Reasons debated as Elton Brand leaves Clippers for 76ers

One thing is certain: Elton Brand is now a Philadelphia 76er.

How, exactly, he got there, was up for debate Wednesday among the Clippers, Brand and his agent, David Falk.

Brand, who signed a five-year deal with the 76ers worth an estimated $82 million, originally received an offer from the Clippers last week for five years and $70 million, a deal that was delivered as a take-it-or-leave-it ultimatum, Falk said.

"I wasn't angry, but I was surprised. You don't expect a team to give a franchise player an ultimatum. You wouldn't expect the Lakers to do that with Kobe Bryant. You wouldn't expect the Heat to do that with Dwyane Wade," Falk said.

Countered Clippers Coach Mike Dunleavy:

"After I supposedly gave him a take-it-or-leave-it offer, we raised the offer to $75 million and $81 million. They can spin this thing any way they want to try and spin it. The bottom line is, anything Elton ever wanted I did it for him. They stopped having communication with us more than a week ago."

And finally, the player himself:

"That was my intent to sign with the Clippers," Brand said Thursday. "But I'm not a lawyer. We need to make a deal. And in making the deal, it fell through."

Falk said Brand opted out of the last season of his contract with the Clippers, a season in which he was owed $16.4 million, with every intention of re-signing with the organization.

"In free agency, everything is compressed," said Falk, who also represented Michael Jordan and negotiated Sam Cassell's buyout from the Clippers last season.

"You don't have time to play ping-pong. When they said $70 [million], I took it for face value. It was too much of a sacrifice, that's all."

Falk said neither he, nor Brand, was seeking revenge or additional money and, if that had been the case, they would have accepted a five-year and $90-million offer from Golden State.

"Elton made the decision," Falk said. "Coming to Philadelphia wasn't a move made out of revenge. The Warriors were terrific. They were patient and waited. And I know they were very disappointed. If revenge was the motive, he would have ended up in Golden State."

Others in the Clippers organization, including some of Brand's former teammates, believed a deal had been locked in place with him, especially after a verbal agreement was reached with free-agent point guard Baron Davis. Brand had text messaged teammates that he was excited about the prospects of the team, according to NBA sources who requested anonymity because they are not authorized to talk about player movements.