Z playing for Lithuania?

[Joe Henderson]

Yeah, like i said, money over heart. Looking at the $$$ doesn't help you understand this issue.

 

[Jon]

Yeah, like i said, money over heart. Looking at the $$$ doesn't help you understand this issue.

You do remember what happened the last time a Cavs GM allowed heart to be favored over money?

It's perfectly understandable and everyone involved has understood it for months. If the Lithuanian team is so minor league they can't pony up the money necessary to buy insurance - they sure shouldn't be bailed out.

Ferry can't stop Z from going to the Olympics and he didn't, Lithuania apparently just can't afford him.

 

[The Voice]

Z Can't Play For Lithuania
Zydrunas Ilgauskas | Cavaliers
Cavaliers center Zydrunas Ilgauskas will not be converging on Beijing this summer.
The Cavs officially denied the veteran center from playing for the Lithuanian National team in the 2008 Summer Olympics on Thursday.

"Zydrunas is an important member of our team and has generally been a higher risk player due to his injury history," Cavs GM Danny Ferry said. "We declined consent for Zydrunas." -- The News-Herald

Ferry is a close friend of Z, but maybe not anymore.

 

[RchfldCavRaised]

We had an opportunity to set a tone as an organization that we are more than just about money.

Its hypocritical of any fan of the Cavs to expect any player to feel any committment to us or the team, other than dollar signs, if this is how they will treat Z.

LeBron may just be smarter than I thought in regard to him being the pioneer or maintaining control and flexibilty over his contractual obligation to an NBA team.

 

[Man Called X]

Ferry is a close friend of Z, but maybe not anymore.

No insurance = no play.

 

[Joe Henderson]

i don't see the team saying anything about insurance. just the risk of injury.

 

[chiefwahoo]

i don't see the team saying anything about insurance. just the risk of injury.

Straight from BW today:

Ilgauskas out of Olympics

Published on Friday, Jun 13, 2008

For several months the Cavaliers, Zydrunas Ilgauskas and the Lithuanian National Team have been involved in a complex dispute over allowing him to play in this summer's Olympics. From the Cavs' standpoint — the only one that matters in this case — the matter is now closed.

The Cavs privately declined permission several weeks ago and publicly did so on Thursday. Ilgauskas is one of a dozen players in the NBA who needs permission to play for a national team because his contract is not fully insured.

''This is the last time I'll have a chance to play for my country,'' Ilgauskas said at the end of the season. ''It's something I wanted to do.''

The Luthuanians sent a petition with thousands of signatures to the Cavs but it didn't sway the decision. The Cavs are concerned about Ilgaskas' lower back, where he has a compressed disk that caused him to miss playing time this past season. His feet are also not covered by insurance.

''Zydrunas is an important member of our team and has generally been a higher risk player due to his injury history,'' Cavs General Manager Danny Ferry said. ''We declined consent for Zydrunas to play in the Olympics when he approached us several weeks ago, and in light of the inability to insure Zydrunas adequately, we continue to deny consent and will not permit Zydrunas to play in the 2008 Olympics.''

— Brian Windhorst

 

[Randolphkeys]

Z spent last offseason jogging in the Alps. Who among you were concerned? Larry Bird had even more health issues than Z does when he played on the dream team. Did Boston fans plead for him not to play?

Joe Hendo was right about motivations: some young players join the Olympics to showcase their talents. I really don't think Z is trying to join the Lithuanian team to increase his visability or shoe contracts. I think he was raised in very difficult conditions, made a lot of money over here in the states, and now wants to give back in some small way.

I wonder if LeBron "suggested" that Z shouldn't be allowed to play for Lithuania, hmmmmm?

 

[TAS]

lol @ randol ^^. I think the Cavaliers just want to protect their product. The Raptors let Garbajosa play for spain and he messed up his knee there. They are now fighting over insurance money.

 

[Rycka]

Well thing is Lithuania got the money, Nba adviced to fix some minor aspects of the insurance and the decision should be made next week about this whole thing. I would say chances of him going to olimpics are 50/50

 

[TheAdmin]

Well thing is Lithuania got the money, Nba adviced to fix some minor aspects of the insurance and the decision should be made next week about this whole thing. I would say chances of him going to olimpics are 50/50

The decision was already announced and posted about 4 times in this thread. He's not going. Its the Cavaliers decision to make and has nothing to do with the NBA.

 

[Jon]

The thing is ... can the Cavs still refuse if Z or Lithuania provide the necessary insurance?

If they had that right, I don't understand why this dragged out so long.

Best I can tell from following the articles on the subject, Lithuania had every opportunity to provide for insurance, but their federation simply could not get it done.

Finally, let's not talk about cheap. Z's the guy with the guaranteed contract. If he gets hurt playing in the Olympics, all the risk is on the Cavs. Losing Z or even LeBron to injury in the Olympics would be a terrible blow just by itself, but it would be adding insult to injury (literally) if we had to pay their salary too.

If I'm right about this, and Z really really really wanted to play - money no object - maybe he should have arranged to pay for his own insurance?

No doubt, there's something in the player's union rules that forbids that...

Afterall, they wouldn't want players to have to accept risk let alone pay for it.

 

[TheAdmin]

The Cavs have the right regardless if someone else puts up the money to pay for his insurance.

If the Cavs don't like the insurance company it won't happen. If they don't like the coverage, payments or amount of the insurance payout it won't happen. The Cavs turned down every package presented to them so it just won't happen.

 

[Jon]

Apparently with reason, or why else waste everyone's time and string them along?

 

[Dungong]

Not letting Z play is bad Karma. LBJ is a MUCH bigger risk, even without the injury history. Lets face it, if Z gets hurt, it would suck, but its nothing that cant be overcome. If Lebron gets hurt, the future of this franchise, the NBA, the city of Cleveland, and the world (he is a global icon) is in serious jeopardy.