One of the reasons that Chris Webber might accept an offer to play in Greece is because he wants both a two-year deal and something more than the veteran's minimum. So far, no NBA teams have stepped up to the plate ... but that might change if the Orlando Magic get their way. Orlando currently has their hands tied by the salary cap and can't offer more than the veteran's minimum of $1.2 million, but following the news that Tony Battie is likely lost for the season, the team might receive some salary cap relief. Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel explains:
If the Magic are granted an injury exception for Battie -- who is expected now to likely miss the entire season with a rotator cuff injury -- it will be worth about $2.6 million (half of Battie's salary this season), more appealing to free agents.Of course, this is hardly automatic -- the NBA is sometimes fickle in deciding who gets an injury exception and who doesn't. But if the Magic receive the exception, it'd be more than two times their previous offer to Webber. It still doesn't hold a candle to the two-year, $10 million to $12 million offer Webber received from Olympiacos, but if he wants to stay stateside, it might be the best he'll get from any NBA team, especially if the Magic cave and offer a second year. There's been no official contact between Webber and the team just yet, but Webber's agent Aaron Goodwin told Schmitz that he expects to hear from GM Otis Smith soon.
Previously on FanHouse:
Chris Webber's Big Fat Greek Offer
Battie's Injury Puts Magic in Big Man Crunch
