Hoops Rumors Glossary: Maximum Salary
There are many NBA players technically on maximum-salary contracts, but most of those players didn’t earn identical salaries this season, making the league’s “maximum salary” something of a misnomer. While each NBA player has a maximum salary that he can earn in a given season, that number varies from player to player, with a handful of factors playing a part in determining the exact figure.
The primary factor in determining a player’s maximum salary is his years of service. If a player has been in the NBA for six seasons or fewer, he can earn up to 25% of the salary cap in the first year of his deal. Players with seven to nine years of experience can earn up to 30%, while veterans with 10 or more years in the NBA are eligible for up to 35% of the cap. In 2023/24, the salary cap was $136,021,000, meaning the maximum salaries are as follows:
| Years in NBA | Salary |
|---|---|
| 0-6 | $34,005,250 |
| 7-9 | $40,806,300 |
| 10+ | $47,607,350 |
The figures above explain why Fred VanVleet, who signed a maximum-salary contract with the Rockets last July following his seventh NBA season, earned a salary of $40,806,300 this season. But they don’t explain why Timberwolves big man Karl-Anthony Towns, who was also in that 7-9 year window and is on a max contract of his own, made just $36,016,200.
The reason Towns’ maximum salary is a few million shy of VanVleet’s is that those league-wide maximum salary figures only apply to the first year of a multiyear contract.
When a player signs a maximum contract, he can receive annual raises of up to either 8% or 5%, depending on whether he signs with his previous team or a new team. So by the third, fourth, or fifth year of his contract, he could be earning significantly more or less than his updated max for that season, depending on the rate the salary cap has been increasing and whether or not he has moved into a new “years of service” group.
Towns signed his first maximum-salary contract extension in 2018 and it went into effect in 2019/20, when he had fewer than six years of NBA experience. Although he has received annual 8% raises since then, those raises haven’t been enough to keep up with the annual cap growth and with his move into the 7-9 year window. As a result, he earned about $4.8MM less than his actual max in 2023/24, despite being on a “max contract.”
Towns signed a new contract extension in 2022 that will go into effect in 2024/25, so he’ll receive a major pay bump heading into next season and will comfortably surpass VanVleet’s annual earnings at that time.
Here are a couple more ways a player’s usual maximum salary can fluctuate:
- A free agent’s maximum salary is always at least 105% of his previous salary. For example, Lakers star LeBron James earned $47,607,350 this past season. If he were to decline his player option for 2024/25 in order to sign a new contract, he’d be eligible to receive a starting salary of up to $49,987,718 (105% of this year’s salary), even though that figure projects to exceed 35% of the ’24/25 cap ($49,350,000).
- In certain situations, players eligible for new contracts can earn the maximum salary for the level above the one they’d typically fall into. A player coming off his rookie scale contract can earn up to 30% of the cap instead of 25% if he meets certain performance criteria. A veteran can become eligible to earn up to 35% of the cap instead of 30% if he meets the same criteria, which are related to MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, or All-NBA honors.
Because a player can receive a raise of up to 40% in the first year of a veteran extension, there are some instances when a player who signs an extension not necessarily designed to be a maximum-salary contract sees the first-year salary in his new deal adjusted downward based on that year’s cap. Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard is one example. His new extension, which will begin in 2024/25, calls for a first-year salary of $52,368,085, which is a raise in the neighborhood of 15% on this season’s $45,640,084 salary.
However, because next year’s league-wide maximum salary for players with 10+ years of NBA experience projects to be $49,350,000 (which would be more than a 5% raise for Leonard), he can’t exceed that figure. That $49.35MM figure will be the value of his 2024/25 salary if the cap comes in at $141MM, as estimated. And Kawhi’s three-year extension, which was originally said to be worth over $152MM, will actually end up closer to $149MM.
A player who signs a maximum-salary contract can receive a trade kicker as part of his deal, but he can’t cash in on that bonus for any amount beyond his maximum salary in a given league year. For instance, Trae Young‘s max-salary contract with the Hawks features a 15% trade kicker, but if he had been traded this season, he wouldn’t have been eligible to receive that bonus, since he was already earning his maximum salary of $40,064,220.
A player on a maximum-salary deal that includes a trade kicker can potentially cash in on that bonus if he’s dealt later in that contract. For example, Brandon Ingram is on a max contract, but – like Towns – was earning well below his actual max in 2023/24, year four of that five-year deal. If he had been moved by the Pelicans this season, he would’ve been eligible to take advantage of his trade kicker. That remains true for Ingram going forward.
A maximum-salary player whose team finishes the season below the minimum salary floor isn’t eligible to receive a share when the team distributes that money to its players, since his max salary for that year can’t be exceeded.
The current figures for maximum salaries in 2024/25 are as follows, based on the NBA’s projection of a $141MM salary cap:
| Years in NBA | Salary |
|---|---|
| 0-6 | $35,250,000 |
| 7-9 | $42,300,000 |
| 10+ | $49,350,000 |
These figures will apply to players who previously signed maximum salary extensions that will go into effect in ’24/25, including Towns, Devin Booker, Anthony Edwards, Tyrese Haliburton, LaMelo Ball, and Jaylen Brown.
Note: This is a Hoops Rumors Glossary entry. Our glossary posts will explain specific rules relating to trades, free agency, or other aspects of the NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement. Larry Coon’s Salary Cap FAQ was used in the creation of this post.
Earlier versions of this post were previously published by Luke Adams and Chuck Myron.
Mavericks Sign Jason Kidd To Multiyear Extension
The Mavericks have signed head coach Jason Kidd to an extension, the team announced today in a press release. No details were provided on the contract beyond the fact that it’s a “multiyear” deal.
“We are excited to have Coach Kidd continue to lead our team throughout the coming years with this well-earned contract extension,” Mavericks governor Patrick Dumont said in a statement. “Kidd led our team to two playoff appearances in three seasons, and we are looking forward to his leadership in continuing to build and grow this already great franchise.”
“I have known Jason for a long time, and I cannot think of a better, more qualified candidate to lead this team going forward,” general manager Nico Harrison added in a statement of his own. “As a former NBA Champion Hall of Fame player, Jason brings a wealth of experience and expertise to this role which cannot be duplicated. He has earned the trust and respect of our players and that of so many across the league, and I look forward to working alongside him as we continue to build upon the culture and foundation of success he’s helped foster throughout his tenure as head coach.”
Kidd, who was hired by the Mavericks in 2021 following past head coaching stints in Brooklyn and Milwaukee, has led the team to a 140-106 (.569) regular season record across three seasons, with a postseason mark of 13-11, including three playoff series wins.
There was some real pressure on Kidd entering this season following a disappointing 2022/23 campaign in which Dallas went 38-44 and missed the play-in tournament. Another underwhelming result would likely have put the head coach – whose initial contract ran through 2024/25 – on the hot seat.
Kidd responded by guiding the Mavs to a 50-32 record and a first-round victory over the Clippers. The team will be looking to advance even further in the postseason when it takes on a talented young Thunder team in round two. That series tips off on Tuesday.
The Mavericks’ new agreement with Kidd will formally end any speculation that he may end up as the new head coach of the Lakers, which already appeared very unlikely. Kidd served as an assistant coach for the Lakers from 2019-21, between head coaching jobs.
Cavs Notes: Mitchell, Game 7 Win, Celtics Series, Garland
Entering this year’s postseason, Donovan Mitchell had been knocked out of the playoffs in the first round in back-to-back years – and four of the last five – with the Cavaliers and Jazz. He said after Sunday’s Game 7 win that he was determined not to let that happen again, according to Kendra Andrews of ESPN.
“I’m tired of losing in the first round,” Mitchell said. “You work too hard. We work too hard. That was my mindset … for me, just be in attack mode. I’m battling through what I’m battling through, but I could battle through it and figure it out, or rehab it for the next three or four months. That’s where I’m at mentally.”
Mitchell, who continues to deal with a knee issue that seemed to be bothering him on Sunday, got off to a slow start in Game 7, but went on a huge run after the Magic built an 18-point lead midway through the second quarter. At one point, Andrews notes, Mitchell outscored Orlando 20-19 on his own from the middle of the second quarter through the end of the third. As Andrews details, head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said the star guard – who finished with 39 points – was leading the way for the Cavs not just with his play on the court but with his attitude during the comeback.
“[Mitchell is] the guy that can pull everybody along, not just with his skill but in spirit as well,” Bickerstaff said. “When you see your teammate, a guy you care about playing that way, you don’t want to let that guy down so you go out and do whatever you can to help that guy. We talk about how everybody has their style and their piece of leadership here and that’s how Don leads, by being special in the moment. His teammates want to be a part of it.”
Here’s more on the Cavs:
- The first-round victory over Orlando represents the first time Cleveland has won a playoff series since LeBron James‘ 2018 departure, but simply advancing to the second round isn’t the goal. As Andrews relays, Bickerstaff told reporters that “we’re not done yet” and his players echoed that message. “We didn’t make the group we made just to come in and win the first round,” Mitchell said. “We accomplished one goal, now we have to do it again. That’s the mindset. … When they traded for me, it wasn’t just to win a first-round series, it was to continue to push and move forward. And I think that’s where all of our heads are at.”
- As Joe Vardon of The Athletic writes, the Cavaliers made just 28.7% of their three-point shots vs. Orlando, were out-rebounded, committed more turnovers and fouls, and were outscored by 31 points over the seven-game series. It wasn’t the sort of performance that inspires much confidence in their chances vs. the league-best Celtics, but Mitchell doesn’t mind entering that series as underdogs. “For us coming into Boston, I’m pretty sure everybody thinks they’re going to come in and kick our ass,” Mitchell said. “(We need to) continue to stay level-headed throughout, not listen to, well, y’all, and just be who we are. That’s the biggest thing.”
- It was an up-and-down series for Mitchell’s backcourt mate Darius Garland, who played well in Games 5 and 6 but averaged just 12.0 points per game on 41.9% shooting in the first four games of the series and contributed 12 points on 3-of-13 shooting on Sunday. However, as Tom Withers of The Associated Press details, Garland made a big three-pointer in the fourth quarter off an assist from Mitchell, who hugged him after the shot forced a Magic timeout. “He knew that I was a little bit down in the first half, but he kept trusting me,” Garland said. “It’s cool just having him in my ear a little bit, just telling me to keep going, stay confident in myself. I really needed it.”
Mavs’ Maxi Kleber To Be Reevaluated In Three Weeks After Shoulder Separation
MAY 5: An MRI revealed that Kleber suffered a right shoulder AC joint separation, the Mavericks confirmed (via Twitter). His condition will be reevaluated in three weeks.
MAY 4, 2:22pm: Kleber has been diagnosed with a full dislocation of the AC joint in the right shoulder, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). According to Charania, Kleber will be out for a “significant” period of time — perhaps the entire postseason.
MAY 4, 1:08pm: Mavericks big man Maxi Kleber is undergoing an MRI to assess the severity of the right shoulder sprain he sustained in Friday’s Game 6 win over the Clippers, a source tells Tim MacMahon of ESPN (Twitter link).
Kleber suffered the injury early in the second quarter when he drove to the basket to attempt a layup and was fouled by Clippers wing Amir Coffey (video link). Kleber fell to the floor hard, landing on his right shoulder. He stayed in the game to shoot his free throws, making one of two, but then immediately checked out and didn’t return.
As we relayed earlier today, head coach Jason Kidd told reporters after the game that he wasn’t sure if the injury would cause Kleber to miss time or how long he might be sidelined, adding that the team will take a “next man up” approach.
Still, if Kleber is unable to suit up when the Mavericks’ second-round series vs. Oklahoma City tips off, it would be a meaningful loss for Dallas. The German was one of the club’s most-used reserves in the first round, averaging 5.7 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 1.5 assists in 19.3 minutes per game off the bench. He’s a solid frontcourt defender who knocked down 10-of-18 three-pointers (55.6%) vs. the Clippers.
Dereck Lively, Daniel Gafford, and P.J. Washington would be among the candidates for increased roles if Kleber misses time, with Dwight Powell – who only played garbage-time minutes in round one – moving up the depth chart.
Poll: Who Will Win Cavaliers/Magic Game 7?
Of the NBA’s eight first-round playoff series this spring, a pair were four-game sweeps, two more wrapped up in five games, and three others took six games to decide a winner. That leaves a single Game 7 in round one: The Cavaliers will host the Magic in Cleveland on Sunday afternoon to determine the last of the eight teams that will advance to the conference semifinals.
Sunday’s Game 7 looms larger for the Cavaliers than it does for Orlando. Cleveland won 51 games and finished as a top-four seed in the Eastern Conference a year ago, then was quickly dispatched from the postseason by the Knicks in just five games. Another first-round exit this spring as the higher seed, especially against a relatively inexperienced Magic squad, would likely result in major offseason changes in Cleveland.
As Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (subscription required) writes, the pressure will be on head coach J.B. Bickerstaff, who figures to find himself on the hot seat if the Cavaliers lose Game 7 at home. For his part, Bickerstaff sounds relatively confident that his club will come through.
“We’ll be ready for the moment,” Bickerstaff said. “Our guys have been really good at home, and we don’t expect that to change.”
Even more crucially, Donovan Mitchell‘s future in Cleveland could hinge on how Game 7 plays out, Fedor notes. Mitchell is only under contract for one more guaranteed season after this one — he’ll be offered an extension this summer, but if he’s not enthusiastic about the Cavs’ ability to contend for a championship going forward, he may not be inclined to accept a new long-term deal from the team.
The good news for the Cavaliers is that Game 7 will be played at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, where they’re 3-0 this series. But after commanding victories in Games 1 and 2, Cleveland’s home-court advantage didn’t look like quite as significant a factor in Game 5’s win, which the club pulled out by a single point.
The Cavs are also dealing with injury concerns on multiple fronts. Rotation forward Dean Wade (knee) has missed the entire postseason, while Jarrett Allen (rib) has been sidelined for the past two games. Mitchell (knee) and Evan Mobley (ankle) also seemed to be playing through pain in Game 6 — both players finished the game, though Mobley (three points, six rebounds) was far less effective than Mitchell (50 points), especially in the second half.
While the Magic will certainly go all-out to win Game 7, their coaches and players are facing far less pressure entering the deciding game of their first-round series. Few league observers even expected Orlando to still be alive at this point in the season, so a spot in the second round would exceed all expectations. No one’s job is on the line based on Sunday’s outcome.
Still, the Magic have shown in the first six games of this series that they’re a talented enough defensive team to pull off this upset. Yes, Mitchell scored 50 points in Game 6, and Darius Garland contributed 21 more, but the rest of the Cavs combined for just 25 points on 10-of-33 (30.3%) shooting, and head coach Jamahl Mosley has made some savvy adjustments that helped his team win three of the last four games.
Orlando doesn’t have a ton of offensive firepower, but in Paolo Banchero, Franz Wagner, and Jalen Suggs, the team has just enough scoring to stick with Cleveland thanks to its play on defense. Banchero, Wagner, and Suggs combined for 75 of Orlando’s 103 points in Game 6, which has been a common theme over the course of the series — no other Magic player is averaging over 7.0 points per contest.
We want to know what you think. Will the Cavaliers (3.5-point favorites, according to BetOnline.ag) hang on at home and avoid disaster? Or will the upstart Magic book a second-round date with the top-ranked Celtics?
Vote in our poll, then head to the comment section below to make your predictions!
Who will win Game 7?
-
Cleveland Cavaliers 51% (365)
-
Orlando Magic 49% (355)
Total votes: 720
Bulls’ Lonzo Ball Picks Up 2024/25 Player Option
Bulls point guard Lonzo Ball has exercised his player option for 2024/25, locking in his $21.4MM salary for next season, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).
The decision was a no-brainer, given that Ball hasn’t played a game since January 2022 due to knee problems. He has undergone a series of procedures on his troublesome left knee, including receiving a cartilage transplant in 2023.
There’s hope that the latest of those surgeries will help get him back on the court next season, but given the uncertainty surrounding his prognosis, there’s obviously no chance that Ball would have been able to exceed $21.4MM on the open market if he had declined his option in favor of free agency.
Ball spent two seasons with the Lakers and two more with the Pelicans before being sent from New Orleans to Chicago in a sign-and-trade deal during the 2021 offseason.
During the first half of his first season as a Bull, Ball looked like a steal on his new four-year, $80MM contract, making a major two-way impact as the team’s starting point guard. He averaged 13.0 points, 5.4 rebounds, 5.1 assists, and 1.8 steals in 34.6 minutes per game across 35 appearances before being sidelined. The Bulls went 22-13 in those games, but haven’t had the former No. 2 overall pick available in the two-plus years since then.
Ball picking up his player option doesn’t necessarily mean that he’ll be on the Bulls’ roster in 2024/25. If his injury is ultimately deemed to be career-ending by a Fitness to Play panel, the club would be permitted to let him go without his $21.4MM cap hit counting against its books. It’s also possible the 26-year-old could be included in a trade for salary-matching purposes, given that his contract isn’t as onerous now that it’s expiring.
If Ball remains on the roster and his recovery continues to progress as hoped, it’s possible we’ll see him in a Bulls uniform again next season. During his lengthy absence, younger guards like Coby White and Ayo Dosunmu have emerged as reliable backcourt contributors in Chicago, but if Ball looks anything like he did before his injury, he’d be worthy of rotation minutes.
Former NBA Guard Darius Morris Passes Away
Former NBA guard Darius Morris, who played in the league from 2011-15, has passed away at age 33, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).
The 41st overall pick in the 2011 draft, Morris began his professional career with the Lakers after playing his college ball at Michigan.
The Los Angeles native appeared in 67 regular season games for the Lakers over the next two seasons, averaging 3.6 points, 1.4 assists, and 1.1 rebounds in 12.7 minutes per contest. He made a pair of starts and averaged 26.3 MPG during the team’s first-round playoff series in 2013, a four-game sweep at the hands of the Spurs.
After his contract with the Lakers expired, Morris spent time with the Sixers, Clippers, and Grizzlies during the 2013/14 season, then made 38 appearances with the Nets in ’14/15. That was his last season in the NBA, though he was invited to the Pelicans’ training camp in 2018 and spent several more years competing in the G League and various international leagues in China, Russia, and France. He last played in 2020.
Our condolences go out to Morris’ friends and family.
D’Angelo Russell Fined $25K By NBA
Lakers guard D’Angelo Russell has been fined $25K for “verbally abusing a game official,” the league announced today in a press release (Twitter link).
According to the NBA’s announcement, the incident occurred on the court immediately after the Lakers lost Game 5 to the Nuggets in Denver on Monday.
It’s a bit of added insult to injury for Russell, whose season came to an end as a result of that Monday loss. Another veteran guard, Patrick Beverley, is expected to end up in a similar boat for his actions during the final moments of the game that ended the Bucks’ season — Beverley, who repeatedly threw a basketball at Pacers fans behind the Bucks’ bench in Indiana, will almost certainly face a more significant penalty than Russell.
The $25K fine is a drop in the bucket for Russell, who was earning a $17.3MM salary this season and holds a $18.7MM player option for 2024/25. There’s an expectation that he may turn down that player option in search of a more lucrative multiyear deal.
Community Shootaround: Knicks/Pacers Series
The Knicks and Pacers closed out their respective first-round series on Thursday, securing their spots in the Eastern Conference semifinals and lining up a playoff matchup straight out of the 1990s.
As Wheat Hotchkiss of Pacers.com details, back in the days of Patrick Ewing and Reggie Miller, a New York/Indiana series was something of an annual tradition in the Eastern Conference, with the two teams meeting in six out of eight postseasons from 1993-2000. Since then, the clubs have squared off just once in the playoffs – in the 2013 Eastern Conference semifinals – but the current iterations of the Knicks and Pacers are well positioned to rekindle that old rivalry.
Both teams are led by point guards likely to earn their first All-NBA nods this spring — Jalen Brunson for the Knicks and Tyrese Haliburton for the Pacers. While Haliburton is more of a distributor, having led the NBA with 10.9 assists per game during the regular season, Brunson has had to take on a far greater scoring load since Julius Randle suffered a shoulder injury in January. He averaged 31.5 points per game in 33 regular season contests after Randle went down and leads all playoff scorers with 35.5 PPG.
The Pacers, who finished the regular season with the NBA’s second-best offensive rating (120.5) have gotten much of their scoring this postseason from their frontcourt, with Pascal Siakam (22.3 PPG) and Myles Turner (19.2 PPG) leading the way while Obi Toppin (12.3 PPG) contributes off the bench. Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, and T.J. McConnell, meanwhile, have given the team important minutes in the backcourt and on the wing alongside Haliburton.
With Randle unavailable, the Knicks have leaned heavily on wings Josh Hart, OG Anunoby, and Donte DiVincenzo for three-and-D production to complement Brunson, with Miles McBride, Isaiah Hartenstein, and Mitchell Robinson also playing key roles.
Indiana won the season series between the two teams by a 2-1 margin, but the Knicks have home-court advantage and will enter round two as heavy favorites (-265 on BetOnline.ag). As good as the Pacers were offensively during the season, New York was nearly as effective – their 117.3 offensive rating ranked seventh in the league – and the Knicks were the far stouter team on the other end of the court, ranking ninth with a 112.4 defensive rating. Indiana placed 24th at 117.6.
Several Pacers have appeared in the playoffs before – including Siakam, who played a major role for the Raptors’ championship team in 2019 – but it’s Haliburton’s first postseason and this Knicks team played into the second round a year ago, so New York probably holds the slight playoff experience edge.
The Knicks may also be more comfortable playing at a playoff pace — their regular season mark of 95.96 possessions per 48 minutes was the slowest in the NBA, and they’ve slowed things down even further during the postseason (91.09). The Pacers, conversely, ranked second in the league with a 102.16 regular season pace and have had to adjust to a more deliberate style in the postseason — their first-round mark was just 92.89.
We want to know what you think. Are you expecting the Knicks to advance to the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since 2000, or will the Pacers continue their unlikely run with another series victory? Assuming the Celtics are the other team in the Eastern finals, will the winner of this series have a legitimate shot to topple Boston and make the NBA Finals?
Head to the comment section to share your thoughts and predictions!
Heat Notes: D. Robinson, Highsmith, Wright, Jaquez, Swider, Butler
Duncan Robinson, one of several Heat players affected by health issues this season, said on Friday that – based on the medical feedback he has received – he has no reason to believe that his back issue will “linger or last,” per Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. Robinson missed nine of the team’s final 14 regular season games due to the injury and played a limited role in the postseason.
The Heat were among the teams most affected by injuries for a second straight season in 2023/24, setting a new franchise record by using 35 different starting lineups. Speaking to reporters on Friday, head coach Erik Spoelstra said the team will do its homework this offseason to see if anything can be done to reduce its players’ injury risk going forward.
“We’re going to look at everything,” Spoelstra said, according to Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. “Because it’s not all apples to apples. I think what we do in terms of getting guys ready and in shape helps with soft tissue stuff. It’s the other stuff that we have to take a dive into. Two seasons ago, we were good. The last two seasons are a little bit skewed based on guys that missed the entire season that weren’t fully in our rotation. But that doesn’t also absolve it. We want to look at all the different angles on this.”
Here’s more on the Heat:
- During their end-of-season media sessions on Friday, unrestricted free agents Haywood Highsmith and Delon Wright both expressed a desire to re-sign with Miami, according to Jackson and Chiang. “Definitely want to stay in Miami. My family lives here, my daughter lives here. That’s a priority to be around my daughter a lot,” Highsmith said, adding that he appreciates the Heat for being “all about winning” and feeling like a family. Highsmith has been with the team since 2021, whereas Wright just arrived in February, but the veteran guard has enjoyed his experience in Miami. “I definitely would like to come back,” Wright said. “I felt like I got a snippet of what it could be. With a full training camp, I will have a better understanding of what Spo wants out of me.”
- Jaime Jaquez said on Friday that he doesn’t plan to play for Mexico in this summer’s Olympic qualifying tournament, per Jackson and Chiang. The Mexican national team will be in Puerto Rico vying for one of the four remaining spots in the men’s basketball tournament at the Paris Olympics.
- Cole Swider‘s two-way contract is expiring, but the Heat have let him know they want to keep him around and he intends to be part of Miami’s Summer League team, he told reporters on Friday. “The Heat, a lot of these undrafted guys, did a great job developing them,” Swider said, according to the Herald. “I hope to be one of their success stories. I know they know what they’re doing. “I’ve improved defensively, learning the concepts of the Heat, how we play. I’ve proved I can play in the NBA.”
- Dave Hyde of The South Florida Sun Sentinel advises the Heat against extending Jimmy Butler this offseason, suggesting that the cost would be too great for a player entering his late-30s when the extension would begin. Butler’s contract situation will be worth watching — in separate stories for The Athletic today, both David Aldridge and John Hollinger alluded to whispers that the 34-year-old’s long-term future may not be in Miami.
- Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel takes a player-by-player look at the Heat’s roster, assessing what’s next for everyone who finished this season under contract with the club.