ABA league office for invalidating Wright’s contract.
“He should be with Buffalo,” countered ABA CEO Joe Newman. “He signed a legitimate contract. What if John Smoltz decided he didn’t want to play for the Braves? Or Kobe Bryant decided to leave the Lakers?”
This has been the public war of words, sometimes getting heated and nasty, that has erupted on the Internet largely between Yam and Newman, fed by gossip on Internet basketball message boards and blogs.
Dennis Truax, director of operations for the CBA, said the league has no comment on the Wright situation, but the Energizer Bunny of basketball quotes, the ABA’s Newman, has plenty to say.
Newman recently posted an e-mail in his “Ask the CEO” brief on the ABALive.com website that he said was “forwarded to me by ProBasketballNews.com from an overseas coach relating to Yam and Wright.”
The e-mail reads:
“Alex Yam is a doofus. He told me Dayshawn Wright was set to sign with us and would call us back. He didn’t. I called him back. He said it all sounded okay. Then, an hour later, he called back and said he could not sign. So, he said he’d check with some other players and get back to me. Never heard from him again.
“The guy sounds like a fresh out of law school kid who has no idea what he is doing. He must be a Syracuse grad or booster because most of his clients are Syracuse kids and I don’t know how he can get them.”
Yam is actually a UCLA graduate and a West Coast agent, but the gloves are clearly off in this battle.
In response to another “Ask the CEO,” Newman wrote back:
“Alex. Thank you for your response. Dayshawn is a good player, and I am sure that the Skyrockets are excited to have him. That being said, when a real agent approaches Dayshawn with real representation, it will not be difficult for him to tear up your contract and sign with another agent, will it? After all, what are contracts?”
For his part, the Skyrockets coach is disgusted with all of the mud slinging on the net and in the media.
“It’s not right that there’s name calling and press releasing,” said Daleo. “That doesn’t help anybody.”
The Real Battle Over Wright’s Rights
Players not following through with commitments are not uncommon. USA Basketball and the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) are
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