Chris Tomasson reports that Cavaliers GM Jim Paxson is on a roll. First fleeced a future Hall of Famer. Then he outnegotiated one of the NBA's savviest agents.

Last October, Paxson got the best of Miami coach Pat Riley when the Cavs received Miami’s Ricky Davis and Toronto’s Brian Skinner in exchange for washed-up journeyman Chris Gatling. Paxson even convinced the Heat to pay Davis’ salary last season.

Last week, Paxson outsmarted Dan Fegan, one fo the best player agents in the game. Feegan had been looking for a 6-year contract averaging around $7 million per year for his client. Paxson and the Cavs only offered 3-years and $15 million. When the Davis camp balked at the Cavs' offer, Paxson sat back and waited for Davis to sign an offer sheet.

Paxson realized that no other teams would have the ability to offer more than the $4.5 million mid-level exception, so he bid accordingly. With Davis being a restricted free agent, the Cavs would ultimately get the chance to match any offer and keep Davis if he were to sign with another team.

The Cavs were prepared to wait until late September. But Minnesota did them a favor when it signed Davis to a six-year, $34 million offer sheet on Aug. 16. Paxson promptly matched the offer and Davis was a Cavalier.

In the days before the offer was matched, an apparently desperate Fegan called several newspapers and told stories about how Davis didn't want to play for the Cavs (Fegan did not call the Beacon Journal nor did he return messages seeking comment). In an interview with the Beacon Journal, Davis denied Fegan's claims. He said he does not have a problem with returning to the Cavs and he expected all along that they would match the offer sheet.

Tomasson speculates that Fegan may have been trying to get more money for his client (and a larger commission for himself) by attempting to get the teams to void the offer sheet and agree to a sign and trade. If he really wanted his client to leave Cleveland, he could have accepted a one-year deal and went into free agency next summer without “restricted” status.

So now the Cavaliers get the player they wanted, Davis is playing where he wants to play, and it will be at least six years before Paxson has to hear Fegan ask for a maximum contract for Davis. That is what they call a “win, win, win situation”.

Via

Cleveland Cavaliers, Minnesota Timberwolves

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