NEWARK, N.J. (AP) – Free agent forward Shareef Abdur-Rahim has agreed to play for the New Jersey Nets, a person familiar with the negotiations said Thursday.
The Nets also have reached agreement with forward Clifford Robinson, the person within the league said on condition of anonymity.
Contract terms were not available.
Free agent deals cannot be officially announced until the league’s new collective bargaining agreement is signed, something expected to occur within the next week.
The 6-foot-9 Abdur-Rahim played in 54 games last season for Portland, averaging 16.3 points and 7.5 rebounds. In a nine-year career with Vancouver, Atlanta and the Trail Blazers, he has averaged 19.8 points and 8.1 rebounds.
Abdur-Rahim’s agent, Aaron Goodwin, did not immediately return a call requesting comment.
The Nets acquired the 6-foot-10 Robinson from Golden State in February for two second-round draft picks, and he averaged 6 points and 3.3 rebounds in 29 games.
The addition of Abdur-Rahim, a 2002 All-Star, to a team that already includes Jason Kidd, Vince Carter and Richard Jefferson would give the Nets one of the stronger offensive lineups in the Eastern Conference. The Nets also worked out Atlanta Hawks forward Chris Crawford this week, team president Rod Thorn said Thursday.
New Jersey finished third in the Atlantic Division with a 42-40 record in 2004-2005 and was swept in four games by Miami in the first round of the playoffs.
AP-ES-07-21-05 1722EDT
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