Already signed

[psbf]

I see where Dayshawn Wright was signed by the Buffalo Silverbacks(ABA), who have him on their roster. Now he signs with the Minot Skyrockets(CBA)? Am I missing something?

[heavesrock]

It could have been a PR stunt by Buffalo and they never really signed him, if so they should have gone after someone famous.

[psbf]

Nice idea, but he is listed on the Silverbacks roster, according to their website. So apparently they did sign him.

[preeths]

Joe Newman's take:
http://www.oursportscentral.com/services/releases/?id=3384468

[ABARedWhiteBlue]

And Joe continues:

ASK THE CEO - SLEEPING DOGS LIE?

13-Oct-2006
Question from Morris, Rochester NY (and others): "Don't you think you are making too big a deal about Dayshawn going to the CBA? Why don't you let sleeping dogs lie?"

Answer: Morris and others. Thanks for the questions (opinions). I'll post a consensus of the other views next week. No, I don't think we are making too big a deal about Dayshawn going to Minot at all. He signed a valid contract. That's the issue. Suppose that John Smoltz decided he would rather pitch for LA with Greg Maddox than stay in Atlanta. Suppose that Jermaine O'Neal of the Pacers wanted to play forward with Shaquille O'Neal in Miami. Suppose that Eli Manning of the NY Giants wanted to go back to play for the Titans in Tennessee? Could they just walk away from valid contracts? There's no doubt that Dayshawn is talented and could get to the NBA or a lucrative international opportunity. We hope that happens. It does not excuse "wannabe" agent Alex Yam to tell a young man that his signature and his word are worth nothing. That's the way we feel about it.

Where to begin.......
First, it is Greg MADDUX - the guy is one of the top 5 pitchers of the last 50 years; get his damn name spelled right.
Second, why is ELI Manning going BACK to Tennessee? He grew up in Lousiana, went to the University of Mississippi, and is now playing in NJ. What exactly is he going back to? Did he have such a good time attending one of his brother's games at U of T that he wants to play in the same state (not the same CITY, mind you; the Titans are in Nashville, and the Vols are in Knoxville).

Now, could they walk away from valid contracts? No, because there is a collective bargaining agreement in place to prevent it. There are a myriad of reasons why a high-level professional league can prevent jumping from team to team. Going from league to league is also addressed - if the league's have an agreement in place. Since the ABA is not affiliated in any way with any basketbal federation, all of their players are essentially free agents, free to bolt when they choose for a different opportunity.

As I said somewhere else, if the ABA feels they have a winnable case, then file the injunction to prevent him from leaving. Produce the contract and its provisions that prevent him from leaving for another league. The fact that Joe is only talking about it - using his thesaurus to get just the right effect - and the new members of the ABA hierarchy, including a lawyer, are quiet leads one to the likely conclusion that this is all sound and no substance.

If Wright wanted to jump from Buffalo to, say, Hollywood, could he do that? Keep in mind that a number of players in the ABA did just that prior to and during last year's post-season. Where was the outrage over 'contracts' then?