NBA Teams Have Withheld More Than $30 Million From Player Paychecks
ByJoey Heldon May 21, 2020inArticles›Sports News
The COVID-19 pandemic has put the NBA on hold indefinitely. The league is still working to find a solution to finish the 2019-20 season, including potentially playing in a “bubble” of sorts in Las Vegas or Disney World. However, the season has been postponed long enough that player salaries are now being affected.
The NBA and players’ union agreed to a plan to temporarily cut pay by 25 percent. As a result, more than $30 million was withheld from player paychecks on May 15.
The amount withheld from paychecks could rise as high as 40 percent. That scenario would happen if the league cancels the remainder of the regular season and resumes with only the playoffs.
Should the league cancel the regular season and postseason, players will lose more than a collective $1 billion in salary.
Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images
However, if the season resumes as normal, teams will have to return the withheld money. But with each day that passes, that doesn’t seem like a realistic option. Additionally, teams with no chance of making the playoffs have limited incentive to play the final quarter of the season.
According to ESPN, 100 players will have their paychecks reduced by at least $100,000. Adding to the complexity, some players have already been paid in full, so their paycheck reduction will occur next season, beginning either on October 1 or November 15.
Stars like LeBron James , Steph Curry , John Wall , and Kevin Durant have all received their full salary for the 2019-20 season. That means they’ll owe money at the start of the 2020-21 season. For example, Curry will have to pay $420,000 each time there’s a scheduled 25 percent pay reduction. James, meanwhile, will lose $390,000 from every check.
Other players won’t face a full 25 percent reduction because of salary advances they’ve already received. That essentially splits up their withholdings into two payments.
For instance, Russell Westbrook lost $200,555 on May 15, and will owe an additional $200,000 to the Rockets for his 2020-21 salary. Meanwhile, Chris Paul , who was traded for Westbrook and earns about the same amount, had his May 15 check reduced by $401,109. As a result, he won’t owe any additional money for the 2020-21 season – though he could see further reduced checks if play continues to be postponed.
The NBA was on top of the world just a few months ago. Now, they’re in a wait and see mode with plenty of questions still ahead.
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After Playing Zero Games This Season, John Wall Could Make $47+ Million Next Year
ByJoey Heldon May 16, 2022inArticles›Sports News
John Wall has had a tumultuous NBA career. The No. 1 pick in the 2010 NBA Draft, Wall quickly became a key part of the Washington Wizards backcourt alongside Bradley Beal . Wall posted several strong seasons — winning All-Rookie First Team honors in 2011 and making the All-NBA Third Team in 2017 — and made five straight All-Star appearances from 2014 to 2018.
The Wizards thought they might have something special with their backcourt duo, and in July 2017, signed Wall to a four-year, $170 million contract extension. But shortly after that, an injury bug hit — and it hit hard.
Wall missed half of the 2017-18 season dealing with a knee injury, appearing in 41 regular-season games but managing to recover in time for the playoffs. That was five seasons ago; since then, Wall has not played more than 41 games in any given year.
Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images
During the 2018-19 season, he played 32 games before a heel injury prematurely ended his season. He had surgery on the heel, it got infected, and to make matters worse, Wall slipped in his home and ruptured his Achilles. He missed the entire 2019-20 season — which included a four-month delay due to the Covid-19 pandemic — as he recovered from both injuries.
Before the next season started, the Wizards traded Wall to the Houston Rockets for Russell Westbrook , one of the few players with a contract as massive as the one Wall signed. Wall appeared in 40 games with the Rockets that year and showed flashes of his old self. However, he again missed time due to injury, in this case, a hamstring strain.
That brings us to this season. Wall was healthy enough to play…only the Rockets didn’t send him onto the court for even a single minute of action. Houston was among the worst teams in the league and wanted to see how their young core, led by Christian Wood, Kevin Porter, Jr., and Jalen Green, would gel together on the court. Adding Wall into the mix would only delay their team’s development.
Wall has earned about $123 million from this contract already. Now, he has a player option for $47.4 million that he’s planning to accept. Why wouldn’t he? There’s zero chance a team would offer him close to that amount in free agency based on his injury history, so he may as well lock it in.
The problem is that the Rockets likely won’t pay Wall $47.4 million to once again sit on the bench. So, we may see a buyout occur. The Rockets will pay Wall a portion of his contract and send him off into free agency. In return, he’ll offer to give back some of that $47.4 million so he can join another team, perhaps a contender that could use some quality minutes with their second unit. Wall showed glimpses of promise in the 2020-21 season, and he’s now had an entire offseason to rest and focus on his next move. He could be a key piece for another team that’s closer to a championship.
We’ll see what Wall ultimately ends up earning with his next deal. It probably won’t be $47.4 million. But the idea that it could happen for a guy who has played just 72 games over the past four seasons — including ZERO last year — is absolutely wild.
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