Strickland

[peter delevett <pdelevett@amcity.com>]

Well, according to NBA scuttlebutt, this will proabbly mean Sherman Douglas
signs with the Clippers. He'd reportedly been waiting to sign with Wahsington
if Strickland bolted; but he's also said to want to play for Chris Ford again.

ESPN: The Washington Wizards finally agreed to terms with star point guard
                          Rod Strickland today, two days before an imposed
deadline and the start of the season. 

                          A Wizards spokeswoman said the team had agreed to
terms with Strickland, who will take a
                          physical and practice when he joins the team
Thursday morning. Terms were not disclosed. In often contentious negotiations,
Strickland, the top point guard on the
                          free agent market, was seeking a five-year contract
in the $55 million range, while the Wizards had
                          offered a three-year deal worth $30 million. He made
$3.45 million last season. 

                          "We said from day one that Rod Strickland was our
top priority," Wizards general manager Wes
                          Unseld said. "He is without a doubt one of the
finest point guards in the NBA and we are a better
                          team with him in the lineup." 

                          Unseld took over the negotiations earlier this week
when harsh words were exchanged by Wizards
                          owner Abe Pollin and David Falk, Strickland's agent.
Pollin recused himself from the negotiations
                          on Monday. 

                          There may have been underlying bad blood between
Pollin and Falk, both of whom were central
                          figures on the opposite side of the NBA lockout. 

                          Pollin was among hard-line owners who was in favor
of high-end limits on salaries. Falk
                          represents a handful of superstars, including union
official Juwan Howard of the Wizards. 

                          As a 10-year veteran, Strickland was eligible for a
maximum first-year salary of $14 million, with
                          12.5 percent annual increases for as many as seven
years. 

                          However, the Wizards were reluctant to commit that
much to a 32-year-old player who often is late
                          for practices and games, admits to a poor diet
regimen and becomes sick to his stomach during
                          games. 

                          By re-signing Strickland, the Wizards arguably have
the best backcourt in the league. After last
                          season, they acquired All-Star guard Mitch Richmond
in a deal that sent Chris Webber to
                          Sacramento. 

                          Strickland was an All-NBA Second Team selection
following the 1997-98 campaign, when he
                          averaged 17.8 points and led the league with 10.5
assists per game. The 6-3 guard also averaged
                          5.3 rebounds and was 20th in the league with 1.66
steals per contest. 

                          "Rod had a tremendous season for us last year and
I'm very happy to have him back," Wizards
                          coach Bernie Bickerstaff said. "He is as consistent
as any player in the league and this gives us a
                          solid backcourt." 

                          On Monday, Bickerstaff admitted that his other
guards -- Chris Whitney, God Shammgod and Jeff
                          McInnis -- merely were backups who could not handle
the rigors of a starting assignment. 

                             Leveraged against the salary cap, the Wizards
also have re-signed Shammgod and center Ben
                          Wallace and Terry Davis.