Western Conference Salary Rankings: Point Guards
Hoops Rumors is in the process of ranking the salaries, separated by conference, for each NBA player by position. The first spot on the hardwood that I’ll be looking at is the Western Conference’s point guards, which is one of the most vital positions on the hardwood.
All told, the teams out west have committed a total of $314,940,435 in cap hits this season to the men who facilitate their offenses. The average conference salary for the one spot this season is a respectable $5,525,271, with Mike Conley and Russell Westbrook topping the list with a whopping $26,540,100 to account for on their year-end W-2 forms.
It should be noted that teams won’t necessarily pay out every dollar listed here. There are quite a few players who have non-guaranteed or partially guaranteed contracts. Some of those players won’t make it out of the preseason, while others will be sweating it out until January 10th, 2017. That’s when teams must waive players with no specific guarantee date written into their contracts to avoid having to guarantee their salaries for the rest of the season. In addition, incentive clauses that a player either triggers or fails to meet can leave a player with more or less money than his cap hit reflects. Still, the purpose of this list is to show the relative pay scale by position, which is why all contracts are included in this post.
I should also add that not every player listed below will play at the one spot this season, as some are combo guards, while others may be used exclusively at shooting guard. To maintain uniformity, I used their positions listed on the teams’ official rosters to determine which positional list to include them on. So if you see a player who isn’t necessarily expected to play point guard for his team this season listed below, that’s why.
The Western Conference’s point guards are listed below, in descending order of salary:
- Mike Conley [Grizzlies] — $26,540,100
- Russell Westbrook [Thunder] —$26,540,100
- Damian Lillard [Blazers] —$24,328,425
- Chris Paul [Clippers] —$22,868,827
- Tony Parker [Spurs] —$14,445,313
- Eric Bledsoe [Suns] —$14,000,000
- Ricky Rubio [Wolves] —$13,550,000
- Brandon Knight [Suns] —$12,606,250
- Jordan Clarkson [Lakers] —$12,500,000
- Stephen Curry [Warriors] — $12,112,359
- Jrue Holiday [Pelicans] —$11,286,518
- Austin Rivers [Clippers] —$11,000,000
- Deron Williams [Mavs] — $9,000,000
- George Hill [Jazz] —$8,000,000
- Jose Calderon [Lakers] —$7,708,427
- Patrick Beverley [Rockets] —$6,000,000
- Shaun Livingston [Warriors] — $5,782,450
- D’Angelo Russell [Lakers] —$5,332,800
- Darren Collison [Kings] —$5,229,454
- Jameer Nelson [Nuggets] — $4,540,525
- Devin Harris [Mavs] — $4,227,996
- J.J. Barea [Mavs] — $4,096,950
- Dante Exum [Jazz] —$3,940,320
- Kris Dunn [Wolves] —$3,872,520
- Patty Mills [Spurs] —$3,578,948
- Emmanuel Mudiay [Nuggets] — $3,241,800
- Ronnie Price [Thunder] —$2,557,545
- Shelvin Mack [Jazz] —$2,433,334
- Zach LaVine [Wolves] —$2,240,880
- Cameron Payne [Thunder] —$2,112,480
- Tim Frazier [Pelicans] —$2,090,000
- Jordan Farmar [Kings] — $1,921,519 *See note below
- Wade Baldwin [Grizzlies] — $1,793,760
- Tyler Ennis [Rockets] —$1,733,880
- Raymond Felton [Clippers] — $1,551,659
- Marcelo Huertas [Lakers] —$1,500,000
- John Lucas III [Wolves] — $1,403,611
- Shabazz Napier [Blazers] —$1,350,120
- Tyus Jones [Wolves] —$1,339,680
- Ty Lawson [Kings] — $1,315,448
- Dejounte Murray [Spurs] —$1,180,080
- Pablo Prigioni [Rockets] — $1,050,961
- Tony Wroten [Grizzlies] — $1,050,961
- Bobby Brown [Rockets] —$980,431
- Nate Wolters [Nuggets] — $980,431
- Andrew Harrison [Grizzlies] — $945,000
- Raul Neto [Jazz] —$937,800
- Tyler Ulis [Suns] —$918,369
- Xavier Munford [Clippers] — $874,636
- Ryan Arcidiacono [Spurs] —$543,471
- Semaj Christon [Thunder] —$543,471
- Isaiah Cousins [Kings] —$543,471
- Jonathan Gibson [Mavs] — $543,471
- Patrick McCaw [Warriors] — $543,471
- Marcus Paige [Jazz]—$543,471
- Gary Payton II [Rockets] —$543,471
- Isaiah Taylor [Rockets] — $543,471
*Note: Farmar’s salary total includes the $1,410,598 he is being paid by Memphis, plus the $510,921 he is collecting from Clippers, who waived him via stretch provision.
Pelicans Notes: Stephenson, Holiday, Evans, Hill
Lance Stephenson, who recently signed with the Pelicans, sat down with Justin Verrier of ESPN.com to discuss a number of topics, included how the swingman believes he has changed over the past few years. “When you come into the NBA as a youngster, you got babied all your life,” Stephenson said. “Everybody from when you were younger saying, ‘You’re gonna be in the NBA. You’re this and that.’ But once you get in the NBA, there are a lot of guys similar to you, so you have to learn how to do different things to keep developing. So you’ve got to put in the hard work and learn from other guys, see how they work out. Really, I feel like all the stuff I’ve been through has made me a better player. I feel like God puts you in situations to help you succeed in the long run.”
When asked why he chose to join New Orleans, Stephenson told Verrier, “I liked this team, and I see a couple young guys that I could potentially help and show all the other stuff that I learned from other places, from guys like Chris Paul, Paul George, Paul Pierce. Just teach them, and help them believe and show them the right way to work out there and what it takes to make it to the conference finals, and getting that work in every day.”
Here’s more from New Orleans:
- Pelicans GM Dell Demps told Verrier (Twitter link) that there is no timetable for Jrue Holiday to return to the team, but he’ll be welcomed back with “open arms” when he does. The point guard has taken a leave of absence to help care for his ailing wife and their newborn child.
- Demps confirmed to Verrier (via Twitter) that Tyreke Evans won’t be available to play until at least December. The exact timetable should become clearer within the next two-to-four weeks, Verrier adds. Evans is still recovering from the two surgeries on his right knee he underwent last season.
- Evans isn’t the only ailing Pelican, with Quincy Pondexter also not likely to be available until December at the earliest, though, the forward could potentially be sidelined until January, journalist Guerry Smith tweets. Pondexter underwent cartilage replacement surgery on his left knee back in January.
- Solomon Hill, who signed a four-year, $48MM deal with the Pelicans in July, understands more will be asked of him this season, writes Scott Kushner of The New Orleans Advocate. “I wouldn’t say the actual role is so much different,” Hill said. “But the level where I need to be for this team is definitely different.”
- Chris Copeland nearly joined the Pelicans three seasons ago, but he landed in Indiana instead, the forward told Jim Eichenhofer of NBA.com. The 32-year-old is excited that he is now in New Orleans after signing with the team this week, the scribe relays. “I’ve thought I was coming here a few times before this,” Copeland said. “For whatever reason, it didn’t pan out. I’m just glad it actually came full circle and I get the opportunity to try again this year. It’s a great city. I tell people time and time again, it has some of the best food in the world, and the atmosphere here is special.”
2016/17 Salary Cap Snapshots
We at Hoops Rumors have been breaking down the salary cap and luxury tax figures for each team, as well as tracking how much cash each franchise has remaining to use in trades and what payroll exceptions have been utilized and which are still available. As players are signed, waived or traded, we’ll continue to update these posts throughout the year as financial terms are relayed and moves are made official. You’ll be able to find this master list posted on our sidebar to the right, and if you follow us on Twitter, we’ll alert you as to when any changes have been made to your favorite team.
Listed below, separated by Conference and Division, are the links to the Salary Cap Snapshots for each franchise:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Atlantic Division
Central Division
Southeast Division
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Northwest Division
Pacific Division
Southwest Division
Warriors Sign Scott Wood
The Warriors have signed unrestricted free agent Scott Wood, the team announced via press release. The details of the pact are not yet known, but it is almost assuredly a minimum salary training camp deal. The addition of Wood gives Golden State a roster count of 20, which is the preseason maximum.
The 26-year-old has spent the past three seasons overseas with the Spanish club UCAM Murcia. In 36 contests in Liga ACB play in 2015/16, the small forward averaged 8.5 points, 2.1 rebounds and 0.9 assists in 20.2 minutes per outing. His shooting line was .444/.411/1.000. The closest Wood has gotten to the NBA was playing for the Clippers’ summer league squad in 2013/14 and 2014/15. He failed to impress, averaging 4.2 and 0.5 points respectively.
Wood went undrafted in 2013 after spending four seasons at North Carolina State. His career college numbers were 10.6 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.4 assists. His career NCAA shooting line was .423/.414/.883.
Jazz Sign Eric Dawson
The Jazz have signed unrestricted free agent Eric Dawson, the team announced. The length and terms of the arrangement were not relayed, but it is most likely a minimum salary pact that may include a small partial guarantee.
The forward’s most recent action came in the Philippines with Blackwater Elite where he averaged 18.2 points, 15.2 rebounds, 4.7 assists, 2.3 steals and 2.2 blocks in 38.8 minutes per game in six games (all starts) last season. He also spent part of the 2015/16 season with Paris-Levallois in France’s Pro A league.
Dawson’s regular season NBA experience consists of four games as a member of the Spurs during the 2011/12 season when he averaged 3.8 points and 2.5 rebounds in 9.8 minutes per outing. The 32-year-old also has 99 D-League games under his belt, last appearing in the league during the 2013/14 season. His career D-League numbers are 12.5 points, 8.1 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 25.9 minutes per outing. His shooting numbers in the D-League are .541/.318/.721.
And-Ones: CBA, Injury Study, Global Academies
NBA commissioner Adam Silver and the team owners who comprise the league’s labor relations committee have been regularly meeting with NBPA head Michele Roberts and her staff in recent months to work on a new collective bargaining agreement, Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com reports. According to the scribe’s sources, those talks have been productive and there is optimism that the two sides may be able to work out a new deal by December. With either side having the ability to opt out of the current CBA after this season, progress on a new arrangement is good news for all parties involved. With the league’s new television deal reaping benefits for both the players and team owners, it is in the best interests of all to avoid a lockout and any potential of missing games while squabbling over a new agreement.
Here’s more from around the league:
- While the talks between the NBA and the player’s union continue, not everyone is convinced a lockout will be avoided. SB Nation’s Tom Ziller opines that unprecedented increase in the salary cap this offseason, and the resulting windfalls a number of players have received as a result, will embolden the owners to try and impose a number of stricter salary cap rules in an effort to increase their profits and team values.
- In a soon to be published study, Masaru Teramoto, an assistant professor at the University of Utah School of Medicine (h/t Tom Haberstroh of ESPN.com), found that back-to-back games that are played on the road are significantly more likely to result in an in-game injury, generating 3.5 times the injury rate as those played at home. “As much as possible, we would recommend that the NBA consider avoiding the back-to-back games on the road,” Teramoto said. “If there’s not much they can do with an 82-game schedule, it might be time to consider drastically changing the structure of the schedule and cut, say, five games from the season.” While the league has cut down on the amount of back-to-back games, two out of every three back-to-back games still occur on the road, Haberstroh notes.
- With the NBA set to open global basketball academies in Africa, China, India and Australia, Jonathan Givony of The Vertical examined how this will impact the league.
Heat Sign Keith Benson
4:01pm: Benson’s deal is partially guaranteed, international journalist David Pick tweets.
3:43pm: The Heat have officially signed unrestricted free agent Keith Benson, the team announced. The length and terms of the deal were not relayed, but it is likely a minimum-salary arrangement that may include a small partial guarantee. The addition of Benson gives Miami 20 players on its preseason roster, including Chris Bosh, who reportedly failed his most recent physical exam and has not been cleared by the team to participate in training camp. The Heat will need to cut down the roster to 15 players by the start of the regular season, per league rules.
The center spent last season playing for the Heat’s D-League affiliate in Sioux Falls, making 49 appearances and averaging 13.8 points, 7.5 rebounds and 1.6 blocks and shooting 57.3% from the field in 23.8 minutes per outing. Benson made the D-League All-Star team and was a big part of the Skyforce’s D-League title run in 2015/16. He averaged 10.1 points, 4.7 rebounds, 2.14 blocks and 17.8 minutes while shooting 59.2% during the postseason.
The 28-year-old has appeared in a total of three career NBA regular season games, all with Golden State, totaling three rebounds in nine minutes of action and has spent time playing professionally in Belarus, China, Lithuania, Estonia, Italy and the Philippines. Benson was drafted No. 48 overall in the 2011 NBA Draft by the Hawks.
Wizards Ink Casper Ware To Camp Deal
SEPTEMBER 21: Approximately a month after agreeing to terms with him, the Wizards have officially signed Ware, according to RealGM’s NBA transactions log.
AUGUST 18: The Wizards have agreed to a contract with unrestricted free agent Casper Ware, Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post reports (on Twitter). The scribe labels it as a training camp deal, which means it likely includes little or no guaranteed money. Washington is well over the cap, so it is likely for the league minimum salary, though, the team does still have its Room Exception available, but it would be surprising if that was used in this instance.
Washington already has 16 players under contract, including 12 possessing full guarantees on their deals, so Ware certainly has his work cut out for him to make the regular season roster. He’ll be competing with Trey Burke, Tomas Satoransky and Marcus Thornton for a spot on the bench.
Ware, who last appeared in the NBA during the regular season in 2013/14 with the Sixers, spent this past campaign overseas where he split time between Tianjin Ronggang (China) and ASVEL Lyon-Villeurbanne (France). In 31 combined games, the guard averaged 15.5 points, 3.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists in 27.3 minutes per outing. His shooting line was .394/.354/.793.
Salary Cap Snapshot: Washington Wizards
With the free agent signing period winding down and teams looking ahead to the preseason, we at Hoops Rumors will be tracking the Salary Cap figures for each team around the league. These posts will be maintained throughout the season once financial data is reported. They will be located on the sidebar throughout the year, once all the teams’ cap figures have been relayed. You can always check RosterResource.com for up-to-date rosters for each franchise, with the Wizards’ team page accessible here.
Here’s a breakdown of where the Wizards currently stand financially:
Guaranteed Salary
- Bradley Beal —$22,116,750
- John Wall —$16,957,900
- Ian Mahinmi —$15,944,154
- Marcin Gortat —$12,000,000
- Markieff Morris —$7,400,000
- Otto Porter —$5,893,981
- Jason Smith —$5,000,000
- Bojan Bogdanovic — $3,730,653
- Trey Burke —$3,386,598
- Tomas Satoransky —$2,870,813
- Kelly Oubre —$2,006,640
- Brandon Jennings — $1,200,000
- Chris McCullough — $1,191,480
- Martell Webster —$833,334 [Waived via Stretch Provision]
- Danuel House —$543,471 [Waived by team]
- Daniel Ochefu —$543,471
- Sheldon McClellan —$543,471
- Jarell Eddie —$175,000 [Waived by team]
Total Guaranteed Salary= $102,337,716
Cash Sent Out Via Trade: $0 [Amount Remaining $3.5MM]
Cash Received Via Trade: $0 [Amount Remaining $3.5MM]
Payroll Exceptions Available
- Trade Exception — $2,515,973 (Andrew Nicholson trade) — Expires on 2/22/18
- Room Exception — $1,698,000 (Used $1,200,000 to sign Brandon Jennings)
Total Projected Payroll: $102,337,716
Salary Cap: $94,143,000
Estimated Available Cap Space: –$8,194,716
Luxury Tax Threshold: $113,287,000
Amount Below Luxury Tax: $10,949,284
Last Updated: 3/3/17
The Basketball Insiders salary pages and The Vertical’s salary database were used in the creation of this post.
Marks, Atkinson On: Lin, LeVert, Lopez
With the Nets set to open their training camp on September 7th, Nets GM Sean Marks and new head coach Kenny Atkinson addressed members of the media on a number of topics regarding the team and its season ahead. Here are some of the highlights from Tuesday’s press conference (h/t Cory Wright of NBA.com for the transcription):
On how the team will measure its progress moving forward:
“The season won’t be measured entirely by wins and losses,” Marks said. “It’ll be measured by the progress that’s made throughout the season and the buy-in from our players. Our goals aren’t necessarily six months down the road goals. It’s this next block of five games and asking did we improve from the last block of five games. Hopefully with all the interaction the coaches will have throughout the year and the performance staff, you’ll see guys’ bodies improve, physical abilities improve and also the way they play the game.”
“The fans, media and everyone around the team will see a team that’s building, improving, competing at a high level every night,” Atkinson added. “Individual improvement and our young players are getting better. We are interested in advanced stats, so we’ll see improvements in statistics in areas we think are important and the style we want to play.”
On the status of 2016 first-rounder Caris LeVert, who is still recovering from offseason foot surgery:
“Caris is progressing well,” Marks said. “We’ll be progressing him slowly and building him in and hopefully has a long career ahead of him. He’s a guy that we’re certainly going to monitor.”
On Jeremy Lin, who the front office feels is ready to be a leader on the team:
“He came off the bench in Charlotte last year and did a heck of a job, but this is a different deal here,” Atkinson said. “You’re kind of the quarterback, the Eli Manning, those guys have a different level of responsibility and that’s new to him. He can be a darn good defender with his athleticism and his competitiveness and I think he feels a little slighted that he’s not considered a better defender, so we need to hold him accountable there. There’s a lot of things, but the last thing is make this team work, make it work on the offensive end and make sure everyone’s touching it and get that right feel of where we have balanced scoring and a balanced team. It’s a heck of a challenge, but he’s prepared for it, I think it’s the right time of his career and I think he’s smart enough and will grow into being a better leader as this thing goes on.”
On how the team expects to play, with the focal points being defense, sharing the ball and taking uncontested shots:
“Down the line there’s certainly a feel for how we’d like to play, simply from our backgrounds – San Antonio and Atlanta,” Marks said. “An unselfish style of play, don’t take contested shots, move the ball, make the extra pass. A lot of it will be predicated on what the roster looks like, you can’t say we’re only going to be a 3-point shooting team if you also have to involve Brook Lopez down there. Kenny will argue that Brook will shoot the corner 3 as well. We’ll be flexible, but he’s the guy with the system.”
“Emphasize team defense,” Atkinson added. “It’s not easy to overachieve in the NBA, but if there is a way to do it, we can do it with good team defense. On the offensive side it’s the same thing, we’re going to have to share the ball, we’re going to have to hopefully be a high-assist team that plays together.”
On the continuing development of Brook Lopez:
“The first thing we’re going to do is to challenge him defensively to improve,” Atkinson said. “Rebounding – I know that’s been a thing in the past – pick and roll defense and we have to find the right scheme that fits him. Offensively – I think it’s with all of these guys – become even more efficient than you are. Taking better shots, getting to the rim more, mixing in some 3-point shots to balance your game… We’re going to challenge to improve in those areas and again that fit our style of play and we do believe that he can take another step.”