Dallas Mavericks guard J.J. Barea weighing New York Knicks as his second option – NBA Update
Jose Juan Barea was a sensation last season, the one in which the Dallas Mavericks went on to become the NBA champions.
The Puerto Rican point guard who went undrafted in 2006 has indeed come a long way in his career. After lurking on the sidelines for five years, Barea finally made a niche for himself in the Western Conference semifinals, in which
the Mavs were pitched against the two times defending champions, the mighty Los Angeles Lakers.
In a series that was tipped to be the clash of the titans, the Mavs tore apart the Lakers and brought them to ground with a 4-0 sweep. Nearly everything clicked for the Mavericks in that series and among them was the bench strength,
spearheaded by Barea.
Barea was at the top of his game in that duel, be it his drive inside the lane, his three point shooting or the occasional pick and roll. He was the smallest man on the court and yet he would breeze past Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum,
the bigs who were supposed to defend the Lakers perimeter.
After a comparatively stale Western Conference Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder, he then went berserk against the Miami Heat. Barea put a stamp on those finals with his short scoring burst and was pivotal in orchestrating
the brilliant comebacks that the Mavs put in the first five games.
However, after getting his hands on the holy grail of NBA, the reserve shooting guard is now a free agent and given the fact that there are five other free agents that the Mavs have to cater for, his chances of making a cut into
the squad is minimal.
According to reports, the Mavs have already offered him a one year extension, but given the last season heroics, Barea would want to wait on the deal. Talking to the New York Daily News over the weekend, Barea expressed revealed
one of his other options – the New York Knicks.
"I always said the Knicks would be a great second option. I love the city. I love the way they're playing now, their style of play with D'Antoni, the players over there," said Barea, who was in Punta Cana to support slugger David
Ortiz's annual charity golf tournament. "We'll see. I know Carmelo more than Amar'e. I think after (D'Antoni became coach), I said, ‘That would be a great fit for me.'"
Although the Knicks would love to have an impact player from the bench, they may not be able to offer him that lucrative a contract. The Big Apple franchise already has a small space in the salary cap and will be looking to create
as much room as possible for the 2012 free agency.
Also, given the fact that Barea is not a tested starter as yet, his stakes in the free agency might drop. In this situation, it would be best for him to sign the first good contract he gets his hands on.
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