner.

1. Wasserman Media Group (Arn Tellem, BJ Armstrong, Dan Tobin, Greg Lawrence, Thad Foucher, Bob Myers) – The WMG team had an unprecidented draft.  BJ Armstrong stole the show by representing the #1 overall pick, Derrick Rose.  Because BJ was always mentioned with Rose, many looked over the fact that he is also the primary agent for #14 pick, Anthony Randolph.  Quite a first year for the one-time Chicago Bull.  Arn Tellem did not do too poorly himself.  Danillo Gallinari went higher than many had anticipated during the week.  While Tellem may not be “listed” as the primary agent for many of WMG’s 7 first round picks, you have to believe he had a heavy hand in persuading the players to go Wasserman’s way.  Add to the stable Brook Lopez, Robin Lopez, Maarty Leunen, D.J. Augustin…yeah, this one is easy…Grade = A+
2. Priority Sports (Mark Bartelstein, Aaron Mintz, Brad Ames) – Forget A-Rod vs. Canseco, T.O. vs. the media, and Shawn Chacon vs. the Astros GM.  I want to see Tellem vs. Bartelstein.  If you had to ask me which two names currently dominate the NBPA agent landscape, it would have to be these two fellows.  If your last name starts with a “B”, chances are, Bartelstein represents you.  His company got J.R. Giddons drafted in the first round, way above where I thought he would go.  At the same time, Trent Plaisted slipped a little further than Bartelstein probably hoped he would.  The company definitely jumped for joy when Brandon Rush became a lottery pick.  Overall, Priority had another solid showing.  Grade = A
3. BDA Sports (Billy Duffy, Calvin Andrews, Rade Filipovich) – The biggest news leading up to the NBA Draft had maintained the spotlight for quite some time: O.J. Mayo fired Calvin Andrews and BDA Sports after NCAA violations came to light regarding Mayo’s acceptance of money through a runner for the agency.  In my mind, BDA had to do quite a lot to rebound from that devastating news, which may continue to get worse if further sanctions are placed on the agency.  I do not feel like they ended up very happy.  Besides losing Mayo, James Gist was picked later than expected, but Goran Dragic was taken right about where he was predicted to go.  Overall, 2008 was a disappointing year for a company that used to be right up alongside Priorty.  Grade = C-
4. Excel Sports Management (Jeff Schwartz, Sam Goldfeder) – For a long time, mock drafts had Jerryd Bayless projected as a top-4 pick.  It is not Schwartz’s fault that Bayless slipped as draft day approached; Bayless was probably being hyped a little bit too much beforehand.  Having a lottery pick is always a win for a sports agency, and Excel must be happy that Bayless went in the top 14.  Having two lottery picks is even nicer…Kevin Love is also a client.  The true icing on the cake is that Luc Richard Mbah a Moute was taken at the beginning of the second round.  Mbah a Moute was not even a lock to be picked at all.  Grade = A
5. Montgomery Sports Group (Roger Montgomery) – Not a bad draft for a man who only represented four guys going into last Thursday.  Sonny Weems was taken higher than expected and Darrell Jackson went right about where he was predicted to land…and to a team that desperately needs some help.  I have no criticism for Roger, but until he breaks into the first round, I am unable to give him an A.  Grade = B+
6. Creative Artists Agency (Leon Rose, Andre Buck) – It was looking like CAA was going to be left out of the first round shuffle until the aforementioned O.J. Mayo affair went down.  But even more surprising is that CAA ended up with two lottery picks.  The second is Jason Thompson, who has Andre Buck as his primary advisor.  Who could have predicted that the Rider forward would be selected twelfth overall?  The only thing holding me back from giving CAA an A+ is the slipping of CDR (Chris Douglas-Roberts).  Tenth pick in the second round?  Something went wrong there.  Grade = A-
7. ASM Sports (Andy Miller, Justin Zanik) – Serge Ibaka, Sasha Kaun, Omer Asik, J.J. Hickson, Marreese Speights, Deron Washington, and Richard Hendrix all got drafted.  It seems like ASM has not gotten its due praise because WMG has been taking all of the headlines.  Someone hire a PR expert for this company, ASAP!  Between WMG and ASM, how does anyone else compete?  Sure, James Mays and David Padgett were not selected, but I am sure that they will find a team to play for.  Grade = A+

Anyway, back to the Boston Globe article.  The Celtics may be at risk of losing their big three, and I am not talking about Pierce, Allen, and Garnett.  How about the other big three: Posey, Eddie House, and P.J. Brown, who were all huge pieces of the Celtics puzzle that made their wagon roll over the Lakers?  All three of them are joined by one common factor: they share the same agent.

Mark Bartelstein of Priority Sports may have been the loudest man in the arena on Tuesday night.  Actually, Garnett was pretty loud in the postgame interview, so maybe Bartelstein was second loudest.  Posey, House, and Brown will all be unrestricted free-agents this offseason, and you better believe that Bartelstein will mention the NBA championship in this offseason’s negotiations.

Posey’s girlfriend recently gave birth to a baby girl, Sai Aleke.  Time to get his baby and his baby’s momma some dollar dollar billz yall.