The Golden State Warriors have signed restricted free agent forward Ronny Turiaf to an offer sheet, Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations Chris Mullin announced today.  Per team policy, terms of the offer sheet were not announced.  Under the rules of the NBA’s collective bargaining agreement, the Los Angeles Lakers have seven days (through Thursday, July 17) to match the Warriors’ offer.
Turiaf, 25, appeared in 78 games (21 starts) last season with the Lakers, averaging 6.6 points, 3.9 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.38 blocks in 18.7 minutes per contest.  In the 35 contests in which he played 20-or-more minutes last season, he averaged 10.0 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.14 blocks.
A native of the French Caribbean island of Martinique, Turiaf ranked fifth in the NBA in blocked shots per 48 minutes played (3.56) and ranked 22nd in the league in blocked shots overall despite limited playing time.
A three-year NBA veteran, Turiaf owns career averages of 5.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 1.13 blocks and 15.6 minutes in 173 regular-season games with the Lakers.  The 6′10” 250-pound graduate of Gonzaga University has shot 50.4% (350-695 FG) from the field and 70.3% (244-347 FT) from the free throw line during his career.

The  National  Basketball  Association today announced  that  the  Salary  Cap  for  the  2008-09 season will be $58.680 million.   The  new  Cap  goes  into  effect  immediately  as  the league’s “moratorium  period”  has ended and teams can begin signing free agents and making trades.
The  tax level for the 2008-09 season has been set at $71.150 million.  Any team whose team salary exceeds that figure will pay a $1 tax for each $1 by which it exceeds $71.150 million.
The  mid-level  exception  is $5.585 million for the 2008-09 season and the minimum  team  salary,  which  is  set at 75% of the Salary Cap, is $44.010 million.
For  the 2007-08 season, the Salary Cap was set at $55.630 million, the tax level was $67.865 million and the mid-level exception was $5.356 million.

The San Francisco Chronicle (Janny Hu) reports on her blog: Flush with cap space after Davis’ sudden exit, the Warriors have offered free agent Elton Brand a five-year deal worth between $85 and $90 million, according to league source. Brand, like Davis, opted out of the final year of his contract just before Monday’s deadline, giving up a guaranteed $16.4 million for next season. At the time, Brand’s agent, David Falk, told reporters that the move was designed to create some cap flexibility for the Clippers to add another top-line player.
InsideHoops.com editor says: I think both Baron and Elton want to be in Los Angeles, to play together but also to further their careers in the movie industry, which can obviously be done easier as long as they are based near Hollywood. On the other hand, if Brand can make an extra $20 million playing for the Warriors, that money goes a long way.