CHICAGO - Contrary to what was previously reported, including in this space, Avan Nava is not a free agent, after all.
Picked by San Miguel at No. 12 in the first round of last month's PBA Rookie Draft, the combo guard couldn't agree to a deal with the Beermen. But that didn't mean the Fil-Canadian is free to sign elsewhere.
Per PBA rules, as a head coach explained to me on Sunday night, a team has a five-day window to tender an offer to its draft pick in order to keep that player's rights. And that's what San Miguel did.
READ SMB gives Nava ultimatum after rookie rejects two-year offer
Negotiations dragged because of their non-conformity to our offer, San Miguel team manager Gee Abanilla told Gerry Ramos of SPN.ph.
It's just a nicer way of saying that Nava's camp, Fil-Can Nation Select, I am told, probably didn't agree with the figures that were laid out on the offer sheet.
Can't blame his reps for seeking a fatter, richer deal. Nava had a one-season stint in the KBL where an Asian quota player like him made between P5.4 million (SJ Belangel) and P13.7 million (Rhenz Abando) a year.
SHOW ME THE MONEY.
It's not known how much Nava was offered by San Miguel, but under the rules, he couldn't get the maximum of P420,000 a month - P200,000 on the first year and P250,000 a month on the second - that the higher picks are eligible for. His pay scale, an agent told me, will be below the P200,000 a month range.
But playing under the SMC banner has rich incentives (bonuses for games won, entering the playoffs and winning championships) that would allow the 24-year old to burnish his take-home salary.
Nava clearly has potential. I mean, the Samsung Thunders wouldn't have signed him without doing their due diligence. However, the numbers he turned in - 3.8 points, 1.2 assists and 0.8 rebounds per in 36 games - weren't exactly awe-inspiring.
While it gave San Miguel pause, it still initially offered Nava a two-year deal which has since been slashed to one year. Not only that, Abanilla made it clear they're keeping his rights.
That being said, Nava has been trying out with TNT since Monday not knowing that his rights hadn't been and wouldn't be released anyway. Call that a workout in futility.
"When the group of Avan approached us, we understood that they had a mutual parting with San Miguel. I guess that's not the case," a TNT official who requested anonymity said.
"Until they resolve it, he shouldn't go to our practices," he added.
CURRY-FIC PERFORMANCE.
The gap is closing between Team USA and the rest of the world, that's for sure.
After barely escaping Serbia in the semis, the Americans needed a superhero effort from Steph Curry to carry them to a gold medal finish at the Paris Olympics.
The Golden State Warriors guard went 4-for-4 from 3 in the final 2:58 of play after France crept to within 82-79.
Four years from now, though, when Curry, LeBron James and Kevin Durant would be much older, the rest of the world might eventually catch up.
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