With each passing day, the 2020-21 NBA season seems to be pushed back further and further. Once slated to start in early December, Adam Silver appeared on CNN on Tuesday and gave a “best guess” that next season wouldn’t start until the turn of the calendar.
There will be some interesting ripple effects as the league grapples with when next season will begin. The NBA Draft has already been pushed back a month to November as the league tries to navigate the unnavigated. A start date for free agency has also yet to be determined, though it typically comes in the week after the draft, which is currently slated for Nov. 18.
But an aspect that has slid under the radar so far is upcoming contract extension negotiations. Lonzo Ball, along with teammate Josh Hart, can each sign extensions anytime between the official start of the 2020-21 season and the day before the first game of the regular season.
Both have interesting cases for extensions. Hart is a 3&D forward in a shooting guard’s body. How much does a team pay a guard who can rebound and hit threes but is just 6’5″ with a 6’9″ wingspan?
And if Hart’s extension will lead to some questions, Ball’s will lead to plenty of long nights. Much of Ball’s game is unquantifiable but impactful. He’s an enigmatic figure on the court who is either seen as a key piece of the Pelicans core or an expendable player in the final year of his rookie deal.
The case has already been made for Ball to receive an extension and what those figures may look like. However, there may not be a better off-season for Ball to be up for extension discussions.
Ball switching agencies from Roc Nation Sports to Klutch Sports and Rich Paul was the first warning shot across the bow. Klutch has gained a reputation for getting its clients paid and Ball’s timing could hardly have made his intentions any clearer.
There’s nothing wrong with Ball wanting to get paid, but it could lead to some lengthy discussions between Paul and the Pelicans. If the two sides come in at very different figures, those negotiations could drag on. And what better off-season to potentially have lengthy negotiation discussions than in one where the end date is still undetermined.
Paul’s history with Pelicans executive vice president of basketball operations David Griffin will certainly work in Ball’s benefit in the negotiations. While Paul leading Anthony Davis’ exit out of the franchise will leave fans with a bitter taste in their mouths, Paul and Griffin have had a long history of working together in Cleveland.
On top of the obvious client in LeBron James, Paul also represented a number of his Cavalier teammates. JR Smith and Tristan Thompson, both Klutch clients, negotiated large, multi-year deals with the Cavaliers while Griffin served as the general manager.
All of it adds up to what should be fascinating negotiations. While there is an incentive to have negotiation talks wrapped up this summer, the Pelicans can simply take the same route they are this off-season with Brandon Ingram as he’s set for restricted free agency.
No matter how it’s sliced, Ball’s negotiations could hardly come at a better time for the Pelicans and Paul.