Latest news with #salarycap
Yahoo
15 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
The $210 million impact of Bradley Beal buyout
The post The $210 million impact of Bradley Beal buyout appeared first on ClutchPoints. After last season's failure, the Phoenix Suns underwent major roster reconstruction and organizational changes. They have a new general manager and head coach, and they made a massive trade to get rid of Kevin Durant and send him to the Houston Rockets. They also made the big move of buying out Bradley Beal, so that this roster will be completely different next season. The Suns tried negotiating a trade with Beal, but his no-trade clause complicated it. The Suns waived and stretched Beal's contract to absorb the $99 million owed to him over the next five years, which means that money will sit on their salary cap, at $20 million a season, until the end of the decade. ESPN NBA reporter Brian Windhorst recently wrote a massive piece about what happened with Beal and the Suns behind the scenes and why they made this decision. The short answer, Windhorst said, is money. Windhorst elaborated more: 'Over the past two seasons, Suns owner Mat Ishbia had spent $620 million in salary and luxury taxes, and the team didn't win a single playoff game. Being expensive is one thing. Being costly and losing is quite another, regardless of how deep-pocketed the owner might be.' According to Windhorst, money was the reason behind all this because they desperately needed flexibility. He said, 'Waiving Beal saves the Suns a whopping $175 million this season just in luxury tax, a figure so enormous that it alone could justify spreading the cap pain out over the next five years. Combined with the salary savings just this season, the maneuver took more than $210 million off the team's balance sheet.' The biggest news about buying out Beal's contract is that Phoenix will get out of both the first and second aprons, salary-wise. The aprons were heavily penalizing the Suns for how much money they were spending on their roster, and now they have much more flexibility than before. The Phoenix Suns are still dealing with issues due to trading away so many draft picks, but they can now sign talented players to fill their roster or make trades if needed. They were stuck before, and now have much more leeway to build a competitive roster. Devin Booker was signed to a massive contract extension, cementing his untouchability. They also still have talented players, like Jalen Green, who came over in the Kevin Durant trade. The frontcourt has also undergone a massive upgrade thanks to Khaman Maluach and Mark Williams. The roster still feels unfinished, but it is much more flexible than before, and that matters, especially in trying to help Devin Booker win. Related: Bradley Beal's plans for 2026 free agency after signing with Clippers Related: NBA players hilariously react to Bradley Beal's 1-emoji farewell to Suns
Yahoo
15 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Grading Devin Booker's $145 million Suns contract extension
The post Grading Devin Booker's $145 million Suns contract extension appeared first on ClutchPoints. The Phoenix Suns have their franchise player back in Devin Booker, who signed a $145 million contract extension. It makes him the highest annually paid player in NBA history. Regardless of the lucrative contract, there are some positives, as well as some drawbacks, with the new deal. Let's go through some of them. Devin Booker's contract with the Suns is worrisome for the salary cap Even though the move was beyond necessary, cementing nearly $70 million on the cap sheet for the 2026-27 and 2027-28 seasons isn't ideal. Although he's in his prime, one player taking nearly half of the salary cap isn't what the doctor ordered. It's quite the opposite. While he could take a hometown discount, Booker earned his contract. There were plenty of opportunities for him to bail on the franchise and leave for a better team. After all, he has gone through eight head coaches in 11 seasons, something that is frowned upon. It wasn't his decision. However, the one time he had a consistent head coach, Booker ended up taking the Suns to the 2021 NBA Finals. Despite losing to the Milwaukee Bucks in six games, the future was bright, and it still is. Still, his contract doesn't leave room for signing key players, even with the mid-level exception. Signing two of those players in the MLE could put them back in the first and second tax bracket. The upsides, though, are too good to deny. Devin Booker's contract shows the Suns' current stance Keeping the franchise guard was a must, considering all he's done, on and off the basketball court. He's been a community man, helping with charity events and routinely making time for fans. Furthermore, character has been a priority for the new Suns general manager Brian Gregory. During the 2025 NBA Draft, he talked about landing guys with great skill and potential, but great character. Booker wasn't a part of this draft, but ten years prior. He has maintained that high level of character, along with his basketball acumen. The contract also shows an unwavering commitment to the Phoenix guard in the long term. The latter has made it clear he wants to finish his career in the Valley of the Sun. Paying him what he's due is a first step in doing so, and they did just that. Lastly, the Suns are set on creating a winning culture. It's not the best situation for Booker to be in, but he's experienced this before. He underwent a grueling rebuild and then reached nearly the top of the mountain of NBA success. Heading into the prime of his career, this cements a long-lasting relationship between Booker and the Suns. Trade Grade: B The contract wasn't a surprise, and felt overdue. Still, some ramifications include the salary cap and how other players' contracts will be affected. Not to mention, having Booker's salary be roughly 30-40% of the team's cap isn't promising. However, showing the commitment to him and his commitment to the city made this an easy deal. It's a 'historic' contract, but one that might be everlasting, or one that will keep the team stuck in the forbidden 'in between' area of being good or bad. Related: Suns' Devin Booker speaks out after signing $145M contract extension Related: Wings' Paige Bueckers rocked Devin Booker's sneakers in Phoenix
Forbes
21 hours ago
- Sport
- Forbes
Kaapo Kakko Continues Trend, Avoids NHL Arbitration With 3-Year Deal
Kaapo Kakko, 24, avoided salary arbitration by signing a new three-year contract with the Seattle ... More Kraken on Wednesday. (Photo by) With plenty of money in the system thanks to a rising salary cap, restricted free agents are coming to terms on new contracts with their teams rather than face potentially contentious NHL arbitration hearings. On July 5, 11 qualifying players filed for arbitration and one day later, the Buffalo Sabres filed for team-elected arbitration with defenseman Bowen Byram while the Utah Mammoth did the same with forward Jack McBain. By the time PuckPedia published its list of arbitration hearing dates on July 22, six of the 13 cases had been settled with new deals. Kaapo Kakko, who was up first on Friday, July 25, followed suit on Wednesday. One year away from potential unrestricted free agency, the second-overall pick from 2019 inked a new three-year deal with an average annual value of $4.525 million per season. That's up from $2.4 million on the one-year deal that he signed with the New York Rangers in June of 2024 — and is the kind of money that the cap-strapped Rangers would have had trouble fitting into their budget, which is a big part of the reason why GM Chris Drury dealt Kakko to the Seattle Kraken last December in exchange for defenseman Will Borgen and a pair of draft picks. Though he's seen as a bit of an underperformer for a player who was drafted second overall in 2019, Kakko is first in games played in his draft class (379), fifth in goals (71) and seventh in points (161). He's also trending up. Given more of an opportunity to contribute offensively in the top six, Kakko thrived in Seattle. He saw increases in ice time at even strength, on the power play and in overtime which led to 30 points in 49 games, the best rate of production in his NHL career, and he ended last season skating on the Kraken's top line with Matty Beniers and Jaden Schwartz. With the new contract, Kakko gets stability as well as a raise. New Kraken GM Jason Botterill locks him in with a deal that goes one year longer than what would have been available through arbitration. Gabriel Vilardi has inked a new six-year contract with the Winnipeg Jets. (Photo by Jonathan ... More Kozub/NHLI via Getty Images) The biggest contract to date for arbitration-eligible players was announced on July 18, when Gabriel Vilardi re-upped for six years with the Winnipeg Jets at an AAV of $7.5 million. That more than doubles his previous deal, which paid $3.6 million over the last two years, and the longer terms boosts the cap hit higher than AFP Analytics' projection of $6.8 million over four years. The Jets also ponied up a bit more than AFP Analytics' $1.56 million projection for arbitration-eligible forward Morgan Barron, locking him up for two yeas at $1.86 million. That leaves defenseman Dylan Samberg on the to-do list for GM Kevin Cheveldayoff, who's sitting comfortably with more than $10 million in cap space available. Samberg will likely pull in the largest AAV of the remaining arbitration-eligible players. His hearing is scheduled for July 30. Lukas Dostal is carving out a place among the NHL's elite goaltenders. (Photo by Ronald ...) Lukas Dostal also got a nice raise as he officially moves into the role of No. 1 goaltender for the Anaheim Ducks. The 25-year-old was barely making league minimum at $812,500 for the last two seasons but has now cashed in with a five-year deal at a cap hit of $6.5 million. That buys the Ducks three free-agent years from the rising star, and Dostal slides in just above his old partner on the goalie pay scale — $100,000 higher than the $6.4 million a year that John Gibson will make over the next two years with his new team, the Detroit Red Wings. On July 18, the Ducks also settled their other potential arbitration case by inking 24-year-old defender Drew Helleson to a two-year deal at $1.1 million. When teams elect to file for arbitration, they run the risk of allowing the player to choose a contract term that will take him straight to unrestricted free agency, where the team would lose the player for nothing. Jack McBain brings size to the center position for the Utah Mammoth. (Photo by Jamie Sabau/NHLI via ... More Getty Images) That did not turn out to be the case with the Utah Mammoth and Jack McBain. Though he was two years out from free agency, McBain elected to sign a five-year deal with the Mammoth at a cap hit of $4.25 million on July 8. That's a bump from just $1.6 million on the 25-year-old's last deal, and buys three years of free agency from the big center who is a valued member of the expansion squad. In Buffalo, however, Bowen Byram did elect to walk himself to free agency when he signed a two-year deal at a cap hit of $6.25 million. The 24-year-old is an important member of the Sabres' blue-line corps but has been the subject of frequent trade rumors. And while GM Kevyn Adams may have wanted to lock Byram in on a longer-term pact, he still has at least one more year of service coming in 2025-26 before he needs to look long and hard at whether he can extend Byram or if he'll need to be moved. If the Sabres can finally take that long-awaited step toward erasing their league-high playoff drought that's now at 14 years and counting, perhaps Byram can be convinced to stick around. As of July 23, Chicago Blackhawks goaltender Arvid Soderblom is now the first player up for an NHL arbitration hearing. His date is set for Monday, July 28.
ABC News
2 days ago
- Business
- ABC News
As West Coast prepares monster Harley Reid offer, it is time for the AFL to consider introducing max contract lengths
Over 25 years ago, the NBA decided enough was enough and flexed a key cap mechanism, introducing maximum contract lengths. The 90s had seen teams dish out ridiculously long contracts, ones that had the potential to handicap them for the best part of a decade. One of the more notorious examples saw Juwan Howard, the fifth overall pick in the 1994 draft, locked into a 12-year, $42 million deal with the Washington Bullets, one which gave him an option to opt out after two years. The NBA's current rules mean the longest contract that a player can now earn is a five-year deal with their own team, or a four-year deal if they sign with a rival. It is a mechanism that essentially protects teams from themselves, even if it limits the amount of financial security for the players. Even with this measure, NBA teams still make bad signings and players have bad contracts, but at least the length of the financial damage to a team's cap sheet is limited. With lengthy extensions becoming more and more popular over the last few years, the AFL, too, has started to save teams from their own mishaps, and would be well served to do more in coming years. Since the start of the 2024 season, AFL teams offering contracts longer than six years must submit written approval from their president and CEO, explaining the deal. It is like trying to convince your parents why you should buy a brand-new PS5. That move came after Brodie Grundy, now with Sydney, was moved twice by two different clubs, Collingwood and Melbourne, in the space of two years. The seven-year extension Grundy signed runs through 2027. By the time it expires, he will have played for at least three different clubs over the duration of the contract. No one was to blame for the Grundy extension in hindsight. His management was well within its rights to ask for top dollar from the Magpies, given he was a two-time All-Australian and one of the best big men in the game at the time. The decision was simple for Collingwood: either pay Grundy or lose him to a rival club, leaving a gaping hole at the ruck position. A couple of teams in the AFL currently face the same conundrum the Magpies did at the end of 2019, namely West Coast, which is trying to retain the services of their prolific youngster, Harley Reid. The Eagles have won a combined 10 games in four seasons, and currently have an abysmal 1-17 record so far this year. Despite spending four years as the AFL's cellar-dwellers, Reid is the only Eagles player who seems a sure bet to make an All-Australian team in the future, making locking him up a priority for the club. Ever since Eagles selected Reid, a Victorian native, first overall in the 2023 draft, clubs from his home state have been sniffing around the prospect of prying him out of Western Australia. The bidding war has allowed Reid's management to drive up his asking price. The latest number being thrown around is a reported 11-year extension that would net Reid an estimated total of $20 million across the duration of the deal. The AFL hasn't seen numbers like this before, so understandably, there is apprehension around the competition, particularly due to the fact that Reid has played 38 career games and blown hot and cold in those, as you'd expect from a 20-year-old in his second season. From an Eagles perspective, the deal is a no-brainer. You simply pay whatever you can to keep your crown jewel and worry about the rest later. West Coast might not be winning very often, but Reid's presence still draws significant interest, which is of tangible value to the club. The idea of what he might be is enough to keep fans entertained. Rival clubs may not be willing to match the 11 years West Coast is offering, but are clearly prepared to stump up well in excess of $1 million per annum if it means Reid is spending his prime years running around in their guernsey. Like the situation with Grundy and Collingwood, no one is necessarily at fault. This just happens to be the price of doing business. St Kilda finds itself in a similar boat when it comes to the seemingly intertwined futures of Nasiah Waganeen-Milera, who is already at the club, and Tom De Koning, whom the Saints are trying to acquire this summer. The Saints have been big-game hunting for a few years now, and everyone in the league knows it. They failed to lure Finn Callaghan and Essendon captain Zach Merrett to come to the club in the last 12 months, but appear to have turned the head of Carlton's De Koning. De Koning has been reportedly offered a deal in the vicinity of $1.7 million per season to leave the Blues, a deal which has seen Waganeen-Milera's camp raise his asking price to $1.4 million per year amid interest from both South Australian clubs. St Kilda, which is currently flush with salary cap space, can afford to sign both players to huge deals, but will likely restrict itself moving forward by committing such a large portion of its cap to two players. People in power at all these clubs have one thing in common: trying to follow through on whatever the message is to their members. The only thing that differs is what exactly that message is. For West Coast, the message is one of hope, patience, and an idea of what could be. Pitching that to fans is doable when Reid is the centrepiece of it. Good luck doing it while he's ripping it up back in Victoria after being traded by the Eagles. The Saints have an entirely different mandate. This is a club that has not had any real star-power since the Nick Riewoldt era a decade ago. To those in charge at St Kilda, giving the fans a shiny new toy in De Koning makes paying him well above the usual going rate for a ruckman worth it. People in power at each of these clubs are trying to appease their members as quickly as possible. If that means handicapping the club in the long run, a time when they may not still remain at the club in their respective positions, it is a decision they'll make every single time. This isn't a problem that is AFL-exclusive. Across all sports, if you leave clubs to their own vices, the chances are they make short-sighted decisions that usually result in adversely impacting their long-term futures. The AFL cannot make any changes until the end of the current Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), which ends in 2027. When it comes to the negotiation of a new deal, contract lengths should be central to these discussions, particularly with expansion on the horizon. The current AFL administration has already shown an inclination to keeping a close eye on how the NBA does things, dabbling in play-in tournament and in-season cup ideas. If there is one thing they can actually take from the NBA, it should be contract lengths.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Broncos could lose another player as 'formal' offers expected from rival NRL clubs
Gehamat Shibasaki could be the latest player to fall victim to the salary cap squeeze at the Brisbane Broncos, with the manager of the Maroons Origin winner alluding to his potential exit. Shibasaki has been a fairytale story this year in Brisbane, where he started off the season on a train-and-trial deal but impressed coach Michael Maguire enough to force his way into the Broncos' starting side. The journeyman has been a revelation in the centres for Brisbane in 2025 and earnt himself a shock call-up for Queensland in the Origin series decider, playing a decisive role for Billy Slater's side as they claimed the shield. But Shibasaki's current deal with Brisbane only runs until the end of next season, meaning he will be free to negotiate with rivals clubs from November 1, unless a new deal is agreed before then. Complicating the situation is the delicate salary cap situation at the Broncos, who have a number of stars tied down to big-money deals and have recently extended several other players. The salary cap squeeze has already seen Selywn Cobbo forced to leave for the Dolphins next season and hooker Cory Paix could be pushed out too, following reports Brisbane are close to tying down forwards Kobe Hetherington and Corey Jensen to new multi-year deals. Maguire's side recently locked down captain Adam Reynolds, centre Kotoni Staggs and emerging hooker Blake Mozer after the trio signed contract extensions. And the club also has a large chunk of its cap tied up in lucrative deals for superstars Reece Walsh, Payne Haas, Patrick Carrigan, Ezra Mam and veteran Ben Hunt. Gehamat Shibasaki expected to field offers from rival clubs It's understood Brisbane are keen to keep Shibasaki on their books after his incredible season in 2025. But the Origin centre's manager Wade Rushton told that he is yet to be offered a new deal and admits they expect to be inundated with offers for the 27-year-old when he becomes a free agent on November 1. "Gehamat loves the Broncos after the season he has had and is contracted to them for next season," Rushton told WWOS. "But they haven't been able to make him an offer beyond that and so on November 1, I'm expecting quite a few clubs to show formal interest. He's had a fantastic year and is a great story - and he will keep working hard on his game. Shibasaki has scored 12 tries in 16 games in his breakout season with the Broncos in 2025, having previously failed to crack into the top grade and moving away for a stint in Japanese rugby. He's also among the NRL's leading centres in terms of line breaks, tackle busts and average run metres per game, making it easy to see why there would be so much interest from rival clubs chasing a quality outside back. RELATED: Tigers player escapes charge over tackle that left superstar injured Craig Bellamy flags further absence for Storm star Cameron Munster Latrell moment says it all as Souths cop another season-ending blow The 27-year-old's current development contract is only reportedly worth around $85,000 but with his additional match payments and Origin windfall, that figure could rise to at least $160,000 if he plays all of Brisbane's remaining games and they reach the finals. Shibasaki knows he'll be able to command a much larger salary if he hits the open market though and with the Broncos reportedly only able to offer his teammate Paix $150,000-a-year to stay in Brisbane, the centre may well be the latest star squeezed out of the club.
