Blazers threaten the rest of the NBA [merged]

[Further]

Re: Blazers threaten the rest of the NBA

Posted this at BlazersEdge:
at one of my property lectures an intellectual property attorney introduced me to the concept of worst-case-scenario time travel. Imagine that someone has infringed upon your clients patent and you’ve not taken measures to protect him and you are in front of a jury. If you could go back in time, what would you have done differently so that you could tell it to the jury? Figure out what that is and do it now, beforehand.

The Blazers are setting up a “bad faith” argument. They are laying the foundation for a formal complaint. If this deters suitors for Miles, all the better. Also, since Miles was ruled unfit to play by an impartial doctor and he is still getting his money, it would be hard for him to push a case against PDX because the detriment to PDX would be (IMO) unconscionable. He gets his 9mil, and Blazers are both penalized and unable to use his services when neither had reached any sort of buy-out agreement.

Darius will probably play, and PDX will probably appeal, and may use media articles to demonstrate that GM’s knew of the detriment to PDX and played Darius Miles in bad faith to hurt PDX’s capspace. That whole fiduciary duty thing holds quite a bit of weight, holds you to a higher standard of ethics. If it even smells like bad faith in a fiduciary relationship, it probably won’t go well for the “bad-faith-er” (not a legal term, but it’s more simple than "tortfeasor")

This will probably not be over for a while…

Also, obviously, I don't know all the facts in this case so we'll see what happens. One of the first tenants of law is ""it depends."

This seems pretty spot on to me. The letter has multiple purposes. 1) Lay groundwork for a future lawsuit. 2) Scare other teams away from signing Miles for malicious reasons. 3) Let teams know that if they do sign Miles, they better be willing to let him play.

This may all lead to a suit by Miles, but I would think that does not matter much. Miles is already being paid a healthy sum of 9mil by the Blazers, and this is targeted more at 10 day contracts. So the most that Miles would likely win from any lawsuit is perhaps the total payment of a couple of 10 day contracts. Also, the lawsuit would not be concluded in all likelihood for some time and the Blazers would have gained what they are after already, cap space this offseason.

Seems like a brilliant move to me.

 

[Mediocre Man]

I find it odd that anyone is happy about this. All it does is open Portland up to penalties, law suits against them, loss of draft picks, and a commish that will probably make it even harder for them to do anything. Maybe the refs call a few more fouls, who knows?

Portland has no right to issue a warning to NBA teams. They also have no way to prove another teams intent. Say a team signs Miles and plays him 4 games then waives him because they didn't like his attitude, or because he was late for a shootaround, or whatever. How in the world could the Blazers say anything.


Really, really bad move by the team.

 

[The Sebastian Express]

I find it odd that anyone is happy about this. All it does is open Portland up to penalties, law suits against them, loss of draft picks, and a commish that will probably make it even harder for them to do anything. Maybe the refs call a few more fouls, who knows?

Portland has no right to issue a warning to NBA teams. They also have no way to prove another teams intent. Say a team signs Miles and plays him 4 games then waives him because they didn't like his attitude, or because he was late for a shootaround, or whatever. How in the world could the Blazers say anything.


Really, really bad move by the team.

.. wasn't your initial response was that Miller's letter was awesome?

 

[Trader Ed]

The Blazers could stop it all by signing Miles and not ever playing him the next 2 yearrs.... much cheaper

 

[MrJayremmie]

The Blazers could stop it all by signing Miles and not ever playing him the next 2 yearrs.... much cheaper

Why would he want to sign with the Blazers?

.. wasn't your initial response was that Miller's letter was awesome?

LOL! MM is awesome.

Mediocre Man's 3 posts --

Holy fuck!!!!

That is awesome.

I get the feeling this isn't going to end well.

I find it odd that anyone is happy about this.
...
Really, really bad move by the team.

I like seeing people's thought process.

 

[Nikolokolus]

I find it odd that anyone is happy about this. All it does is open Portland up to penalties, law suits against them, loss of draft picks, and a commish that will probably make it even harder for them to do anything. Maybe the refs call a few more fouls, who knows?

Portland has no right to issue a warning to NBA teams. They also have no way to prove another teams intent. Say a team signs Miles and plays him 4 games then waives him because they didn't like his attitude, or because he was late for a shootaround, or whatever. How in the world could the Blazers say anything.


Really, really bad move by the team.

I initially thought the same thing, but after sleeping on it, it occured to me: What if the Blazers have hard evidence of collusion or conspiracy? A recorded conversation, an inside source, information obtained through an investigator? I'm not saying they have definitive evidence, but if they do then there could be a lot more to this legal posturing than hot air and a bluff.

 

[Boob-No-More]

Re: Blazers threaten the rest of the NBA

It's not about money being paid. The Blazers are paying Miles' remaining salary regardless.

I don't think this is accurate. I believe the Blazers are paying 20% of Miles' salary and insurance is paying the other 80%. At least that was how it worked last season.

But, I agree with the rest of your point. This isn't about the money. Paul Allen can afford to pay it. It's all about cap space and the opportunity it would provide the Blazers to improve their roster - either through a free agent signing, a sign and trade, or a trade involving mismatched salaries.

BNM

 

[1 Eye Jack]

I find it odd that anyone is happy about this. All it does is open Portland up to penalties, law suits against them, loss of draft picks, and a commish that will probably make it even harder for them to do anything. Maybe the refs call a few more fouls, who knows?

Portland has no right to issue a warning to NBA teams. They also have no way to prove another teams intent. Say a team signs Miles and plays him 4 games then waives him because they didn't like his attitude, or because he was late for a shootaround, or whatever. How in the world could the Blazers say anything.


Really, really bad move by the team.

My guess is the Blazers have knowledge that there is a team out there that is going to sign Miles to screw the Blazers. This is a preventitive measure by the Blazers. What owner is going to want to go to court over this especially against the richest owner in sports? Is Miles really worth it, doubtful. I have no doubt that the Blazers have obviously thought this out and realize the ramifications of sending this letter out. I'm guessing they are more than willing to pay Miles in court if he sues the Blazers. Maybe he gets $1-2 million isn't that worth it to the Blazers in order to save their cap space.

 

[MrJayremmie]

I don't think what the Blazers did was wrong. They didn't say don't sign him. They said do not sign him with the intent of just hurting the Blazers.

I'm also sure that this is not just a letter sent out in the heat of the moment, and everyone in the front office including KP and Allen thought it over and sent it out.

We will see if it works.

I think that the rule should be re-worked, and that if an INDEPENDANT Doctor appointed by the League and the Player's Union, with no connection with Portland, says its career ending and playing on it threatens his future quality of life, that we should be able to buy him out (still pay him his money), and that no matter if other teams want to risk his health, it should not effect portland from there on.

 

[Further]

I find it odd that anyone is happy about this. All it does is open Portland up to penalties, law suits against them, loss of draft picks, and a commish that will probably make it even harder for them to do anything. Maybe the refs call a few more fouls, who knows?

Portland has no right to issue a warning to NBA teams. They also have no way to prove another teams intent. Say a team signs Miles and plays him 4 games then waives him because they didn't like his attitude, or because he was late for a shootaround, or whatever. How in the world could the Blazers say anything.


Really, really bad move by the team.

The only possible penalties that I see as actual possibilities are either 1) a team signs him anyway or 2) Miles sues the Blazers. in (1) that would happen anyway, so no big problem. In (2), the Blazers would still get what they were after in cap space, so any loss here would be worth it.

There would be no loss of draft picks since the Blazers are not doing anything illegal by writing this letter. They are just protecting their own interests. You are getting quite nervous here for no good reason.

 

[BoBoBREWSKI]

If Miles's salary comes back on our books, wont it push us into luxury tax territory? I believe the luxury tax $$ is dispersed to all teams that are below the cap, so some teams could financially benefit from us having to pay the luxury tax. Another reason why a team would sign him to a 10 day deal and play him in 2 more games.

Things that make you go hmmmmm.

 

[Mediocre Man]

.. wasn't your initial response was that Miller's letter was awesome?

AWesome in the sense of big is all I meant. I also said I wasn't sure if it was good or bad. I have decided bad, but good for you guys for leaving out text. It's easier to needle somoene that way.

 

[MrJayremmie]

AWesome in the sense of big is all I meant. I also said I wasn't sure if it was good or bad. I have decided bad, but good for you guys for leaving out text. It's easier to needle somoene that way.

It was funny. Just showing the thought process. Nothing negative intended.

 

[BoBoBREWSKI]

AWesome in the sense of big is all I meant. I also said I wasn't sure if it was good or bad. I have decided bad, but good for you guys for leaving out text. It's easier to needle somoene that way.

Lawsuit coming soon!

Love ya MM!

 

[The Sebastian Express]

AWesome in the sense of big is all I meant. I also said I wasn't sure if it was good or bad. I have decided bad, but good for you guys for leaving out text. It's easier to needle somoene that way.

You should have just said big then.

 

[Mediocre Man]

Lawsuit coming soon!

Love ya MM!

LOL exactly.

 

[Further]

So, I doubt that the Blazers would have sent this letter without knowledge that some team was going to sign Miles. So, three questions:

Q1 - What teams are most likely to sign Miles?

Q2 - Do you think that this letter will deter other teams from signing?

Q3 - Do you think that Miles will actually sue?

 

[BoBoBREWSKI]

^^^
1 - None.
2 - Yes.
3 - For sure! Miles's agent hates us.

 

[The_Lillard_King]

Re: Blazers threaten the rest of the NBA

This is getting ridiculous. The real issue here is that the league has created this weird situation in which other teams can hold significant power over the Blazer's salary cap.

That's a problem because the CBA and the cap structure is set up to prevent such gamesmanship. By utterly failing to fix the situation, the league and I'd imagine the player's union has done Darius Miles (a union member) and one of its teams (the Blazers) massive disservice.

That being said, the Blazers are missing the boat and creating more problems in the way they're handling this. If I were Darius Miles' lawyer, I'd be preparing a letter of my own this morning, perhaps more. If I were another team, I'd be that much more irritated with the Blazers.

Nice perspective and insight from a non-Blazer fan.

I agree with a lot of this.

 

[STOMP]

This seems pretty spot on to me. The letter has multiple purposes. 1) Lay groundwork for a future lawsuit. 2) Scare other teams away from signing Miles for malicious reasons. 3) Let teams know that if they do sign Miles, they better be willing to let him play.

This may all lead to a suit by Miles, but I would think that does not matter much. Miles is already being paid a healthy sum of 9mil by the Blazers, and this is targeted more at 10 day contracts. So the most that Miles would likely win from any lawsuit is perhaps the total payment of a couple of 10 day contracts. Also, the lawsuit would not be concluded in all likelihood for some time and the Blazers would have gained what they are after already, cap space this offseason.

Seems like a brilliant move to me.

yup. Portland is strengthening their position for an appeal if Miles goes over the game threshold and is putting teams on notice of a lawsuit if they don't behave honorably. Having watched him play a couple times in the last few months, it's hard to fathom that a team would want him for his actual abilities. He's never been a skills guy or a shooter, he's been an athlete... now he's a plodder.

It's also a public shot across the bow for some real ugly PR for any team that is considering taking him on. Playing him just enough to affect Portland's cap quite likely won't stick, but without question this hypothetical team would face a very hostile fanbase in Portland for years... Raider fan ugly. They'd also have their motives publicly questioned by the courts and their own fans. Methinks D Stern probably would rather the league avoid this sort of PR embarrassment/infighting.

STOMP

 

[The_Lillard_King]

I don't think the Blazers have a chance on this lawsuit . . . outside some kind of secretly obtained Milesgate tapes.

What are the limitations of signing a player? Couldn't you sign a player becuase you think they will add team chemistry, be a leader for the young players, be a teacher for the young players, bring people to the arena.

Now that the Blazers have drawn even more attention to Miles, fans may come to see what he is all about or to support their team because the team was aggresive about sticking it to Ptd. If I'm the player's union, I'm pissed and aggresively responding to this.

This comes across as the Blazer owner being a rich bully who thinks he can threaten other teams with his money and team of attorneys. There has to be at least one other owner who takes this silly position head on and signs Miles. I wonder what Cuban's response to all this is?

 

[hasoos]

It is very simple. Paul Allen has very good lawyers on retainer, and I can guarantee you, that they know what he can and cannot do legally. They also know tactics. Right now a team could pick up Miles and shaft the Blazers for very little financial liability. He is letting them know it will not be so cheap. In fact, Paul Allen has so much money, he can make it very expensive for somebody to do so just because he is pissed off and can tie them up in court long enough to not make it worth their time. That is what happens when you have a lot of money, more money than most folks, even rich ones.

Secondly, the Blazers have a medical report from the NBA to fall back on as proof that it is malicious. He was deemed unfit to play. Ever again. That is pretty straight forward.

 

[The Sebastian Express]

I don't think the Blazers have a chance on this lawsuit . . . outside some kind of secretly obtained Milesgate tapes.

What are the limitations of signing a player? Couldn't you sign a player becuase you think they will add team chemistry, be a leader for the young players, be a teacher for the young players, bring people to the arena.

Now that the Blazers have drawn even more attention to Miles, fans may come to see what he is all about or to support their team because the team was aggresive about sticking it to Ptd. If I'm the player's union, I'm pissed and aggresively responding to this.

This comes across as the Blazer owner being a rich bully who thinks he can threaten other teams with his money and team of attorneys. There has to be at least one other owner who takes this silly position head on and signs Miles. I wonder what Cuban's response to all this is?

I imagine Cuban's response is nothing because there is nothing like gaining even more legal trouble when you're being alleged of insider trading.

 

[e_blazer]

Portland has no right to issue a warning to NBA teams.

What makes you say that? Any person or legal entity has a right to notify a competitor that they intend to protect themselves from malicious business practices by using all legal remedies available to them. It seems to me that all the Blazers have done is to inform other teams that they're not going to take a capricious signing of Miles lightly.

They also have no way to prove another teams intent. Say a team signs Miles and plays him 4 games then waives him because they didn't like his attitude, or because he was late for a shootaround, or whatever. How in the world could the Blazers say anything.

Proving intent is certainly problematic, but I think the purpose of the Blazers' letter is to make certain that everybody's on notice that an obvious attempt by another team to sign Miles to a 10 day contract, play him just a few games, and then dump him just to screw Portland is likely to be met with a court challenge and the need for that team to have to defend themselves...something that has a price tag associated with it.

Just because the Blazers have sent this letter doesn't obligate them to acutally sue just because Miles is signed. They can evaluate the situation, see how much Darius is played, check out whether the team had a need at that position, and see if he is waived after just one 10-day contract or really is used as a part of the team's roster for the remainder of the year. After looking at all of that, they can decide whether they have a case or not. This letter by the Blazers just tells everyone that they're watching closely and that there may be ramifications to messing with Mr. Allen's club.

 

[The_Lillard_King]

I imagine Cuban's response is nothing because there is nothing like gaining even more legal trouble when you're being alleged of insider trading.

There is nothing like handing a rich guy his ass in court . . . and having the rich guy pay for both sides attorney's fees.

Different people resopond to threats in differnt ways and I think there will be a owner out there that will puff up his chest and not back down to Allen's threats.

 

[Mediocre Man]

So, I doubt that the Blazers would have sent this letter without knowledge that some team was going to sign Miles. So, three questions:

Q1 - What teams are most likely to sign Miles? Any team under the cap. They get a 1/4 of a million if we are over the cap

Q2 - Do you think that this letter will deter other teams from signing? No. I would laugh at this letter if I were another team. If I were a lawyer I would be lining up to help Miles sue the team, league and whoever else
Q3 - Do you think that Miles will actually sue?

Hell yes. He should too.

 

[The_Lillard_King]

Miles should sue for not just salray lost this year but for future earnings lost becuase teams are afraid to give him a chance.

If the Blazers really thought they had a good lawsuit, wouldn't they sue Memphis. Memphis is a player in the free agent market this summer, they sign Miles and let the ten game suspension run and then only play him two games.

Why not sue memphis?

 

[Nikolokolus]

There is nothing like handing a rich guy his ass in court . . . and having the rich guy pay for both sides attorney's fees.

Different people resopond to threats in differnt ways and I think there will be a owner out there that will puff up his chest and not back down to Allen's threats.

Do we have to go over this again? That's not how legal fees work in U.S. civil court.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_rule_(legal_term)

 

[e_blazer]

Paul Allen should hire Miles to any non-NBA playing job he wants. How about deck chair manager on Paul's yacht?

 

[AgentDrazenPetrovic]

Miles should sue for not just salray lost this year but for future earnings lost becuase teams are afraid to give him a chance.

If the Blazers really thought they had a good lawsuit, wouldn't they sue Memphis. Memphis is a player in the free agent market this summer, they sign Miles and let the ten game suspension run and then only play him two games.

Why not sue memphis?

Miles is already getting paid for his contract, so your first point is moot.