Grizzlies' Standoff With Xavier Henry Continues

Filed under: Grizzlies, NBA Draft, NBA Transactions

Xavier Henry, the Grizzlies' lottery pick who sat out the entirety of the Las Vegas Summer League due to a contract dispute with Memphis, still hasn't signed his rookie deal. As noted previously on FanHouse, the Grizzlies have refused to offer Henry the maximum amount allowed under league rules, which equates to a 2010-11 salary of $2 million, without Henry agreeing to tie $300,000 of that to performance bonuses. That's where the dispute lies -- Henry (represented by powerful Arn Tellem) thinks the incentive clauses are out of line and won't sign, and the Grizzlies won't concede to get a potentially valuable young talent into the program. Specific details of what Henry would have to do to meet the bonuses remain unknown.



Grizzlies general manager Chris Wallace told FanHouse Sunday that the issue remains unresolved, but that Henry's camp has not requested a trade to a team who will pay him the $2 million guaranteed. Wallace declined to get into specifics regarding the proposed incentives, but noted that this is not unheard-of.



In fact, Mark Deeks of ShamSports.com reported last year that all but six 2009 first-round draft picks had performance bonuses included in their max rookie deals. Tellem had three 2009 first-round picks, and one of the three (Gerald Henderson, picked 12th by the Bobcats) reportedly had performance bonuses in his contract. This would lead one to assume Tellem isn't compl opposed to performance bonuses for rookie contracts, but is opposed to the incentive structure offered by the Grizzlies.

 

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Full story at http://nba.fanhouse.com/2010/07/25/grizzlies-standoff-with-xavier-henry-continues/