Bibby to sign $80 million contract with Kings

[bd811]

Sacramento, CA (Sports Network) - Kings point guard Mike Bibby is reportedly ready to sign a seven-year, $80 million contract to remain in Sacramento.

The Sacramento Bee reports Bibby was in Las Vegas on Thursday when he agreed to the contract. The newspaper reported the team will officially announce the signing at a news conference in Las Vegas on Friday. The announcement will come at The Palms casino, which is owned by the Maloof family. Brothers Joe and Gavin Maloof own the Kings.

The 24-year-old Bibby has missed just two games in the last three seasons. He averaged 13.7 points and five assists during this past regular season, but stepped up his game in the playoffs. In the postseason, Bibby averaged 20.3 points, second on the team behind Chris Webber's 23.7 ppg.

With Bibby's help last season, the Kings won a franchise-record 61 games and captured the Pacific Division title for the first time. He had 29 points in Game 7 against the Lakers in the Western Conference finals and also hit the game-winning jumper in Game 5 of the series.

This would be the second big signing this week for the Kings. On Wednesday, they inked forward Keon Clark to a one-year deal for their $4.5 million salary-cap exception.


08/16 09:23:37 ET

[bd811]

7 years! sheesh! the kings have been pretty damn busy!

[renuszm]

I just heard on TV it was just 1 year, but he wanted 7 years.

[bd811]

Bibbys deal is 7 years. Clarks is 1. Bibby wouldnt have signed if he wanted 7 and they only gave him 1.

[cxlx]

Where is all these money coming from? Im surprised with that signing theyre not over their cap. Esp when you have Chris Webber - 14.3 mill, Vlade Divac - 11.2 mill, and Predrag Stojakovic - 5.6 mill. And now with Bibby and Clark???

[cxlx]

Oh btw, I got the salary amount from a web site called Inside Hoops (http://www.insidehoops.com). Im going to go off topic for a sec....did you guys know that Shawn Kemp has the highest pay on the Trailblazers roster?

[milky_way]

King Me - Mike Bibby Signs Multiyear Deal
http://www.nba.com/kings/news/King_MeMike_Bibby_Signs_Multi.html

SACRAMENTO, Calif., Aug. 16 -- Sacramento Kings President, Basketball Operations Geoff Petrie announced today that the team has re-signed restricted free agent guard Mike Bibby to a multiyear contract. Per club policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

“This is a really exciting day for the Kings,” explained Petrie. “He’ll be one of the best point guards in the NBA for years to come, and it solidifies that position for us going forward. We’re really appreciative of the way Mike reached out to try and help make our team better. It will be exciting to watch our team continue to come together.

“Mike’s signing is another example of the Maloof Family’s total commitment to keeping a premier Kings product on the basketball floor.”

Bibby, a four-year NBA veteran, played an integral role in Sacramento’s success last season, and particularly during the playoffs, as his level of play was simply stellar. Averaging 13.7 points (.453 FG%, .370 3pt%, .803 FT%), 5.0 assists, 2.8 rebounds and 1.09 steals per game through the 2001-02 regular season, Bibby increased his statistical production during the playoffs, averaging 20.3 points (.444 FG%, .424 3pt%, .826 FT%), 5.0 assists, 3.8 rebounds and 1.44 steals per game over 16 contests. With Peja Stojokovic, the Kings’ second-leading scorer, sidelined with an injury for most of the playoffs, Bibby provided much needed scoring for Sacramento, posting double figures in 14 games. He scored 20 points or more in 12 playoff outings, and led the team in scoring on four occasions in the first playoff experience of his career.

“We’re absolutely thrilled that Mike has decided to stay in Sacramento,” said Kings’ co-owner Joe Maloof. “He’s a high-class guy, who meant a lot to our franchise this past year. Mike’s going to be tremendous for us in the years to come. He probably could have gotten more money elsewhere, but he sacrificed to stay with the organization because he believes in what Gavin and I are trying to accomplish in Sacramento. Instead of waiting to sign next year he decided to sign with us this year, and it’s a win-win situation for everyone.”

Bibby’s consecutive games played and games started streak ended last season at 246 games when he missed the January 6th contest versus Milwaukee with a strained right knee. He missed only two games due to the injury and started in every other (80 games) in his first season with the Kings.

“I’m happy it’s all over,” said Bibby. “I’m looking forward to the upcoming season and many years to come in a Kings uniform. It feels good to be back on the team.”

Acquired by Sacramento from Vancouver along with Brent Price for Jason Williams and Nick Anderson on June 27, 2001, Bibby was a first round selection (second overall) of the 1998 NBA Draft by the Grizzlies. He is Vancouver’s all-time leader in assists with 1,675. Bibby earned First-Team All-Rookie honors in 1998-99 after averaging 13.2 points (.430 FG%, .203 3pt%, .751 FT%), 6.5 assists (13th in NBA), 2.7 rebounds and 1.56 steals (25th in NBA) per game while starting in all 50.

“We’re elated by the signing of Mike Bibby,” explained Kings’ co-owner Gavin Maloof. “We’re proud to have him back as part of the Kings organization. With Mike back in the fold, we’re just really excited about the upcoming season.”

In each of Bibby’s three seasons with Vancouver his statistical numbers increased. He went from averaging 13.2 points and 6.5 assists per game in his rookie season (1998-99) to averaging 14.5 points and 8.1 assists in his sophomore campaign. Over his three-year career with the Grizzlies, Bibby never missed a game and started in every contest (214 games).

Before entering the NBA after his sophomore year at Arizona, Bibby played an instrumental role in the Wildcats winning the NCAA Championship as a freshman, scoring 20 points in the NCAA Semifinal game against North Carolina and in the NCAA title game against Kentucky. He was named Pac-10 Player of the Year and First Team All-America by the Associated Press upon averaging 17.2 points, 5.7 assists and 2.40 steals per game as a sophomore.

[renuszm]

The Kings are nowhere close to the level Golden State is. It will take a miracle for them to hold on.

[milky_way]

Bibby hits jackpot
The point guard vital to the Kings' hopes signs his huge contract in Las Vegas.

By Martin McNeal -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 a.m. PDT Saturday, August 17, 2002
http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/story/4016626p-5042099c.html

LAS VEGAS -- Mike Bibby signed his seven-year, $80.5 million Kings contract here Friday, and when it was done, Bibby and his agent said the taciturn point guard was back where he wanted to be: Sacramento.

Agent David Falk said he believed it would have been possible to get more money in the deal given what the market could command.

"The maturity of doing this for so long and negotiating some of the biggest contracts in the business is knowing when to say enough is enough," Falk said.

"It was tough to say no to $70 million (an offer made earlier in the negotiations). I'm not going to lie," said Bibby at a news conference in the Palapa Lounge of the Palms Casino Resort, owned by the same people who own the Kings, the Maloof family.

"But," Bibby said, "I don't think I could be in a better situation than I'm in now."

Before making his remarks, Bibby said he was a man of few words -- the primal screams he released while hitting key baskets last season, particularly during the playoffs, notwithstanding.

Now that the negotiations have ended, the 24-year-old Bibby said he expects to continue to "play the style of game I like to play and the style fans like to see."

Bibby will be paid $8.5 million this season on a contract that escalates by $1 million annually the next six years to a high of $14.5 million through the 2008-2009 campaign.

Co-owner Joe Maloof said a major key to putting the deal together was recognition of Bibby's promising future.

"We met as a family," he said. "How often does a team have an opportunity to put itself in a position to win a championship? You can look at a number of teams in the league who aren't in that position. Sacramento was one of those teams, and not too long ago.

"Gavin (Maloof) and I never have experienced that. We were lucky enough to come into a great situation when (previous owner) Jim Thomas and (president of basketball operations) Geoff (Petrie) did a good job. And we just tried to improve on what we had. But it's difficult to get to this level. That's one of the things Geoff told Gavin and I.

"This doesn't come around every year, and we have to make a run for it. We were so close last year, and it was such a disappointment, we had to give it at least another shot. And what it does is it stabilizes the franchise for years to come."

Bibby's mother, Virginia, also was on hand for the proceedings. That was no coincidence. Since his earliest days in organized basketball, Bibby's mother has been near his side. And she said she never thought about the day her son would sign a multimillion contract.

Or that she'd see the day he'd have to be pulled away from the craps table for a TV appearance, as happened Friday.

"Ever since Mike was young," she said, "and I have brought this up to many people because I wondered if something was wrong with me, I have never looked ahead and thought about what could happen or what might happen. Whether it was in high school or when he was really young, I never looked ahead.

"If Mike was having fun, then things were OK. I just did what I had to do as a parent. Taking him to the games or practice or whatever. I never envisioned this.

"I just said, 'Do your best,' " she said. "In college, we just played game after game and looked forward to the next game. And that's how I looked at it, and it turned out like this. So believe me, I am really grateful. I am happy for him, and he is truly blessed."

She said she talked to her son often during the negotiations and attempted to provide him with balance.

"I tried to talk to him about the other side of the negotiations," she said. "But I didn't worry about him because Mike has a knack in life of putting things in a way where they are not going to do him any harm.

"He can make a decision in his life and live with that decision, even though other people will not be able to understand what he did.

"He has a way of working it out inside where he exudes a self-confidence in that decision and he knows he can deal with it and live with it."