In an interesting piece regarding Chris Paul‘s role as the head of the NBA Players Union, Tom Ziller of SB Nation opines that Paul’s reported insistence and hand in incorporating the Over-38 Rule into the 2017 CBA has now ironically landed him with one the most untradeable contracts in the NBA.
Paul, who is admittedly now under contract to make more money because of the rule change, is also stuck on the Thunder, a non-contending team, with no real way out until later this year when the latest crop of free agents become trade eligible.
Ultimately, Ziller opines that the tradeoff (non-contending team vs. an extra $45MM) was worth it for Paul, but wonders whether CP3, as union president, sacrificed the good of many (mid-level earners) for the benefit of few.
We have more odds and ends to report from around the basketball world:
- Amar Sylla, the No. 23 prospect for the 2020 NBA Draft, has signed a three-year contract containing NBA out clauses with Belgian league champions BC Oostende, reports Jonathan Givony of ESPN.
- Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer writes that many executives believe the penalty for tampering needs to be harsher, including the removal of first-round picks or even as severe as being barred from trading any picks for some amount of years in addition to the loss of picks. “Basketball operations needs to get hit the hardest, not an owner’s wallets,” said another executive.
- Canada Basketball has announced the 29 players invited to attend the Senior Men’s National Team training camp ahead of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019. The list includes R.J. Barrett, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Cory Joseph, Jamal Murray, and Tristan Thompson.
Am I the only one not seeing anything related to tanking?
Fixed – thank you.
They apparently still are NOT talking about player convos– just execs. After all the league must still operate legally in America. But it’s hard to tackle the issue just “blaming” the execs. There’s not much that can be done.
Is there really a sob story out there? Teams bereft have been compensated. The setups abandoned were not working, except with Irving. That was world news when he bolted. But the Cavs moved on.
One thing for sure, the 35% incentive does not work.
I think it is a little early to write off the Thunder as a “non-contending” team. They may not have the star power they had last season, but A Paul/Adams led team is surely going to win more than 20 games. They may not make the playoffs, but I wouldn’t classify them as non-contending.
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha. ha
@bowserhound
You laugh but who thought the 2018-19 Clippers that boasted Blake, Tobias, Jordan and Rivers would make the playoffs and press the GSW in 2019 playoffs?
Who would of thought that the GSW would be vulnerable because of injuries and KD’s departure?
OKC making the playoffs with Paul doesn’t sound absurd at all.
If you assume CP3 is going to play more than 50 games, share the ball with Shai AND Adams is going to somehow shine, I’ve got a box of dreams for sale.
@bowserhound
Strange argument but what the heck. a) CP# hasn’t played less than 50 games in the last 5 years. b) Paul’s problem with Harden was too much ISO play and not enough “team” basketball. SGA not being Harden means different people and perhaps different circumstances. Adams doesn’t have to shine. He has to do his job, no more no less. But now OKC has a shooter in Gallinari. Now they have a ball distributor. Who knows what can happen?
Heck they’re not bad off, but besides Gallinari, there is at forward Muscala, rookie Bazly, guard Diallo, Patrick Patterson & Abdul Nader. I think they have 3 centers & 1 forward.
@KFCF
it would not shock me to see OKC win 46 games or more. Especially if CP3 comes in with something to prove and motivated.
I do think they need to move Roberson and Patterson and try and upgrade those spots if they truly want to contend for a playoff spot.
I did. *raises hand*. There is proof on this website
I also have said that I’m not so sure OKC is that bad, and I could argue they have a chance to be just as good or almost as good as they were previously
I do recall a calm voice saying the Clips were a playoff team and people were like WHAT??– It was funny. Prob formerlyz
BTW I think knickscavs meant to say the Clips LOST those players.
Ziller can stop wondering. The answer is Yes. At least in terms of the player side of “the many”. All by design and almost a decade in the making, and it goes way beyond the over 38 rule. NBA superstars took over the player’s union after the 2011 CBA to make sure they got theirs. The 2011 CBA was supposed to be the small market owners revenge for Miami’s big three, and it was certainly written by them to be that. But the 2011 FA period (December) was its high water mark from their standpoint. Thereafter the new superstar led union worked within their framework to funnel $$ to the top. It’s worked.
(….has now ironically landed him with one the most untradeable contracts in the NBA).
or…signed himself to a contract that makes him the 3rd highest salary for 2019-20?
NBA is the only sport where they make you look like a villain because you signed a contract someone agreed to give you.
Guess you’re not into hockey.
You don’t think it’s ironic?
You might not assume that he cares about ever winning a title and that some extra money is more important but I think the point was he probably would have rather gone for a title and made less except that the union likes to see players push the market higher for obvious reasons.
The twist offered is that while he did right by the union as a group in a way he actually set the system up to take money from most of the players to give to the top few.
The problem here is that players never seem to vote for a more or even reasonably even system. The union needs to focus on fighting for their piece of the whole pie with the owners instead of how to slice off ever smaller pieces of their slice for ever growing numbers of players you can figure out an excuse to screw over.
2 or 3 guys at 40 mil and a dozen between 500k and 2 mil? How stupid would voters in that system have to be to go for that?
Cap the top guys at 10 and let them earn any additional money going out and marketing themselves or whatever. If you keep the same splits and minimums in place the owners pay just as much but you get a dozen guys making 10 mil and the amount of the contracts players get is no longer news.