After the threat of being the next NBA casualty to Europe, Sasha Vujacic and the Lakers have agreed to a deal.

After some tense negotiations, the Lakers and restricted free agent guard Sasha Vujacic agreed to a deal Friday afternoon, Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak confirmed.

The deal, according to sources close to the player, is for $15 million over three years.

The 6-foot-7 guard is scheduled to earn $5 million per season. [Press Enterprise]

The deal is a step up from the $12mil/three-year that the Lakers offered him yesterday. So there it is. The Sasha sweeps is over. Sasha got paid, Mitch got his guy, and everyone is happy.

Well, most everyone. Sasha’s $5mil/year deal makes him monetarily more valuable than both Derek Fisher and Andrew Bynum in their current contracts. This may bring up some questions as far as the financial situation that the Lakers are in. Despite the letting go of Ronny Turiaf, the Lakers are under pressure to extend Andrew Bynums contract for BIG money by the start of the season.

[Complete Story at LA Hoops Blog]

There’s a possibility that Sasha Vujacic might end up in Europe come next season. Hat tip to The Lakers Nation.

First Atlanta’s Josh Childress headed overseas, signing a lucrative deal from a Greek club. Now Houston’s Carl Landry is entertaining offers from across the Atlantic.

Lakers’ Sasha Vujacic also has been contacted by several European clubs, according to a Slovenian newspaper. (Probably a good move for him considering no NBA clubs have expressed interest in signing the restricted free agent).

Kobe Bryant said he wouldn’t be surprised if Vujacic takes the money and runs to Europe (if the rumors are true) considering the Lakers aren’t offering him more than a qualifying one-year deal worth $2.6 million.

“It depends on how much money they’re throwing at him,” Bryant said. “You got rules (NBA’s salary cap), so you’re playing with an uneven playing field. So if they want to throw a boatload of money at him.” [OC Register Lakers Blog]

Interesting. This Euro fever, presumably sparked by Brandon Jennings’ decision to forego the NBA’s one-and-done rule, can’t be good for the Association. Europe is growing in desirability among NBA players largely because of an influx of wealthy owners willing to dole out the cash to bring in high-profile players and varying tax policies.

It may all be fluke, but the trend is catching on. Could the NBA’s image as the world’s premiere basketball league be in peril?

[Edit: 6:16pm] Delonte West is in negotiations with Dynamo Moscow for a two year, $10 deal. Jason Kidd is also showing interest.

[Edit: 11:19pm] What started as a rumor, seems to be getting a little more serious.

Lakers reserve guard Sasha Vujacic, a restricted free agent, is prepared to leave the team and accept an offer from a European team in the next few days if the Lakers don’t make him an offer he deems fair, according to a source in the Vujacic camp who spoke only on the condition of anonymity.

The source said Vujacic is seeking a multiyear deal from the Lakers averaging about $5 million a year. Vujacic was hoping for a six-year deal, but anticipated it could be shorter contract. [LA Times]

Ouch. $5mil/year? It’s going to be an interesting few days, especially considering Mitch’s goal going into the offseason was to re-sign both Ronny and Sasha. $5 million a year is a significant increase on Sasha’s current contract, which sat at just over $1.75mil.

Putting the situation into perspective yields these results: Vujacic is arguably more valuable than Vlad Radmanovic, who is currently making $5,632,200, and Luke Walton, who is making $4mil. It all backfires, however, when $5mil/year would be more than Derek Fisher’s deal by $649,000… not to mention, it dwarfs Andrew Bynum’s current contract twice over and change.

The Lakers have a big decision to make in the coming days. LAHB will keep you current.

[Edit: Fri. 10:24am] Big development:

The Lakers offered Vujacic a three-year deal worth about $12 million, a salary that would pay him $4 million per season.

Vujacic, 24, is seeking a deal that will pay him between $5 million and $6 million per season, similar to what Jason Kapono (four years, $24 million from Toronto), James Posey (four years, $25 million from New Orleans) and Mickael Pietrus (four years, $25.1 million from Orlando) got. [Press Enterprise]

So, the deal is on the table; albeit $1mil short of what Sasha wants. Vujacic, who came out of the Finals with “I want be Laker for life,” now has his chance to hold true on his statements for the time being. Now, we sit back and wait. As always, LAHB will keep you current.

[Edit: Fri. 3:41pm] We should be getting an answer within the next few hours:

Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak said he expects a “resolution” to the Sasha Vujacic contract situation later this afternoon.

“I hope it’s pro-Lakers,” he said. [OC Register Lakers Blog]

[Edit: Fri. 5:01pm] It's over. The Lakers and Vujacic have reached a deal worth a reported $15mil. Read about it.

[Complete Entry at LA Hoops Blog]

Phil Jackson finally agreed to that two-year extension that had been nagging at him for some time now. The move bothered me somewhat after Phil's demeanor over the past few games, but tonight's huge 127, 99 win over Denver sways my opinion quite a bit.

Jackson set Thanksgiving as a deadline for his decision, and after a tough road trip through the East Coast, a coaching error in the final play of Sunday's contest with the Nets, and a sloppy win over one of the league's worst teams, we all figured something was going to give.

Jackson's decision surprised me... and almost angered me, but some six hours later, I see the light. I sometimes forget about the head the Jackson had on his shoulders. I sometimes forget that he commanded MJ and the Bulls to victory. I sometimes forget that he brought championship basketball back to LA. Sometimes Phil looks disinterested as a coach, but when he leads the Lakers to big wins; his presence is invaluable.

And a big win this was. Despite trailing by 17 at one point in the second quarter, The Lakers posted seven in double figures, including someone who came out of the woodwork to land a career high. Sasha Vujacic lit it up from the field, finishing with 22 points. Kobe (aptly enough) scored 24, Luke Walton came off the bench with 14, and Lamar Odom posted 12.

Andrew Bynum showed his stuff, snagging another double-double, with 12 points and 11 rebounds.

The Lakers point guard tandem of D-Fish and Jordan Farmar put up 10 points respectively.

The best part to me, however was a result of the big lead... We finally got to see a lot more of the Bench Mob. The Lakers bench scored 63 points. That is HUGE.

We saw a lot of rookie, Javaris Crittenton, who scored seven points in five minutes.

We saw some more time out of newcomer Trevor Ariza, who laid some bricks at the line, missed a gimme, and impressed nobody.

SIDENOTES

• Carmelo Anthony was ejected in the fourth quarter after nearly taking Sasha's dome off, in a play that resulted in a flagrant-two ruling after a video review.

• Coby Karl scored 19 points in his first game with the Lakers' D-league affiliate, the Los Angeles D-Fenders.