With $7.7 million in cap space, the Portland Trailblazers headed into the free agency signing period with high hopes to sign a star player. They hoped to add a piece to the young team that had won 54 games, in order to set them up for a championship run in 2009-2010.
Plan A:
The Blazers first looked to fill a hole at the small forward position with Hedo Turkoglu. Turkoglu had reached the NBA Finals with the Orlando Magic and played a pivotal role in their success. The Blazers hoped that Turkoglu could play the same role for them.
Instead of choosing to sign with the young, talented Blazers, Turkoglu chose the Toronto Raptors for an obvious reason: money.
Plan B:
Next, the Blazers looked to steal restricted free agent, Paul Millsap, from their division rival Utah Jazz. Since Millsap was a free agent, the Jazz could match any offer that the Blazers and Millsap agreed to and Millsap would have to stay with the Jazz.
Not wanting to lose out on another free agent, Blazer’s general manager Kevin Pritchard drew up a “toxic” four-year, $32 million offer that would pay Millsap $10.3 million within one week.
In a shocking move, …
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