Eric Gordon was playing chess while yall were thinking checkers

quote:

---

Gordon told Yahoo! Sports he regretted those words, but there was a reason he was so cavalier.

“Of course I did [regret it],” Gordon said. “But that was the only way to push the table on the Hornets. To get a deal done I was willing to negotiate. My agent and I were going through negotiations with them. But they weren’t leaning into really giving me one. So I had to ride with Phoenix and from Day 1 they weren’t playing games.”

Gordon was intent on getting a maximum deal and signing it prior to trying out for the Olympic team in mid-July. He felt the Hornets were taking advantage of his restricted free-agent status by taking their time. Without the maximum offer he sought from the Hornets, Gordon instead signed with Suns on July 10. The Hornets eventually matched the deal.

---