boutons_deux
07-19-2015, 06:14 AM
LAS VEGAS — To understand how the business model of N.B.A. (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations/n/national_basketball_association/index.html?inline=nyt-org) salaries is unlike ever before, consider the cases of Reggie Jackson, Khris Middleton and DeMarre Carroll.
They are not All-Stars.
They are not exactly household names, either.
Nonetheless, those three players received a combined $210 million in deals this summer:
Jackson got $80 million over five years from the Detroit Pistons;
Middleton a five-year, $70 million deal to stay with the Milwaukee Bucks; and
Carroll a four-year contract worth nearly $60 million to join the Toronto Raptors.
A few years ago, such deals would have been considered baffling. These days, they seem fair.
“The numbers you hear out there, they seem crazy to think about,” Miami Heat center Hassan Whiteside said.
Thanks to a $24 billion television deal that takes effect before the 2016-17 season, already skyrocketing salaries will soon reach new heights. It is hard to fathom that a league that dealt with serious labor strife four years ago and might be looking at another work stoppage in a couple of years is about to become flush with so much cash.
“One of the things we’re learning is that there is so much that’s unpredictable when the cap is moving so dramatically as it did — as it will next year and the year after that,” N.B.A. Commissioner Adam Silver said. “We’re continuing to study how our system is absorbing the money.”
Despite all the contract riches, Silver offers a word of caution.
“A significant number of teams are continuing to lose money, and they continue to lose money because their expenses exceed their revenue,” Silver said. :lol no shit!
Yet, to many, the riches seem greater than ever. The salary cap for this coming season was supposed to rise considerably — to $67 million; it reached $70 million.
The salary cap for the 2016-17 season might be $90 million.
For the season after that, perhaps $110 million or more.
These days, players who might not have been considered stars are getting what would recently have been star-level deals. John Wall of the Washington Wizards, one of the league’s elite point guards, aired his complaints.
“I’m getting the same as Reggie Jackson,” he lamented, as quoted by CSN Washington.
Wall, a two-time All-Star, is going into the second year of a five-year, $85 million deal. Jackson cashed in after averaging nearly 18 points in 27 games with Detroit this past season, a breakout that followed three and a half seasons of largely unheralded work.
“That new C.B.A. kicked in at the right time,” Wall said of the collective bargaining agreement.
It seems as if every player is reaping benefits. Under the current C.B.A., player salaries are supposed to take about 50.4 percent of the league’s basketball-related income.
This past season, income grew more than expected, so the league wrote a check to the National Basketball Players Association to cover the difference — roughly $57 million.
Silver thinks that might look like peanuts next year.
“We could be writing a check moving close to half a billion dollars to the players association,” Silver said. “That’s not, of course, the ideal outcome from our standpoint.”
Advertisement
Silver added: “It’s happened because the revenue we generated was much higher than we had ever modeled. But we’re also learning that when you have all that money coming into the system, team behavior isn’t necessarily predictable, either.”
The numbers right now are huge, which is giving some within the game hope that the league and the union — which can opt out of the current C.B.A. in two years — can avoid any more interruptions in play.
Anthony Davis was locked up by the New Orleans Pelicans for $145 million during the next five years. LeBron James of the Cleveland Cavaliers will make $23 million this season; he could earn more than $30 million in 2016-17 if he opts out once again.
“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Steve Mills, the Knicks’ general manager, said when asked about how contract values keep soaring. “Obviously, it changes what happens with the league.”
The growth has been steady in recent years, although now the climb seems to be much steeper. In 2011, the average annual value of new free-agent contracts was about $5 million. So far this year, it is flirting with the $10 million mark.
Whiteside will make a little less than $1 million this season. Next summer, it would not be surprising if he landed a deal worth $80 million or more.
“Can’t think about it,” Whiteside said. “It’s hard to process. I just worry about what I can control.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/19/sports/basketball/nba-salaries-explode-even-among-average-players.html?partner=rss&emc=rss&_r=0
They are not All-Stars.
They are not exactly household names, either.
Nonetheless, those three players received a combined $210 million in deals this summer:
Jackson got $80 million over five years from the Detroit Pistons;
Middleton a five-year, $70 million deal to stay with the Milwaukee Bucks; and
Carroll a four-year contract worth nearly $60 million to join the Toronto Raptors.
A few years ago, such deals would have been considered baffling. These days, they seem fair.
“The numbers you hear out there, they seem crazy to think about,” Miami Heat center Hassan Whiteside said.
Thanks to a $24 billion television deal that takes effect before the 2016-17 season, already skyrocketing salaries will soon reach new heights. It is hard to fathom that a league that dealt with serious labor strife four years ago and might be looking at another work stoppage in a couple of years is about to become flush with so much cash.
“One of the things we’re learning is that there is so much that’s unpredictable when the cap is moving so dramatically as it did — as it will next year and the year after that,” N.B.A. Commissioner Adam Silver said. “We’re continuing to study how our system is absorbing the money.”
Despite all the contract riches, Silver offers a word of caution.
“A significant number of teams are continuing to lose money, and they continue to lose money because their expenses exceed their revenue,” Silver said. :lol no shit!
Yet, to many, the riches seem greater than ever. The salary cap for this coming season was supposed to rise considerably — to $67 million; it reached $70 million.
The salary cap for the 2016-17 season might be $90 million.
For the season after that, perhaps $110 million or more.
These days, players who might not have been considered stars are getting what would recently have been star-level deals. John Wall of the Washington Wizards, one of the league’s elite point guards, aired his complaints.
“I’m getting the same as Reggie Jackson,” he lamented, as quoted by CSN Washington.
Wall, a two-time All-Star, is going into the second year of a five-year, $85 million deal. Jackson cashed in after averaging nearly 18 points in 27 games with Detroit this past season, a breakout that followed three and a half seasons of largely unheralded work.
“That new C.B.A. kicked in at the right time,” Wall said of the collective bargaining agreement.
It seems as if every player is reaping benefits. Under the current C.B.A., player salaries are supposed to take about 50.4 percent of the league’s basketball-related income.
This past season, income grew more than expected, so the league wrote a check to the National Basketball Players Association to cover the difference — roughly $57 million.
Silver thinks that might look like peanuts next year.
“We could be writing a check moving close to half a billion dollars to the players association,” Silver said. “That’s not, of course, the ideal outcome from our standpoint.”
Advertisement
Silver added: “It’s happened because the revenue we generated was much higher than we had ever modeled. But we’re also learning that when you have all that money coming into the system, team behavior isn’t necessarily predictable, either.”
The numbers right now are huge, which is giving some within the game hope that the league and the union — which can opt out of the current C.B.A. in two years — can avoid any more interruptions in play.
Anthony Davis was locked up by the New Orleans Pelicans for $145 million during the next five years. LeBron James of the Cleveland Cavaliers will make $23 million this season; he could earn more than $30 million in 2016-17 if he opts out once again.
“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Steve Mills, the Knicks’ general manager, said when asked about how contract values keep soaring. “Obviously, it changes what happens with the league.”
The growth has been steady in recent years, although now the climb seems to be much steeper. In 2011, the average annual value of new free-agent contracts was about $5 million. So far this year, it is flirting with the $10 million mark.
Whiteside will make a little less than $1 million this season. Next summer, it would not be surprising if he landed a deal worth $80 million or more.
“Can’t think about it,” Whiteside said. “It’s hard to process. I just worry about what I can control.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/19/sports/basketball/nba-salaries-explode-even-among-average-players.html?partner=rss&emc=rss&_r=0