A Stroll Through The NBA Salaries
Pretend for a moment there is no lockout and the collective bargaining agreement isn’t an issue. Instead of facing an unknown amount of time without the NBA or the business of the NBA, we are approaching another season. In the past few weeks we’ve looked at the State of the Cap for each team, trying to decide who would have money to spend and who will be hoping to snag a player to fill a need with a cap exception, but today let’s take a deeper look into the salaries currently on the books, a stroll through the statistics of those deals.
So what kind of neat little tidbits did we find? (2011 draft picks are not included, since they have not signed contracts.)
Fewest Players Under Contract for 2011-12
The Boston Celtics and New Orleans Hornets each only have six players under contract. For the Hornets three of those players (Chris Paul, Emeka Okafor and Trevor Ariza) are starters, and another (David Andersen) has a non-guaranteed deal and signed in Europe. For Boston that’s five starters, if you include Jermaine O’Neal as the fifth starter with Rajon Rondo, Ray Allen, Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett.
Most Players Under Contract for 2011-12
The Cleveland Cavaliers and Oklahoma City Thunder each have 14 players under contract, not including any 2011 draft picks. Four of Cleveland’s deals are non-guaranteed while only two are for OKC. The Thunder also has a Qualifying Offer out for Daequan Cook.
Fewest Players Under Contract for 2012-13
Boston Celtics – 3 (Paul Pierce, Rajon Rondo and Kevin Garnett)
Most Players Under Contract for 2012-13
Houston Rockets – 10
The Rockets hold team options on five of them (all rookie scale deals) they did not pick up before the lockout began. Two others are non-guaranteed.
Orlando has nine players under contract, but that includes two Early Termination Options, two Player Options, one Team Option, and one non-guaranteed deal.
Oklahoma City has nine fully guaranteed deals on the books with no options. That nine doesn’t include Russell Westbrook, who is eligible for restricted free agency next summer and an extension when the lockout is lifted (presuming the old rules, which may be a bad assumption).
Fewest Players Under Contract for 2012-13
Charlotte Bobcats – 1 (Tyrus Thomas)
A few teams could be at zero if options are declined and deals not guaranteed
Most Players Under Contract for 2012-13
Miami HEAT – 6
No options, all fully guaranteed.
Teams With the Most Committed Dollars, By Season
2011-12: Los Angeles Lakers – $91,113,227
2012-13: Los Angeles Lakers – $91,608,109
2013-14: Miami HEAT – $71,011,000
2014-15: Miami HEAT – $76,248,000
2015-16: Miami HEAT – $65,785,000
Teams With the Least Committed Dollars, By Season
2011-12: Denver Nuggets – $29,660,238
2012-13: Denver Nuggets – $16,898,358
2013-14: Los Angeles Clippers – $6,376,075
2014-15: Detroit Pistons, Los Angeles Clippers, Orlando Magic, Philadelphia 76ers $0
2015-16: 22 teams – $0
The Breakdown of Dollars Committed in 2015-16, By Team
Atlanta Hawks – $36,894,865 (Joe Johnson and Al Horford)
Chicago Bulls – $13,400,000 (Joakim Noah)
Dallas Mavericks – $10,522,500 (Brendan Haywood)
Golden State Warriors – $15,493,680 (David Lee)
Memphis Grizzlies – $9,388,426 (Mike Conley)
Miami HEAT – $65,785,000 (LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade)
Oklahoma City Thunder – $19,317,680 (Kevin Durant)
Phoenix Suns – $4,250,000 (Jared Dudley)
Team With Most Rookie Scale Contracts
Minnesota Timberwolves – 7 (Michael Beasley, Kevin Love, Wesley Johnson, Ricky Rubio, Anthony Randolph, Lazar Hayward and Wayne Ellington)
Team With Least Rookie Scale Contracts
Los Angeles Lakers, Miami HEAT – 0
(The two teams with the highest payrolls for the next four seasons have zero rookie scale contracts between them? That shouldn’t be a surprise. Miami did pick one up at the 2011 NBA Draft – Norris Cole – via trade; the Lakers did not.)
Most 2011 Qualifying Offers Issued
Washington Wizards – 4 (Hamady Ndiaye, Larry Owens, Nick Young and Othyus Jeffers)
Denver had three – Arron Afflalo, Wilson Chandler and Gary Forbes.
Those are some numbers we found interesting, but what about you? Feel free to scroll through the pages yourself and see what jumps out at you. Or, drop a line in the comments about something you may be wondering about.
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