Pargo heads to Russia [merged]

[Mike Shelton]

I was just watching ESPN and at the bottom of the screen this scrolled across. Anyone know anything about this? From what i read he signed a 1yr deal.
mods sorry if this has been posted and no im starting no rumors. I saw it just curious to why he would do this?

[JawsTheme]

Pargo to play in Russia
By Adrian Wojnarowski, Yahoo! Sports
2 hours, 12 minutes ago

BEIJING – New Orleans Hornets free agent guard Jannero Pargo, a valued sixth man, has reached an agreement in principle with Moscow Dynamo on a one-year contract worth about $3.5 million, sources close to the negotiations told Yahoo! Sports.

Some details still needed to be worked out Friday before the contract could be finalized, but sources said there were no hurdles left that should jeopardize the deal.

Once again, an American-born player with options in the NBA has chosen to take a more lucrative offer overseas. Pargo is the second NBA player to sign with Dynamo this summer, joining ex-New Jersey Nets forward Bostjan Nachbar. They'll play for American-born coach, David Blatt, who was hired to take over the team.

Pargo, 28, had developed into a dangerous bench scorer for the Hornets and attracted the interest of several teams, including the San Antonio Spurs and Atlanta Hawks. New Orleans wanted to keep him – and Pargo's preference was to stay – but the Hornets had invested too much available money in free agent James Posey to make a strong enough bid.

The lure of guaranteed money in Russia trumped the most serious bids made by the Spurs and Hawks.

Pargo averaged 8.1 points in 18.7 minutes in the regular season, but played well in the Hornets Western Conference playoff run. He had 30 points in a Western Conference playoff Game 3 against the Dallas Mavericks, and 18 points in Game 7 of the conference semifinals against the Spurs. He averaged more than 10 points a game in the postseason.

[bigt05]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3537498

[JawsTheme]

He turned down a LLE salary with the Spurs and Suns to play [CENSORED] ball overseas.

[Mike Shelton]

wow. cant blame him lol! i will miss seeing him play here in the states though.

[iseeredpeople]

His cost of living in moscow is going to negate whatever difference there was in his salary. 3.5m isn't going to go very far there.

[JawsTheme]

These NBAers like Watson and Childress that have jumped overseas know the team will cover their taxes and cost of living. However they do not realize they are forgoing their skills and respect to play less competitive basketball for the sake of MONEY.

Pargo just wants to make a dime. Shows a lot about him as a person. Money money money.

[HogFaninMemphis]

thanks
I just read the article on ESPN.com.
I understand why he's doing it.  He's getting paid probably 1 or 2m more than he would in America.

[Newcoachplease]

These NBAers like Watson and Childress that have jumped overseas know the team will cover their taxes and cost of living. However they do not realize they are forgoing their skills and respect to play less competitive basketball for the sake of MONEY.

Pargo just wants to make a dime. Shows a lot about him as a person. Money money money.

No different than taking a job at a different firm, store, business, etc... because they will pay you more money! I doubt anyone would pass up a job that was paying 2 million more, hell most would jump for 2k more

[Foshodo]

he's bounced around the NBA year to year on partially guaranteed contracts... give the guy a break for wanting to make some sure money... he brings home 3-4 million this year after taxes and then he can sign back in the NBA next season when hopefully more teams have available roster spots/money... it was said several times that he wanted a 3 year guaranteed deal instead of 3 years renewable at the end of each season option... I hate that i wont be able to watch him play as he was finally getting to showcase his skill in New Orleans but i dont blame him for jumping at more money... forgetting that this is technically his job, perhaps?

[pigz]

These NBAers like Watson and Childress that have jumped overseas know the team will cover their taxes and cost of living. However they do not realize they are forgoing their skills and respect to play less competitive basketball for the sake of MONEY.

Pargo just wants to make a dime. Shows a lot about him as a person. Money money money.

Maybe Pargo just wants to make a living.  You can't play ball forever genius.  FO

[hog_fan]

These NBAers like Watson and Childress that have jumped overseas know the team will cover their taxes and cost of living. However they do not realize they are forgoing their skills and respect to play less competitive basketball for the sake of MONEY.

Pargo just wants to make a dime. Shows a lot about him as a person. Money money money.

You are clueless. All professional players are about the money.

[JoePaul03]

His cost of living in moscow is going to negate whatever difference there was in his salary. 3.5m isn't going to go very far there.

I don't know about this deal in particular, but I know on some of the other Euro deals, in ADDITION to your salary, all your living expenses are covered. The clubs can do this because there's no salary cap in the Euro leagues. I know the deal Childress signed with the team in Greece covered all his living expenses...Almost like he gets a "scholarship" and a paycheck. A really, really large paycheck. So that should cover the "cost of living" difference you  mentioned.

[hair of the hog]

Pargo just wants to make a dime. Shows a lot about him as a person. Money money money.

Wow , I guess it says alot about 90 percent of people in America , we alll want money , we all do what we can to make the most money to take care of ourselves and our family. I say good for him , if the NBA teams want to blow their load on big name players and try and low ball good players like Pargo who do not have the marketing power name.

[hillhog]

Good luck to Pargo. He is working on his retirement life. Don't blame him in the least.

[hawgsav1]

These NBAers like Watson and Childress that have jumped overseas know the team will cover their taxes and cost of living. However they do not realize they are forgoing their skills and respect to play less competitive basketball for the sake of MONEY.

Pargo just wants to make a dime. Shows a lot about him as a person. Money money money.

Um...Childress's deal was a less than what he was being offered by Atlanta.  And considering how good these Euro-league teams are, I don't think he's going to go play "stuff" basketball elsewhere.  Euro-basketball is getting a lot better and a lot more competitive. 

[JoePaul03]

Um...Childress's deal was a less than what he was being offered by Atlanta.  And considering how good these Euro-league teams are, I don't think he's going to go play "stuff" basketball elsewhere.  Euro-basketball is getting a lot better and a lot more competitive. 

It wasn't exactly less than what he was being offered by Atlanta...the Hawks offered about $33 mil over 5 years, and he ended up signing with the Greek team for $32.5 mil over three years, plus living expenses. So the total value of his Greek contract might be a little less, but it's also two years shorter. When you add it all up, he's actually getting at least as much, if not more, from Olympiakos as he would have from Atlanta, and he's getting it in fewer years.

[hawgsav1]

It wasn't exactly less than what he was being offered by Atlanta...the Hawks offered about $33 mil over 5 years, and he ended up signing with the Greek team for $32.5 mil over three years, plus living expenses. So the total value of his Greek contract might be a little less, but it's also two years shorter. When you add it all up, he's actually getting at least as much, if not more, from Olympiakos as he would have from Atlanta, and he's getting it in fewer years.

According to ESPN and SportingNews, Childress's offer was 20 million for 3 years, which is roughly 6.67 million a year (plus throw in living expenses, so it rounds out to about 6.7-6.8 million probably), and the Hawks were offering a 5 year deal for 35 million, which is 7 million a year (more than the mid-level exception that the Hawks were originally offering).  I know it's not a huge difference on a yearly salary basis, but NBA contracts are guaranteed, so that's about 15 million more.  I don't blame Childress for jumping, as he knows his stock is pretty damn high, and if he improves at the rate at which he's improving, he could get some mega bucks in three years when/if he decides to come back to the NBA, get another big contract with a Euroleague team instead of being stuck here for 5 years at the mid-level salary or so.

http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?t=437408

[JoePaul03]

According to ESPN and SportingNews, Childress's offer was 20 million for 3 years, which is roughly 6.67 million a year (plus throw in living expenses, so it rounds out to about 6.7-6.8 million probably), and the Hawks were offering a 5 year deal for 35 million, which is 7 million a year (more than the mid-level exception that the Hawks were originally offering).  I know it's not a huge difference on a yearly salary basis, but NBA contracts are guaranteed, so that's about 15 million more.  I don't blame Childress for jumping, as he knows his stock is pretty damn high, and if he improves at the rate at which he's improving, he could get some mega bucks in three years when/if he decides to come back to the NBA, get another big contract with a Euroleague team instead of being stuck here for 5 years at the mid-level salary or so.

http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?t=437408

From what I read, the $20 mil was the "net" amount that his contract will be worth, which I guess is after taxes and everything, so I think we'd need to know how much he'd lose to taxes, etc. on the Hawks proposal to know what to compare the $20 mil to. I also think his Greek contract is guaranteed AND it has a provision that allows him to revisit his situation every year (or maybe every other year?) and return to the NBA if he wants.

I agree with the last part of your post; I think the biggest deal for him was the length. He can get comparable money for fewer years in Greece, and if he's successful, he'll be fairly young and have proven himself as a player on two different continents in two of the best leagues in the world. Then he'll be set up for an even bigger European payday OR he can come back to the NBA and he'll be out from under the hang-ups of being a restricted FA because I think he'll be a UFA by then. (I think.)

http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sports/hawks/stories/2008/07/23/childress_hawks_greece.html

http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sports/hawks/stories/2008/07/23/hawks_childress_qanda.html

[hawgsav1]

From what I read, the $20 mil was the "net" amount that his contract will be worth, which I guess is after taxes and everything, so I think we'd need to know how much he'd lose to taxes, etc. on the Hawks proposal to know what to compare the $20 mil to. I also think his Greek contract is guaranteed AND it has a provision that allows him to revisit his situation every year (or maybe every other year?) and return to the NBA if he wants.

I agree with the last part of your post; I think the biggest deal for him was the length. He can get comparable money for fewer years in Greece, and if he's successful, he'll be fairly young and have proven himself as a player on two different continents in two of the best leagues in the world. Then he'll be set up for an even bigger European payday OR he can come back to the NBA and he'll be out from under the hang-ups of being a restricted FA because I think he'll be a UFA by then. (I think.)

http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sports/hawks/stories/2008/07/23/childress_hawks_greece.html

http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sports/hawks/stories/2008/07/23/hawks_childress_qanda.html

I agree.  I think it's a more monetarily suitable way for him to become an UFA and collect NBA big bucks.  If he had stayed in the NBA, he would have had a one year extension of 4.8 million for a year.  If he performed badly that year (injury, rough time, etc.), he would have lost a lot of potential wealth from that.  If what you wrote about him being able to revisit his contract every year with Olympiakos, he's set to jump back to the NBA for a giant payday if he does well, especially since a player of his athleticism will be unique to the Euroleague squads, and he'll probably be the star.  If he was with the Hawks for 5 years, he wouldn't make as much money.  However, once he comes back, he'll be in a Hawks uniform (though I think they'll have to sign a new deal with him, which might be more beneficial since the Hawks just spent a buttload making sure Josh Smith didn't go to Memphis.  Frankly, the Hawks are loaded with talent, but have some VERY inefficient front office guys, so it's very frustrating to watch them).

[JoePaul03]

I agree.  I think it's a more monetarily suitable way for him to become an UFA and collect NBA big bucks.  If he had stayed in the NBA, he would have had a one year extension of 4.8 million for a year.  If he performed badly that year (injury, rough time, etc.), he would have lost a lot of potential wealth from that.  If what you wrote about him being able to revisit his contract every year with Olympiakos, he's set to jump back to the NBA for a giant payday if he does well, especially since a player of his athleticism will be unique to the Euroleague squads, and he'll probably be the star.  If he was with the Hawks for 5 years, he wouldn't make as much money.  However, once he comes back, he'll be in a Hawks uniform (though I think they'll have to sign a new deal with him, which might be more beneficial since the Hawks just spent a buttload making sure Josh Smith didn't become a Hawk.  Frankly, the Hawks are loaded with talent, but have some VERY inefficient front office guys, so it's very frustrating to watch them).

Yeah, I think when we look back on it, everyone will realize Childress made a good decision. And, not many people have mentioned this, but I think he went to Stanford, and those guys tend to be pretty well-rounded. He might really enjoy the experience of playing in one of the more historically significant places in the world. 

[kside]

Good Luck JP!!!   

[George S. Pigton]

I lived in Moscow for 6 years in the 90's, Pargo will do just fine on the living expenses.  The
only thing out of line in Moscow is the property, much like New York.  With his jack he should
be able to rent a nice place and with the language barrier he is not going to be out blowing
too much money.   Russian girls that date Africans or in this case an Afriican American are
frowned upon but with his money it will help.  Perhaps he is even married, have no idea or
he could hook up with an expat to show him the ropes.   I imagine he will spend his off months
at home in the states.

Pargo will be just fine and I'm glad he took the money.