Hooped Up

Boy, this whole Garbajosa experiment really went south in a hurry.  After about a season and a half it looks like Jorge Garbajosa’s time with the Toronto Raptors is coming to a close.

It appears clearer than ever that Jose Calderon will be back with the Toronto Raptors. It’s increasingly certain his friend Jorge Garbajosa will not. According to Spanish media reports, the NBA club is negotiating a buyout of the final year of Garbajosa’s contract, worth $4.25-million (U.S.), which would officially end a relationship that started with considerable promise but effectively ended with a severe leg injury suffered in March of 2006.

Globe and Mail

To bad about his injury, he was what the Raptors needed and still need.

The Raptors’ lawsuit against the Spanish basketball federation could end up being worth more than $14 million Canadian, the Toronto Star is reporting.

In the 19-page document filed Friday, MLSE seeks 6 million Euros ($9,440,000 Canadian) in damages for breach of contract, negligent misrepresentation and negligence if Jorge Garbajosa has suffered permanent disability or 1.5 million Euros ($2,517,000 Canadian) for temporary disability.

“He was a hard-working player and a solid defender and his absence from the starting lineup is a significant loss to the team,” the Raptors stated in their claim.

According to the report, MLSE is also asking for $5 million (Canadian) in punitive damages.

The Raptors only reluctantly tolerated Garbajosa playing in the Madrid-based European championship after the Spanish basketball federation bought an insurance policy that cost about $1 million (all figures U.S.) for approximately three months’ coverage on Garbajosa’s NBA contract. The $1 million sum underlines the huge risk Garbajosa was taking. Projected over a full year, the policy was worth about $4 million. The two-year remainder of Garbajosa’s NBA contract only totals approximately $8 million. It was as though he owned, say, a $100,000 Porsche and, so mortified was the insurance company of the prospect of him driving it, his annual premium was set at $50,000. The policy expires Friday, so the Raptors are hoping the insurer will pick up a large chunk of Garbajosa’s salary. It will almost certainly be the club’s contention that Garbajosa has sustained further injury since the policy was purchased.

Toronto Star