CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Alonzo Mourning ended his lengthy contract holdout, signing a deal with the Charlotte Hornets Thursday for five years worth $20 million.
Mourning, the second player chosen in the NBA draft, agreed to terms with the Hornets Tuesday, but the team had to find enough room under the salary cap to give the former Georgetown star $2.5 million this season. The Hornets had $1.96 million, and reached the difference by restructuring Dell Curry's contract and waiving reserve center Lorenzo Williams.
'We had all come to an agreement with Alonzo's representation prior to the season opener,' Hornets owner George Shinn said. 'Our management team needed to evaluate all our options to make sure we chose the right one to get us under the salary cap.'
The Hornets had considered a trade that would have sent J.R. Reid and either Johnny Newman or Curry to the Detroit Pistons for Dennis Rodman and a draft choice. Rodman's agent, Neil Draddy, reportedly said Rodman was willing to restructure his contract if the Hornets acquired him in a trade.
But before Wednesday night's Hornets game against the Boston Celtics, Shinn said that deal was off.
'I could stand here and say the deal didn't work because they wanted too much, or it could have been because the players they were looking at didn't have as good a couple of games as they have had,' Shinn said.
Another possible trade had Kenny Gattison being dealt for a draftchoice, but that prospect was so unpopular, Larry Johnson -- last season's rookie of the year -- became outraged.
'If you trade Gatt (Gattison), you trade me,' Johnson said. 'I would be very shocked and highly upset if the Hornets traded any player to sign Mourning.
'They didn't have to trade anybody to get me last year and I was the No. 1 pick. Why should they trade somebody this year to sign the No. 2?'
Apparently, the Hornets came to that same conclusion and opted to renegotiate Curry's deal, rather than trade a key player.
'The entire negotiation process was a long one, and we feel the end result is the proper deal for Alonzo and the Charlotte Hornets,' said Hornets president Spencer Stolpen. 'Dell must be commended for his patience and cooperation. He has meant a lot to this community having been here from day one and has come through for us once again.'
Hornets coach Allan Bristow also was relieved and believes the team made the right choice.
'Everyone is relieved to have this behind us and now the team can concentrate on getting Alonzo acclimated to everything,' Bristow said. 'His presence in the middle is going to be a major factor in our team's success this season.'
Mourning will travel with the Hornets and be in uniform for Friday night's game against the Indiana Pacers at Indianapolis.
