NBA Veteran Unveils the Under-the-Table Deal With Timberwolves, Resulting in an $86 Million Loss in 2000

This NBA veteran is a retired player, who played in the league for 17 years from 1995-2011. During his NBA career, he played with over 10 NBA teams and was mainly a splendid ?role player? on the team. However, his NBA journey was extremely turbulent, especially during the early 2000s, when he was caught up in a big controversy regarding an ?under-the-table? deal.

In a recent podcast interview, the NBA veteran shares his experience of dealing with the entire controversy. He also shares details of how the controversy came to light in the year 2000.

Under-the-Table Deal with Timberwolves

Former NBA player Joe Smith explains what happened during the ?NBA Lock Out? in 2011 in a podcast interview with ?djvlad?. The host of the podcast initially asks Joe Smith, ?So the next year was the NBA ?Lock Out??so you had to sit by and kind of go through all that. And then, you got traded to the Timberwolves.? Joe Smith then interjects, ?I was a free agent. I was a free agent and signed with the Timberwolves.? to which the host responds, ?Okay my bad. My bad, sorry.?

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The former NBA veteran further explains, ?The year before they had Tom Gugliotta, who was playing a forward position. He ended up signing with the Phoenix Suns. So the Timberwolves were looking for somebody to replace him at the forward position and I felt it was a great opportunity, a great place for me to go.?

Joe Smith then explains how he wanted to play alongside Kevin Garnett. The former NBA veteran claims that he had developed a pretty good friendship with Garnett and that persuaded him to sign with the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The host then brings up the controversy that surrounded Joe Smith?s signing with the Timberwolves. After asking Joe Smith for clarification, the NBA veteran states, ?There was an under-the-table deal done with my agent and the organization. Without me being involved. But I eventually end up having to pay the penalty.?

Joe Smith elaborates, ?It was an under-the-table deal?that one was I guess worth $80 million.?. He then explains how there were two agents who were partners and they were apparently going their separate ways so they (agents) had to go to the court to sort out their differences.

Joe Smith then reveals, ?It came out in court from one agent that the deal was done?and it was all over the media. I had to deal with the consequences from the NBA as far as they gave me a choice: Either sign back with Minnesota and miss an entire year or I can sign with somebody else and play that year and then come back to Minnesota.? Joe Smith then signed with the Detroit Pistons for a year before he came back to the Minnesota Timberwolves. But how serious of a rule break was this ?under-the-table? deal?

The consequences of the illegal ‘Under-the-Table’ Deal

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Joe Smith had signed three one-year contracts for less than $3 million dollars. The host of ?djvlad? mentions, ?The deal was to basically have your bird rights meaning that at the end of that third term, you?d get paid as much as $86 million.? However when this came out in the media because of the agents? court battle, the NBA ?lost it?. The NBA Commissioner, David Stern, fined the Timberwolves $3.5 million and voided all of Joe Smith?s contracts.

An ‘Under-the-Table’ contract, especially this one, is completely unethical and considered highly illegal. However, Joe Smith claims he was unaware of the exact deal that he was getting into. Apart from the heavy sanctions that the NBA levied on the Minnesota Timberwolves, all of Smith?s contracts were declared void. This meant that he would no longer keep his ?Bird rights? with the Timberwolves.?

They suspended the Timberwolves’ owner Glen Taylor through August 31, 2001. Also, the Vice President of Timberwolves’ basketball operations and Celtics legend, Kevin McHale, took a leave of absence through July 31. McHale claims he had no involvement in the ?under-the-table? deal. Joe Smith, who is in the limelight for another controversy recently, lost more than $80 million dollars in this ‘under-the-table’ controversy.

What are your thoughts on the controversial Joe Smith?s ?Under-the-Table? contract? Let us know in the comments below!

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