Lakers reach agreement to add Ron Artest to squad
By David Aldridge, TNT Analyst
Posted Jul 3 2009 8:33AM
The Los Angeles Lakers are not content to stand pat in defense of their latest championship.
They reached an agreement Thursday with Houston Rockets free agent forward Ron Artest on a five-year deal using the team's mid-level exception that would pay Artest a little more $32 million based on last season's mid-level amount of $5.585 million. Artest will have an out in the contract after the fourth season, according to a source, and will be allowed to make the contract into a three-year deal if he changes his mind between now and next Wednesday, the first official day that players can sign contracts for the 2009-10 season.
The 29-year-old Artest might be inclined to go for a shorter deal to give him the chance at another contract after this one expires. By signing for three years, Artest would regain his "Larry Bird" rights, which allow a team to go over the salary cap in order to re-sign its own players and pay those players an additional year's salary. That would also apply if Artest wanted to leave the Lakers after three years; he'd get an additional year if the Lakers agreed to a sign-and-trade deal for him.
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