Gieger to sign with Philly, Coleman to Hornets

[arnfarm@tvsonline.net (Arneal, MaryLe)]

Gieger agrees to a contract that will pay him an average $8 million per
season! And we thought he might only want 2.8?! Is it just me, or is this
way too much for MG? I think that the Sixers will not be happy with this,
for six years no less. It also reports that Ratliff is going to re-sign with
the Sixers.

Nathan A.


CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The Charlotte Hornets have agreed to terms with
                  free-agent forward Derrick Coleman, according to published
reports
                  Saturday.

                  Coleman, the NBA's Rookie of the Year
                  in 1991 and an eight-year veteran, will sign
                  a multiyear deal Tuesday, the
                  Winston-Salem (N.C.) Journal and The
                  Charlotte Observer reported. Both
                  newspapers cited unidentified sources.

                  The Journal said Coleman's deal would be
                  for six years averaging around $6 million a
                  year. The Observer said it would be for
                  five years and a total of $40 million.

                  Bob Bass, the Hornets' vice president of
                  basketball operations, declined to
                  comment on Coleman late Friday.

                  Coleman's agent, Harold McDonald, told the Philadelphia
Daily News that
                  Coleman would not be returning to the city and had reached
an agreement
                  with another team.

                  Meanwhile, the Observer reported that Philadelphia has
landed Charlotte
                  free-agent center Matt Geiger, offering him a six-year
contract that would pay
                  him on average $8 million per season.

                  The signing of Coleman would make it unlikely the Hornets
would re-sign
                  Vlade Divac, another free-agent center. Divac has been
asking for a contract
                  averaging in excess of $10 million a season.

                  Sources told the Observer that Charlotte had come to an
agreement with
                  backup center Brad Miller, a former Purdue player who was
in the Hornets'
                  early-summer camp for free agents before playing in the
World Games and
                  later in Italy.

                  Coleman, 31, spent the last three seasons with the 76ers.
He has averaged
                  19.2 points and 10.4 rebounds in his career.

                  He averaged 17.6 points and 9.9 rebounds in 59 games with
the Philadelphia
                  76ers last season. The Sixers chose to exercise a buyout
clause in his
                  contract, making him a free agent.

                  Coleman has not played more than 60 games in any of the
past four seasons
                  and appeared in only 11 games in the 1995-96 season when
he was with
                  Philadelphia.

                  The Hornets had also been negotiating with free-agent
centers Theo Ratliff of
                  Philadelphia and Isaac Austin of the Los Angeles Clippers.
But Ratliff will
                  remain with the 76ers, the Observer reported.



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