Category: NBA Salaries

The NBA free agents primed for the biggest raises

We used ProFitX to get an idea of how much these upcoming free agents can earn next season.

Every year there are players that overwhelmingly outperform the value of their contracts. When these players hit free agency, the annual rate of their new contract increases from double for veterans to tenfold for minimum players.

We decided to look at a handful of players set to receive big raises from their 2020-21 salaries. Most of them are young players either coming off their rookie-scale contracts or minimum deals. We used ProFitX and their salary projections to get an idea of how much these players can earn next season.

Bucks offseason preview: Three challenges facing Milwaukee going forward

Milwaukee will face challenges improving this roster against age-related regression with little-to-no flexibility going forward.

The Milwaukee Bucks are NBA champions for the first time 50 years. This team will likely remain a contender going forward, especially with Giannis Antetokounmpo locked in for five more seasons… but it will still be challenging getting back to the Finals assuming good health to the rest of the top of the Eastern Conference.

The botched Bogdan Bogdanovic sign-and-trade would’ve dwelled over the franchise had they not won. At the same time, maybe it was better things worked out this way because the hard cap issues wouldn’t have allowed them to sign Bryn Forbes and Bobby Portis. They also wouldn’t have been able to use the mid-level exception, meaning they would’ve had difficulties matching salaries for PJ Tucker in a trade while remaining under the hard cap.

Head coach Mike Budenholzer made an impressive 180 going from potentially not being with the team anymore to likely locking himself in for the foreseeable future. Milwaukee will still be facing challenges improving this roster against age-related regression with little-to-no flexibility going forward.

What should the Blazers do this offseason?

The Portland Trail Blazers are in a tough spot this offseason. They have been eliminated in the first round again despite another spectacular season by Damian Lillard. CJ McCollum had his best season yet while Jusuf Nurkic was mostly in good health. …

The Portland Trail Blazers are in a tough spot this offseason. They have been eliminated in the first round again despite another spectacular season by Damian Lillard. CJ McCollum had his best season yet while Jusuf Nurkic was mostly in good health. The Blazers gained a lot of flexibility after having the last remnants of 2016 contracts expire, allowing them to get aggressive and acquire veterans Robert Covington and Norman Powell.

This starting unit hasn’t played together for very long, suggesting that there is room for improvement. Perhaps a new head coach and an improved bench can push them further in the playoffs. On the other hand, it is possible that we’ve seen the best from this group due to potential age-related regression and future lack of flexibility with several of these players due for raises. Also, if this is the best we’ll see from this group, the temptation to extract maximum value for these players and jump-start a rebuild will loom.

Whether they realize it or not, Portland is at a crossroads. Their coaching search has already taken an awkward turn with Lillard’s public support for Jason Kidd, and his future in Portland is already being questioned with other teams monitoring him. While the rumors may or may not grow as we get closer to the offseason, at this point, it is fair to weigh if the Blazers should continue competing with this core or rebuild.

2022 NBA free agent rankings: Top players available next year

The 2022 NBA free-agent class should be loaded and, barring a 2021-esque, extension-filled snoozefest, the drama should be high.

After the disappointment of the 2021 NBA free agency class, with the way it fell apart due to certain players somewhat surprisingly signing extensions, the focus will now shift to the 2022 class, which has some elite names headlining it.

Of course, the problem is, a few of those names – like Luka Doncic and Trae Young – will almost certainly re-sign max extensions as restricted free agents. Others will opt out in 2021 and hit the market early. But there are other elite talents set to come available, like Kevin Durant, James Harden and Bradley Beal.

As you can see, however, the 2022 NBA free-agent class should be loaded and, barring a 2021-esque, extension-filled snoozefest, the drama should be high when some of those top-tier names start taking meetings with teams.

Below, check out how we rank the 2022 NBA free-agent class.

How restricted free agency will look like for those who didn’t get extended

Monday’s deadline for first-round picks from the 2017 draft class to sign extensions has passed and a handful of them will enter restricted free agency this summer. We take a look at them and preview what their market might look like.

Monday’s deadline for first-round picks from the 2017 draft class to sign extensions has passed and a handful of them will enter restricted free agency this summer. We take a look at them and preview what their market might look like.