Greg Oden’s agent says one contract year is better than two for both Heat and his client

When Greg Oden initially agreed to join the Miami Heat this offseason, his contract was reported to be a two-year deal, with Oden holding a player option for that second season.

Despite the risk of signing Oden to any deal given his injury history and the fact that he hasn’t played a minute in the NBA in almost four years, the second year on the contract was believed to be the price of admission in order to retain Oden’s services.

Once it came time to put pen to paper, however, the contract ended up being for only one season at the veteran’s minimum salary, with neither player nor team holding an option for any additional seasons. While this may be viewed as a minor victory for the Miami front office, Oden’s agent wants to make sure we understand that it was a good deal for his client, as well.

From Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald:

Greg Oden’s agent, Mike Conley Jr., said the parties involved changed their mind and decided that Oden would sign a one-year deal with the Heat, without a second-year player option as originally planned. Conley said that helps Oden (because of a league ruling involving injury contingency language in his contract) and helps the Heat because Miami would not be burdened with his contract in 2014-15 --- and potentially $3 million in luxury tax payments -- if he suffers another major injury this season.

The only way the lack of a second year at Oden’s option (and another $1 million plus in his pocket) actually helps Conley’s client would be ... Right. There’s no possible benefit to Oden not having a player option as insurance in case his comeback attempt ends up falling short.