With Josh Childress officially deciding to sign a contract in Greece, Atlanta Hawks General Manager Rick Sund had plenty to say.

"We were informed this morning by Josh Childress' representatives that he has signed with Olympiacos in Greece, and we want to wish him the absolute best with his future career in FIBA.

"We have a great of respect for Josh and appreciate his contributions to our franchise.  We were very comfortable when we began this process that if Josh were to play in the NBA, he would remain with the Hawks.  This is a unique situation with Greece, and to my knowledge it is believe to be the highest contract ever awarded in Euroleague history.

"We feel we presented a very fair and competitive offer to keep him in Atlanta, and we will now move forward with the options we have to improve our roster."

Now for some more details. The contract the Hawks offered Childress would have made him the fourth-highest member of the team, according to Sund. Speedy Claxton is on the books for $5.76 million in 2008-09, Marvin Williams for $5.64 million, so that leaves a fairly small window for fourth (both Mike Bibby and Joe Johnson will make in excess of $14 million).

For a "utility" player, that would seem like more than a fair salary. Sund also said ownership was told him they will pay to exceed the luxury tax if Sund feels the cost would put the team at not only a .500+ level, but a championship level.

Anyone out there think retaining Childress at about $5.7 million makes the Hawks a championship team? Instead, the Hawks may now go out and spend the mid-level exception ($5.85 million) on a veteran that will complement the team (remember, Kwame Brown had an impressive workout last week for them).

Childress cited a number of reasons for leaving Atlanta. There is always talk when a player leaves and it never centers around the money, though it should. Childress questioned the Hawks commitment to winning, something that would run counter to everything else we have seen so far. On the contrary, the Hawks seem very dedicated to winning after their challenge of the eventual champion Boston Celtics in the NBA playoffs.

There was also some talk of a sign-and-trade, reportedly with two top level teams. Suns indicated the offers were for players who would barely crack Atlanta's rotation, let alone make the impact Childress could. From Atlanta's point of view, why spend that money if it won't make you better?

The fact is Atlanta's offer was the best Childress could get - in the NBA. Atlanta chose not to compete with the offer from Olympiacos Piraeus. "I can only compete in the league I play in," justified Sund.

It all comes back to the Hawks were not going to overpay for a player they really liked, but was replaceable. If Childress got more money from Greece, they weren't going to jump up like puppies and match the deal just to keep him at great expense. In the end, it's probably a good deal for both sides. Look for the Hawks to tender a qualifying offer to Josh Childress ever summer to retain his NBA rights should he choose to come back to the league.

Now the Hawks can focus exclusively on Josh Smith, their other restricted free agent. because Childress is gone that doesn't mean Smith gets that money and a deal gets done tonight, but it could have some bearing on the situation. Sund described talks with Smith as "ongoing" and said he would not be giving a play-by-play. When something of note happens, he will talk about it.

Kudos to the Hawks for not bowing to pressure. And good luck to Josh Childress across the open water.