The Pacers' front office appears quite adamant in its treatment of the ongoing Jamaal Tinsley situation.
As reported by the Indianapolis Star's Mike Wells:
Pacers officials are expected to intensify their efforts to move Tinsley before training camp.
Word is Tinsley's knee is healthy and he's working out in Atlanta.
The Pacers are maintaining their stance of not wanting to buy out the remaining three years of Tinsley's contract, which is about $21 million. I hear Tinsley's nameplate has been taken down inside the lockerroom at Conseco Fieldhouse.
There's a chance, albeit a very slight one, that they could change their thoughts on the situation if they can't find a team to trade Tinsley to and he decides he'll agree to a buyout that's less than the $21 million he's owed.
I don't understand this mindset.
Yes, it would be preferable for the Pacers to get something back for Tinsley rather than to take the financial hit of buying him out. But the fact is that the team has made it perfectly clear for some time now that they want no part of him - which doesn't help his trade value - and the Pacers have spent that time trying to move him to no avail. After a certain point, the Pacers are going to have to make a decision about just how important it is for them to get rid of the guy. Since they've done everything short of simply coming right out to call him a team cancer, it would seem that buying him out just to have it over and done with might just be the way the team has to go.