• Paul Pierce got frank about the state of modern NBA players
• Pierce believes modern players lack competitive spirit due to the amount of money they’re making
• Pierce used a Kevin Garnett analogy to drive the point home with Garnett agreeing with him
The NBA becomes more popular around the world every season and has consistently been growing since the Michael Jordan era. As a result, the contracts players get paid have exponentially increased from what was being offered even 10 years ago.
Paul Pierce got real on the massive contracts affecting modern players on the court, as they lack hunger and competitive spirit because their financial future is secured. He shared the same using a Kevin Garnett analogy on their show together.
“I don’t see the competitive spirit there. I worked my whole life to get to a point where it’s like, ‘Damn, I just signed for a $150 million contract, and I got another $100 million in shoe deals.’ How hungry? You said this, I’ll never forget you said this, Ticket. If you wanna see how real a motherf***er is, give them a boatload of money.”
The distractions from the game are at an all-time high.
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Pierce then spoke about how they saw players sign for big-money deals and then regress almost instantly. He also discussed how players look at themselves as a brand and not just an athlete anymore, so protecting their financial future takes priority over achieving on the court.
The Golden Age Of NBA Contracts
With every passing season, we have a .new ‘richest contract ever’. We saw Jaylen Brown sign the first $300 million deal this summer while Anthony Davis signed a contract extension with the most guaranteed money over one season at $63.7 million in 2027-28.
With a new media rights deal to be negotiated before the 2025-26 season, another salary cap spike could be incoming.
As the top-end rises, we’re gonna see many rotational players secure life-changing contracts over a season or two of great performances. After that happens, they may lose hunger and motivation. But at the absolute top level of the sport, that rarely happens.
Nikola Jokic signed the largest contract in NBA history last summer and won a championship that very season before the deal even kicked in. The best want to win and will keep trying to win.
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