NBA crazy night, 12 signing deals were reached, Klay Thompson left the Warriors, joined the Mavericks and joined the Eastern European group, the first salary in the history of the league was born, the Lakers missed the target of reinforcements in a row, and the latest pursuit object was exposed!
Text: Lao Kan Kanqiu
Editor|Lao Kan Kanqiu
The NBA free agent trade market has officially opened, and unlike the frenzied trading scene on the first day of previous years, this year's trade market is a little deserted, not only the number of transactions has plummeted, but even the transaction amount is much lower than before. The reason for this is that the league introduced a new collective bargaining agreement this year, and the punishment of the second tyrant line is too severe, and all team management is worried that it will affect the future development of the team because of the triggering of the second tyrant line.
Among them, the most obvious is the giant team Golden State Warriors and the local tyrant owner Los Angeles Clippers, one lost the main players such as Paul and Klay in a row, and the other directly let go of the team's core superstars for nothing. I have to say that the NBA teams under the new collective bargaining agreement are not what they used to be, and they may not be able to spend money if they have it.
Thompson joins the Mavericks
The Warriors dynasty of 3 championships in 4 years has really gone far, the team has not received green and yellow in recent years, and its strength has regressed seriously, although it paid the most expensive luxury tax of 179 million in the league last season, it was eliminated by the Kings in the play-offs, and it was declared out without even touching the threshold of the playoffs. And this was the last straw that overwhelmed the dynasty.
After the season, the Warriors management began to prepare for the trade, and the team was panicked, with Thompson, Paul, Looney, Wiggins, etc. all caught up in trade rumors. And just after the door to the trade market opened, Paul was the first to be cut, and the team gave up a guaranteed contract of 30 million for next season. Subsequently, Paul joined the Spurs with a blue-collar salary of $11 million for one year, assisting Wembanyama and hitting the playoffs.
Immediately afterwards, Thompson also joined the Mavericks in a sign-and-trade manner, and the contract amount was only $50 million for 3 years, which was indeed unexpected by everyone. The details of the trade are: the Warriors get two second-round picks and a $13 million trade exception, the Hornets get Josh Green, and the Mavericks get Klay Thompson. At this point, the Splash Brothers officially broke up, and the era of the 'Trident' of the Warrior Kuchai Tang officially came to an end.
However, it is understandable that Thompson is feeling, he has always emphasized that the Warriors do not respect themselves enough, and the desire to leave the team has long been formed. In addition, Texas has a low tax rate, the salary is not too small, and most importantly, the Mavericks led by Eastern Europe have just reached the Finals, and Thompson is here to have the opportunity to compete with the team for his fifth championship, and there is indeed an element of gambling in this.
The first salary in history was born
According to the latest report from the American media ESPN Woj, after winning the 2024 championship, the Celtics successfully fulfilled their promise and sent Tatum a five-year super cap salary extension worth up to $314 million in advance, with an amount of up to $71.75 million in the final year of the contract, and a player option.
According to NBA official statistics, Tatum's new contract, with an average annual salary of $62.8 million, successfully broke the league salary record of $304 million held by teammate Jaylen Brown in five years and officially topped NBA history. In addition, Tatum has an annual salary of more than $70 million at the age of 31, and he is also the first player in NBA history to exceed $70 million in annual salary, which is indeed crazy.
It is worth mentioning that the Celtics became the only team in the league to have two or more contracts worth more than $300 million. Obviously, this year's championship has given management a lot of confidence, and they have also agreed contract extensions with two other starters in the team, including a four-year, $135 million contract extension with Jrue Holiday and a four-year, $125.9 million contract extension with Kobe White. Coupled with the two-year $60 million given to Porzingis last year, the Celtics spent $939 million on only the starting five, and the determination to defend the title can be seen.
The Lakers' new target was revealed
According to previous news, the team's boss James voluntarily cut his salary by $20 million in order to strengthen the lineup and hit the championship again, providing the team with the opportunity to fully enter the middle class to pursue Harden, Klay or Valanciunas inside. As a result, Harden renewed his contract with the Clippers for 70 million in 2 years, Klay went to the Mavericks for 50 million in 3 years, Wallan was snatched away by the Wizards for 30 million in 3 years, and the Lakers made a bamboo basket.
Although all three goals were missed, the Lakers management was exposed again and found the next target. According to the latest report from Chris, the Lakers have spoken to DeRozan's agent about acquiring the star player through a sign-and-trade deal. I have to say that the Lakekeepers are really going to pay attention to it, and strive to really bring in a star player in the offseason.
Other Transaction Information
1. The Philadelphia 76ers reached a five-year, $204 million early contract extension with Maxey;
2. The Thunder signed Hartenstein (Knicks) for 3 years and $87 million;
3. The Magic renewed Gary Harris for a two-year, $14 million contract;
4. The Magic signed Goga Bitadze for 3 years and $25 million;
5. The Rockets renewed Aaron Holiday for 2 years and $10 million;
6. The Warriors signed Danthony Melton (76ers) for 1 year and $12.8 million;
7. The Clippers signed Nick Batum (76ers) for two years and $10.6 million;
8. The Heat signed Drew Smith to a two-way contract;
9. The Heat signed guard Jon Pullin to a two-way contract.