FanHouse NBA Contracts

The salary cap is probably a good thing, and teams running afoul of it is usually their own fault. Still, it can lead to some hair-pulling scenarios. One example of this is the ongoing Shawn Marion trade rumors. Another is this tidbit in today's Chicago Tribune, regarding possible Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Camby:

With Nene's contract extension, the Nuggets go well over the luxury-tax threshold and the rumor is the team will look to move Marcus Camby this summer for financial reasons despite his defensive play.

Well, that sucks. The Tribune then notes that Nene has really picked it up as of late, looking more and more like a legit big man. This despite his concerns about being too light. While Camby is a beast this season, it's not like we've forgotten all the Mr. Glass jokes. And it's not like carrying the contracts of Melo and Iverson is condusive to cap flexibility. Still, as with Marion, it's always sobering that a competitive team would take that major a gamble. I guess it's hard, as fans, to remember that franchises are businesses after all. If it's your millions invested, "luxury tax" is just as, if not more, arresting than Camby or Marion's statistics.

The Warriors have had a breakout season, and are primed to make some serious noise in next year's West. Oh, and they still could make the playoffs. All in all, Don Nelson has done everything he was expected to and more, and deserves serious Coach of the Year consideration.

As if the thrill of transforming a franchise weren't enough, Nellie's got some other incentive to take that ultimate step this season. From the Oakland Tribune:

Don Nelson will receive a cool $1million bonus to his base contract if the Golden State Warriors make the NBA playoffs. As if any more incentive were needed, you can bet the old coach will be on his game over the final three critical contests.

Why does this matter? Well, two weeks back, we semi-skewered Larry Hughes for having a similar clause in his contract. And as Dime reports, Hughes is closing in on his "50 wins or more" bonus. Good for him. I'm not quite sure, though, why Nellie's bonus strikes me as totally just, while Hughes's seems unnecessary. Maybe it's because Hughes can only do claim responsibility for Hughes, while Nelson really is the whole team. And it's weird if only Hughes is rewarded for the Cavs' record.

Well, that and making the playoffs in the West is a hell of a lot more impressive than 50 wins in the East.

Utah Jazz Blog makes a pretty startling claim this morning: that Andrei Kirilenko is the new Jordan. No, not that AK-47 is set to dominate the game for a decade. Instead, he's thinking that it's Kirilenko who will spoil this new Jazz golden age by keeping them from the Finals:

Let me give you a short list of guys this year who are making between $15,000,000 and $17,000,000:

Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan, Michael Redd, Elton Brand, Ray Allen, Shawn Marion, Paul Pierce, Dirk Nowitski, Vince Carter, Antawn Jamison, Tracy McGrady, and Joe Johnson.

Can you imagine what the Jazz would be with one of these guys? With one of these players would the Jazz be a championship team? The answer is undoubtedly, yes! I'm sorry Jazz fans but with AK's salary I don't know if the Jazz will win a championship.

He does have a point. For some reason, I've been obsessed this week with the future of Rashard Lewis; like Kirilenko, he's a tantalizing, multi-talented player who could end up with a max-ish contract over the summer. But whoever signs him would do well to take a look at the Jazz, who have put together a powerhouse around AK-and now might be better off if they had never signed him.

It's an interesting lesson for rebuilding teams, too. Namely, don't be afraid to let your best player walk if he's not a true franchise guy, or at least a consistent All-Star. This might be terrible public relations, but so will having your hands tied with a massive, inessential contract.