Payton, Lakers make verbal agreement

["Stephen Beauregard" <sb@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Payton, Lakers make verbal agreement


By Associated Press, 7/9/2003

L SEGUNDO, Calif. -- Gary Payton is set to join the Los Angeles Lakers, and
Karl Malone may not be far behind.



The Lakers have been negotiating with Payton over the past several days,
general manager Mitch Kupchak said yesterday.

''It is the Lakers' intention to enter into a contract with Gary Payton once
the moratorium period ends. Due to NBA rules regarding free agency I am unable
to further comment at this time,'' Kupchak said in a statement.

With nine-time All-Star Payton teaming up with Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe
Bryant, the Lakers would be favored next season to win their fourth NBA title
in five years. If two-time MVP Malone also decides to sign, Los Angeles would
be even more imposing, featuring four superstars.

Payton and other free agents are not allowed to sign contracts until July 16.

Payton's agent, Aaron Goodwin, told ESPN.com that the longtime member of the
Seattle SuperSonics has chosen the Lakers.

''He could have taken a lot more money to go somewhere else,'' Goodwin said.
''But he's going to Los Angeles to follow his dream.''

The free agent guard severed ties with his former team, the Milwaukee Bucks,
on Monday.

Payton, dealt by Seattle to Milwaukee at last season's trade deadline, would
be limited to earning $4.9 million with the Lakers in the first year of a
multiyear contract.

Malone, a two-time league MVP, has said he'd be willing to take the veteran's
minimum salary -- $1.4 million -- with the Lakers in order to have a chance to
win his first NBA championship.

Bryant accuser is 19

The sexual assault allegations against Bryant were made by a 19-year-old
Colorado woman.

Eagle County Sheriff Joe Hoy confirmed the woman's age and said she has left
on vacation with her family.

He also said investigators have sent unspecified evidence to the state Bureau
of Investigation for analysis, but refused to discuss other details of the
case. A bureau official would only say the work has begun.

The 24-year-old Bryant is accused of sexual assault, and prosecutors are
expected to decide by the end of the week whether to charge him. Bryant's
attorney, Pamela Mackey, says he is innocent and expects to be exonerated.

According to an arrest warrant, Bryant attacked the woman June 30 at a hotel
near Vail, Colo. Officials at the Lodge & Spa at Cordillera in nearby Edwards
have confirmed Bryant stayed there from June 30 to July 2.

Bryant, a five-time NBA All-Star, surrendered to authorities Friday and was
released after posting $25,000 bond. Mackey said her client was in Colorado
for surgery.

The case was ordered sealed by Judge Russell Granger at the request of the
sheriff. ''I wanted to preserve the defendant's right to a fair trial,''
Granger said yesterday.

The sheriff said the media attention given to the case was ''mind-boggling.''

''To me, the sad part is if this hadn't been who it involved this wouldn't
even be a blip on anyone's radar screen,'' he said. ''Personally, I think
they're focusing on our suspect rather than on the victim.''

Evidence barred

Prosecutors were banned from presenting key testimony and evidence at the
perjury trial of Sacramento Kings star Chris Webber.

Prosecutors cannot use notes kept by Michigan basketball booster Eddie Martin
as evidence that Webber borrowed money from him while playing in high school
and college, US District Judge Nancy Edmunds ruled.

Prosecutors also were prohibited from calling other players to testify about
amounts they said they received from Martin.

Edmunds said she probably would not allow wiretapped phone conversations in
which Martin reportedly tells an acquaintance about how much Webber owed.

Webber, and his father, Mayce Webber Jr., were charged with lying to a federal
grand jury about money authorities say the player received from Martin. Jury
selection begins next Tuesday.

The Kings forward has denied taking anything of significant value from
Martin.

Raptors sign Bosh

First-round draft pick Chris Bosh signed a three-year contract with the
Toronto Raptors. Bosh, the fourth overall pick, will make $2.91 million a year
. . . All-Star center Jermaine O'Neal, one of the NBA's marquee free agents,
is near an agreement on a contract with the Indiana Pacers . . . Anthony
Carter's representatives mistakenly failed to exercise a player option that
would have allowed him to make $4.1 million with the Miami Heat next season .
. . Former Virginia and NBA star Ralph Sampson was sentenced to two years of
probation and fined $1,000 for not paying child support for his 14-year-old
daughter.

Thanks,

Steve
sb@xxxxxxxxxxxx

[demime 1.01b removed an attachment of type image/gif which had a name of E.gif]

[demime 1.01b removed an attachment of type image/gif which had a name of Big.gif]