In early July, as (Ryan) Anderson entered restricted free agency, he thought the Orlando Magic would make a long-term commitment to him, either by matching another team’s offer or by re-signing him outright.

That didn’t happen. The New Orleans Hornets reached an agreement with him for a four-year contract worth about $34 million, and the Magic chose not to match it.

“Some people have the crazy idea that I wanted the trade and I wanted out of there, and that’s not necessarily how it went down,” Anderson said from Louisiana in a phone interview. “It’s a game, and I understand it and I am glad that I’m here. But I just want people to know that I wasn’t turning my back on the team or anything.

“The thing is,” he added, “Orlando didn’t even make a move at me. So it was a situation where every other team we spoke with thought that Orlando was going to match, and the only team that was willing to take that risk was New Orleans. It was just a real different situation.”

via Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel