Blazers renouncing rights to Freeland, Koponen? Not so fast

Blazers broadcaster Mike Rice stirred things up on Courtside Live the other night when he said that the Blazers planned to renounce their rights to Joel Freeland and Petteri Koponen — two former draft picks now competing in Europe — by the end of the month.

Well, if you found the statement to be a bit confusing considering the strong, flattering statements Blazers GM Kevin Pritchard has made about both players over the years, well, there may be a reason for that: It's not going to happen, Pritchard said on Wednesday.

"We have no plans on letting those guys go," Pritchard said after the Blazers' draft workout on Wednesday.

The thought process behind renouncing the rights to both players would be to extend the Blazers' salary cap flexibility. While Portland can retain their rights indefinitely, the down side is that both players count against Portland's salary cap with what is known as a "cap hold." The two players would have a combined cap hold of approximately $1.5 million this summer, Pritchard said.

But after dismissing the idea of releasing those players, Pritchard made strong statements about both Koponen and Freeland. Koponen, who averaged 2.8 points and 0.8 assists in 14.3 minutes while playing behind former NBA point guard Earl Boykins for La Fortezza Bologna, is not expected to join the Blazers' summer league team this year because of his European commitments. But during last year's summer league the Blazers were considering whether to sign Koponen and bring him in for last season, and Pritchard indicated that the Blazers have not lost interest in the 21-year-old point guard.

But Pritchard commented several times during the season about the year 6-foot-10 forward Joel Freeland was having for Kalise Gran Canaria. In 31 games, the 22-year-old Freeland averaged 9.9 points and 4.8 rebounds in 17.3 minutes while shooting 58 percent from the field. Freeland also averaged 15.5 points and shot 70 percent (39 of 56) from the field in Eurocup play, and averaged 10.0 points while shooting 63 percent (22 of 35) from the field during the European Championships.

"He made a quantum leap, to the point where he's getting great offers and will probably stay over," Pritchard said of Freeland. "I've talked to him a couple times, and he's getting multi-million dollar offers from Europe. He wants to be in the NBA, that's no doubt. He wants to come over when he's ready ... so I think between (age) 24 and 25, he wants to improve over the next couple years so when he comes over he can really make an impact. And you know what? When I heard that — because we talked about having him over early — I kind of liked him saying that. He's like, 'Listen, I know I can play over there, I know I can get better over there, and when I'm ready, I'm coming.'"