ESPN is reporting that Rashard Lewis will be signing a max contract with the Orlando Magic when contracts can officially be signed on July 11th. I've resisted posting the last couple weeks so as to not jinx any potential free agents. Now that it is highly likely (not exactly 100%) that Lewis will be signing with the Magic, we can discuss Darko's position. Local media is making more of the issue that what's really there. Basically, Darko is a restricted free agent and we can match any offer. Aside from one or maybe two teams, no one can sign him to a deal any better than we could without a sign and trade.
So, two things with Darko. First, the Magic don't want to bid against themselves by offering Darko a large contract. They'll wait for his agent to bring back an offer for the Magic or an offer sheet from another team, which they can then choose to match if there is cap room. And I am by no means an expert on the NBA salary cap or CBA, but I believe the Magic can resign Darko by exceeding the cap up to 175% of last years salary. Second note on Darko is that Seattle is still a player in any deal with the Lewis. It's quite possible that we still work out a sign and trade deal with Seattle in order to dump a couple contracts to make room for Darko - if the Magic have to be under the cap.
