Outgoing Boston Celtics forward James Posey poses with a DVD of the team's NBA Championship season at a bookstore in Boston on Tuesday. - AP
NEW ORLEANS (AP)
James Posey agreed yesterday to a four-year US$25 million contract with New Orleans, his agent, Mark Bartelstein, said.
Posey, a 6-foot-8 forward, who last season helped the Boston Celtics win their first championship since 1986, also was part of the Miami Heat's championship squad in the 2005-2006 season. His record of playing a prominent reserve role on title-winning squads made him a top free-agent target for the Hornets, who are coming off their best season in franchise history and looking to contend for a first championship of their own.
Struggled with decision
The Celtics hoped to keep Posey, and Posey himself struggled with the decision, knowing that joining All-Stars Chris Paul and David West in New Orleans would mean leaving behind Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen in Boston, where as recently as Tuesday Posey was signing copies of the Celtics' championship DVD for fans.
"It was a really tough decision for him," Bartelstein said. "Boston was an incredible experience for him every way you look at it. If he was going to leave Boston, he wanted to make sure it was for a team that would compete for a championship immediately and the Hornets certainly are in that world."
Posey averaged 22 minutes of playing time during Boston's playoff run, scoring 6.7 points and grabbing 3.6 rebounds per game.
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