Dukies in the NBA 2019-20

[elvis14]

Excuse me, Kyrie is easily one of the 20+ Top-ten players in the league.


I am one of the 80% that considers himself an above-average driver.

Raise your hand if you had to read that two times...and then laughed.

I don't understand that world at all. I'd be more than happy to make, say, $3 million a year even if somebody else was making $30+ million. Honestly, what difference does it make? I mean, I understand wanting to make as much as you can, but I've been working as a physician for 30 years and (although I'm not going to stop and do the math) I honestly don't think I've made $3 million gross income yet, even with 30 years of hard work as a professional. (You may think that's impossible, but I happened to choose the lowest paying medical job in the world, and for the first 12 years of my professional life my highest salary was $65/year, which I only made for the last three years of that 12-year period.)

I guess what I'm saying is that it's hard to feel sorry for somebody who "only" makes $3 million a year, even if other teammates are making 10 times more and not producing as much. In the grand scheme of things, what do you need that you can afford on a $30 million salary that you can't afford on a $3 million salary? I mean, seriously. /rant

A couple of notes, a $3m salary means you are doing quite well for yourself and your parents. A $30m salary means a change for your extended family and future generations. More importantly, however, I ignore the actual number and think about in relative terms in numbers real people can relate to. So someone you know is doing a great job and earning $60,000 a year. They have a co-worker doing a similar job making $600,000 a year. That could be an issue.

[UrinalCake]

I don't understand that world at all. I'd be more than happy to make, say, $3 million a year even if somebody else was making $30+ million.

It’s all relative I guess. Somebody making minimum wage would look at a professional making $100k and wonder why they want a raise that would pay them $150k. To them, $100k is already a lot of money and they would be happy to make that much and can’t understand why someone in that position would complain.

Also consider that professional athletes have a window of maybe 10 years to earn all the money they can for their whole careers. And they’ve got agents, managers, personal trainers, etc. all taking a cut, after taxes. Yes they can do other things after they retire, but they e spent their whole lives preparing to be professional ball players so they’ve got to maximize their earnings while they can.

[CameronBornAndBred]

Keith Smith is reporting that the Magic have pulled Amile's qualifying offer, making him an unrestricted free agent.

Amile back to Orlando for another year. (Two way contract)

https://www.orlandosentinel.com/spor...oyi-story.html

[NSDukeFan]

I don't understand that world at all. I'd be more than happy to make, say, $3 million a year even if somebody else was making $30+ million. Honestly, what difference does it make? I mean, I understand wanting to make as much as you can, but I've been working as a physician for 30 years and (although I'm not going to stop and do the math) I honestly don't think I've made $3 million gross income yet, even with 30 years of hard work as a professional. (You may think that's impossible, but I happened to choose the lowest paying medical job in the world, and for the first 12 years of my professional life my highest salary was $65/year, which I only made for the last three years of that 12-year period.)

I guess what I'm saying is that it's hard to feel sorry for somebody who "only" makes $3 million a year, even if other teammates are making 10 times more and not producing as much. In the grand scheme of things, what do you need that you can afford on a $30 million salary that you can't afford on a $3 million salary? I mean, seriously. /rant

Sixty-five dollars working for a year as a physician seems pretty low. They get paid better than that here in Canada, even in the public system. 😀

[jimsumner]

Sixty-five dollars working for a year as a physician seems pretty low. They get paid better than that here in Canada, even in the public system. 😀

But it does keep you in a low tax bracket.

[Acymetric]

Those three were all on rookie contracts, so I’m not following how they would be frustrated by the higher salaries of the older players. That’s just how the league works. Unless you’re suggesting that they were looking ahead to their upcoming second contracts and felt that the team wasn’t keeping enough cap space clear to be able to reward them when their time came?

Have you never worked in a situation where a colleague gets paid a lot more, and gets more time in the spotlight, despite producing less? It can be very galling, even if (or perhaps particularly) that is just how the comp structure works.

Just so we are clear, my fine smelling friend, this salary friction on the Celtics is not something we are just making up here on the DBR. Both Yahoo and NBA sports have reported on it in the past 48 hours. So, while you may not find it likely, it appears to be pretty solidly in the media narrative at this point.

If true, it suggests that these guys were going to be unhappy and cause friction no matter what team they were on or who the older players were. They were never going to be the highest paid players on their teams while on their rookie contracts.

I'll add that Tatum didn't exactly set the world on fire last year.

[brlftz]

Not necessarily. If your studs play like studs then there might be less resentment

[Acymetric]

Not necessarily. If your studs play like studs then there might be less resentment

Which I can totally understand from a playing time standpoint (I would have been surprised if there hadn't been resentment over that especially with Hayward). How many teams don't have 2nd-3rd contract role-player types making more than these guys on their first contract despite clearly not being as talented? Is there a single one?

[sagegrouse]

From the espn article on Kyle Korver signing with the Bucks, there is a table of the current players with the most consecutive seasons making the playoffs. Redick, as we know, is in the lead. Here are the others:

Kyle Korver has the second-longest active streak of consecutive playoff appearances, one that seems likely to continue with his move to Milwaukee.
Years
JJ Redick 13
Kyle Korver 12
James Harden 10
Patty Mills 10
Three tied 9

Patty Mills has been in the NBA ten years?

[AGDukesky]

Unfortunately, Redick”s streak is in severe jeopardy this season

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Unfortunately, Redick”s streak is in severe jeopardy this season

Yeah. Pelicans should be fun to watch, but the West is going to be stacked.

[elvis14]

Unfortunately, Redick”s streak is in severe jeopardy this season

Really hope this turns out to be wrong! So many Blue Devils on that team...would love for Zion to just kill it!

[sagegrouse]

Unfortunately, Redick”s streak is in severe jeopardy this season

Yeah. Pelicans should be fun to watch, but the West is going to be stacked.

Really hope this turns out to be wrong! So many Blue Devils on that team...would love for Zion to just kill it!

Gives us a sub-theme for the Pelicans' season" "Keep JJ's streak alive!" But, I can envision mid-season, if the Pelicans falter, we may want him to be traded to a contender.

[TheOldBattleship]

Gives us a sub-theme for the Pelicans' season" "Keep JJ's streak alive!" But, I can envision mid-season, if the Pelicans falter, we may want him to be traded to a contender.

If the Pels look like they aren't going to be pushing for a playoff spot, the decision on what to do with JJ will be a really interesting one that will say a lot about where Griffin sees the team going in the next few years. JJ is absolutely a piece that a lot of playoff teams would love to have, so you could see someone throwing a nice pick/young player to the Pels to get him for the stretch run. But he's such an important piece for the Pels, given how little shooting they have to spread the floor, and he's such a great culture piece and fit both on the court and in the lockerroom with Jrue, that I'd be a little surprised if they did give him up if they thought they would have a shot at the playoffs the NEXT year. Basically, if they trade him, I'd take it a pretty clear sign that they think they are much further from being a playoff-level team than everyone thinks they are at this point, and wouldn't be surprised to see a general firesale of guys who don't fit that longer timeline (Jrue?). My sense is that they're happy to play the long game with Zion, Hayes, and the zillion draft picks they got back for Davis, but also to push to be a good team in the short term with Jrue, JJ, and the young guys from the Lakers. They're going to be a completely fascinating team to watch all year, that's for sure.

[AGDukesky]

I would think the Pels want to win now so that Zion is more likely to stay. The last thing they want is to develop Zion and then lose him in free agency. All of that assumes Zion is approaching his expected potential by that time...

[brevity]

“I wouldn’t go to a team if I thought they didn’t have a chance to make the playoffs.”

NOLA.com: J.J. Redick explains his decision behind joining the new-look Pelicans

[flyingdutchdevil]

I would think the Pels want to win now so that Zion is more likely to stay. The last thing they want is to develop Zion and then lose him in free agency. All of that assumes Zion is approaching his expected potential by that time...

Franchise players rarely leave after their rookie contract. They always sign the extension. That gives the Pellies at least a Sox year window. No pressure to ‘win now’.

[JasonEvans]

Franchise players rarely leave after their rookie contract. They always sign the extension.

Especially because they really don't have the option to leave after the 4-year rookie contract anyway because they are restricted free agents and the team that holds their rights can match any contract offer the player gets. Essentially, the NBA locks a player to a team for at least 5 years -- the 4 year rookie deal and at least 1 year of restricted free agency (though, in reality, that second contract is almost always longer than 1 year for a good player).

That gives the Pellies at least a Sox year window.

A Red Sox year window or a White Sox year window? They are quite different, I have been told.

-Jason "when you consider all the other assets Nawlins is going to have to go alongside Zion in future seasons, it is hard to see how they won't be a successful franchise for the next decade" Evans

[Matches]

-Jason "when you consider all the other assets Nawlins is going to have to go alongside Zion in future seasons, it is hard to see how they won't be a successful franchise for the next decade" Evans

I think the lesson of this past year is that the landscape in the NBA shifts so suddenly that it's impossible to project that far out. A trade request from a superstar can change everything literally overnight. It'll be interesting to see how the owners push back.

[mkirsh]

-Jason "when you consider all the other assets Nawlins is going to have to go alongside Zion in future seasons, it is hard to see how they won't be a successful franchise for the next decade" Evans

While I like the position NO is in a lot, it's very easy for teams to screw up a good thing in the NBA. Close to home for me, you would think a franchise could turn picks #1, 6, 3, 3 in successive drafts into a team that could win 50 games, but after 8 years the Wiz are blowing everything up without ever advancing past the second round and never being a title contender. The franchise has to do well in multiple areas - talent evaluation/selection, player development, coaching, fit, health, etc - or the window closes quickly.