The Knicks received a dose of good news Friday when an arbitrator ruled that Jeremy Lin and Steve Novak both will retain their “Early Bird Rights.”
The NBA intends to appeal arbitrator’s Kenneth Dam’s decision, according to a release sent out by the league.
According to the Collective Bargaining Agreement, the player keeps his rights if he changes teams by trade. The NBPA argued that a player and his contract going from one team to another also should maintain his rights through a waiver claim.
Lin and Novak will enter the free agency period with Early Bird rights, while the Clippers’ Chauncey Billups and Portland’s J.J. Hickson will have full Bird rights — named for Larry Bird. The ruling also will apply to future players claimed off waivers.
The decision means that the Knicks will have greater flexibility when free agency begins July 1 and can re-sign both Lin, the point guard who gave birth to the international phenomenon known as “Linsanity,” and Novak, their sharpshooting ace, without regard for the salary cap at a starting salary of about $5 million.
“Bird and Early Bird rights are the lynchpin of our Soft Cap system, and we’re pleased that Professor Dam recognized that a player does not forfeit these important rights unless he makes an affirmative decision to sign with a new team as a free agent,” union leader Billy Hunter said in a statement.
“Players fought hard for a Collective Bargaining Agreement that allows maximum flexibility for free agent players while also permitting teams to retain their core free agents, and today’s decision affirms both of these important principles.”
The Knicks can now use their midlevel exception on another player, possibly veteran point guards Steve Nash or Jason Kidd, both of whom have expressed interest in playing at Madison Square Garden.
“The Knicks are a great franchise and I live in New York City [each summer], so I’d definitely consider them if they were interested,” Nash recently said at a promotional appearance in Manhattan.
He added: “I want to wait and see what’s actually on the table. I’m open and excited, and I’m looking at every possibility right now. It sounds like there are a number of teams that are interested.”
Kidd, who led the Nets to the NBA Finals in 2002 and ’03, also said he would consider the Knicks along with the Brooklyn Nets.
“I wouldn’t mind either one,” Kidd, 39, said this week on “The Michael Kay Show.” “They both have great situations and I wouldn’t rule those two out.”
He added: “Winning comes in different stages. I had the opportunity to play for the Nets and no one ever thought we would achieve what we did as a team. So you never can rule out the possibility of getting to the Finals.
“But if I am backing up Deron [Williams] or Jeremy Lin or Steve Nash somewhere, that fits me perfectly.”
(The AP contributed)
