Fortson to meet with GS

["Josh Farber" <nbaj2k@home.com>]

It sounds like we may just lose Fortson to Free Agency.

Josh F
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Free Agent Fortson To Meet With Team

Brad Weinstein, Chronicle Staff Writer  Thursday, July 20, 2000




In search of a power forward to solidify their frontcourt, the Warriors have
turned their attention to free agent Danny Fortson.
Fortson, 24, a player that the Warriors discussed acquiring in February,
arrived last night in Oakland with his agent, Raymond Brothers, to visit
general manager Garry St. Jean and assistant Gary Fitzsimmons. The 6-
foot-7, 260-pound Fortson is expected to tour the Warriors' practice
facility today and meet with the team's executives.
St. Jean declined to comment on the courting of Fortson, who averaged 7.6
points and 6.7 rebounds in 55 games with Boston this past season. Neither
Fortson nor Brothers were available for comment.
By trading power forward Jason Caffey to Milwaukee last month, the Warriors
made clear their intentions of landing a free agent to back up Antawn
Jamison, who is expected to switch from small forward to power forward next
season. The Warriors have indicated that they want to re-sign Adonal Foyle,
but coach Dave Cowens envisions the 6- foot-10 Foyle playing mostly center
behind Erick Dampier.
Although a bit undersized at power forward, Fortson, a three- year veteran,
is a strong rebounder who scores most of his points in the paint. In the
lockout-shortened season of 1998-99, Fortson appeared in all 50 games with
Denver and averaged 11 points and 11.6 rebounds. The Nuggets traded him to
Boston on Aug. 3, 1999.
Several teams are pursuing Fortson, including New York and the Los Angeles
Lakers, who drafted Stanford's Mark Madsen but still need another power
forward.
Before the trade deadline in February, the Warriors worked on a three-way
deal that would have sent Caffey and Foyle to the Bucks in return for J.R.
Reid, Robert ``Tractor'' Traylor and a first-round pick. The Warriors then
would have moved Traylor to Boston for Fortson.
Because they will exceed the projected salary cap of $35.5 million, the
Warriors only can offer Fortson their mid-level exception of $2.25 million.
They also could obtain Fortson by working out a sign-and-trade deal with the
Celtics, but such a move would be complicated by base-year compensation
issues.
Teams are permitted to negotiate with free agents during the month of July,
but no contracts can be signed or trades announced until August 1.
Whether Fortson, a Philadelphia native, would accept another reserve role --
and sign with a West Coast team -- remains unclear. He was disgruntled as a
marginal contributor in Boston, where he missed the first 25 games with a
stress fracture in his right foot and came back to log just 15.6 minutes per
game.
The Celtics shopped him before the deadline and struck a deal on February 9
with Toronto for point guard Alvin Williams. Boston rescinded the exchange
on February 11, claiming that Williams failed a physical.