Jamaal Murray - rumored contract extension

[gamecockcat]

Jamaal Murray is a very good NBA player. Personally, I don't think he's elite but he's very good. He's had some amazing playoff performances and was very instrumental in the Nuggets winning the championship the season before this one. However, he also 'plays his way into shape' most seasons. He's never been named to an All-Star team (if what I heard on local radio is accurate). He gets hurt often (product of not being in shape?).

The rumor on Denver radio is that the Nuggets are offering a 4-year extension for $208M ($52M/yr). While I don't know much about the NBA economics, that seems like a huge overpayment for what he's done thus far. This most recent season, only Steph Curry made similar money ($51.9M). I find it difficult to believe that Murray is worth that kind of money.

 

[StubbornPenny]

Whoever “Jamaal” is might not be, but Jamal did help win a title and you tend to reward your guys for that.

Jamaaaaaaaaaaaaal

 

[LineSkiCat14]

I think you kind of have to pay him, even overpay him, if you want to keep the championship window alive with Jokic. Denver deseperately needs to find a 3rd option.. it may be MPJ, but hard to say. He's also got a bad history of injuries. They just lost KCP, too.. who is an invaluable rotation piece with deep playoff experience.

It's just not easy to find established talent in the NBA.. a lot of the guys being traded or going in FA, aren't really guys that will move the needle IMO, or are guys on the back end of their career. CP3, Klay, Harden, etc. Denver is too good to get guys in the draft.

I agree that Murray isn't elite, at the moment.. but you might have to just pay him, because what else can you really do?

 

[gamecockcat]

I think you kind of have to pay him, even overpay him, if you want to keep the championship window alive with Jokic. Denver deseperately needs to find a 3rd option.. it may be MPJ, but hard to say. He's also got a bad history of injuries. They just lost KCP, too.. who is an invaluable rotation piece with deep playoff experience.

It's just not easy to find established talent in the NBA.. a lot of the guys being traded or going in FA, aren't really guys that will move the needle IMO, or are guys on the back end of their career. CP3, Klay, Harden, etc. Denver is too good to get guys in the draft.

I agree that Murray isn't elite, at the moment.. but you might have to just pay him, because what else can you really do?

That seems to be what the Nuggets think, also. MPJ is rumored to be on the trading block for several reasons: 1) almost never gets to the foul line, i.e., just an outside shooter at 6'-10", 2) disappears in way too many games, 3) high salary (>$30M/yr), 4) not a great defender, 5) can't create his own shot. Nuggets are kind of in a tough spot: want to keep the championship window open but need a dependable #3 and have almost no cap space. Certainly paying Murray this amount will hamstring them for several years going forward. They need several of the guys on rookie contracts to make big steps forward, imo.

 

[BStockfan01]

Hes always hurt and his best games have been when it matters. Hes a great shooter but a conundrum because of how available he is going forward

 

[bthaunert]

You 100% pay that. If you're not paying him that amount of money, your options of getting someone better are extremely unlikely. In 2 or 3 years, he probably won't even be a top 20 paid player the way salaries are rising.

 

[true blue1]

Glad to hear it! A lot of Kentucky boy's cashing in!

 

[gamecockcat]

You 100% pay that. If you're not paying him that amount of money, your options of getting someone better are extremely unlikely. In 2 or 3 years, he probably won't even be a top 20 paid player the way salaries are rising.

You're probably right but isn't that crazy? Paying >$50M for a solid, but not spectacular, 2-guard who tends to have nagging injuries most seasons. But, finding someone as good or better for lower cost is probably not gonna happen. So, if the Nuggets still believe they're in the championship window (and they do, imo), you're right - you've got to pay him.

 

[Aike]

I think he is elite. Not 5 guys on the planet I’d rather give the ball to in the 4th quarter. Felt that way since 2015.

 

[Fox2monk]

Jamaal Murray is a very good NBA player. Personally, I don't think he's elite but he's very good. He's had some amazing playoff performances and was very instrumental in the Nuggets winning the championship the season before this one. However, he also 'plays his way into shape' most seasons. He's never been named to an All-Star team (if what I heard on local radio is accurate). He gets hurt often (product of not being in shape?).

The rumor on Denver radio is that the Nuggets are offering a 4-year extension for $208M ($52M/yr). While I don't know much about the NBA economics, that seems like a huge overpayment for what he's done thus far. This most recent season, only Steph Curry made similar money ($51.9M). I find it difficult to believe that Murray is worth that kind of money.

It’s not, if you want elite guards, that is the going rate. He has never made the all star team but he can’t help that. The West is deep but he’s been deserving a couple times of a spot. Jason Tatum just got extended for 5 years 312M.

 

[gamecockcat]

It’s not, if you want elite guards, that is the going rate. He has never made the all star team but he can’t help that. The West is deep but he’s been deserving a couple times of a spot. Jason Tatum just got extended for 5 years 312M.

Saw that. Wow. NBA salaries are getting up there with Euro soccer stars. I don't know what the salary cap in the NBA is, but won't that huge salary hurt their chances of hanging onto other critical pieces of their championship roster? I mean, Tatum didn't average 40 points and 25 rebounds this year, other guys produced and will want to get paid. Surely they can't pay top dollar for everyone, right?

 

[PopesReignOverCardinals]

Saw that. Wow. NBA salaries are getting up there with Euro soccer stars. I don't know what the salary cap in the NBA is, but won't that huge salary hurt their chances of hanging onto other critical pieces of their championship roster? I mean, Tatum didn't average 40 points and 25 rebounds this year, other guys produced and will want to get paid. Surely they can't pay top dollar for everyone, right?

NBA uses a soft cap and a luxury tax (among other things) to penalize exceeding the cap.

The Celtics have banked their two stars (Tatum and Brown), and instead of going for a 3rd max contract like some other franchises do, they have distributed that into multiple good players like Derrick White, Jrue Holiday, Kristaps Porzingis, and an aging Al Horford. The rest of the bench is filled by role players making comparatively low salaries.

 

[Fox2monk]

Saw that. Wow. NBA salaries are getting up there with Euro soccer stars. I don't know what the salary cap in the NBA is, but won't that huge salary hurt their chances of hanging onto other critical pieces of their championship roster? I mean, Tatum didn't average 40 points and 25 rebounds this year, other guys produced and will want to get paid. Surely they can't pay top dollar for everyone, right?

This year the first apron is $178M and the second apron is $187M. They have these new aprons that penalize teams harshly for going over too. For example the Celtics currently sit around $200M in total payroll. They have many penalties for this including.

Starting at the end of the 2023-24 season, even more restrictions will be added to the second apron. These include:

• Teams cannot use a trade exception generated by aggregating the salaries of multiple players
• Teams cannot include cash in a trade
• Teams cannot use a trade exception generated in a prior year
• First-round picks seven years out are frozen (unable to be traded)
• A team's first-round pick is moved to the end of the first round if they remain in the second apron for three out of five seasons

Plus they have to pay $4.25 per dollar that they go over the second apron tax line. If they have this problem 2 times in a 4 year period the penalty rises to $6.50 I believe. Right now their projected payroll and luxury tax penalty is almost at $500M total for next season. So yes very soon they will have to let some quality players go to get under the payroll or else they will spend 2.5 times their payroll and it will keep rising every year they do it.

 

[Mike-McD]

"I coached him!"

- Calipari

 

[bigblueinsanity]

You have to pay that. Hes an incredible fit for that team. Comes up huge in the clutch, time and again. Plus he lets you basically get a 2/1 on a player because hes a sg who is a very capable facilitator.

 

[Son_Of_Saul]

I think he is elite. Not 5 guys on the planet I’d rather give the ball to in the 4th quarter. Felt that way since 2015.

He's a legit top 25 NBA player. People forget how good he was in Denver's title run.

Recency bias rules the day.

 

[Aike]

He's a legit top 25 NBA player. People forget how good he was in Denver's title run.

Recency bias rules the day.

And everyone has forgotten the 2020 playoffs, when he put up 50 twice in a week vs. Utah, then scored 40 to close out the Clippers.

 

[HagginHall1999]

Jamaal Murray is a very good NBA player. Personally, I don't think he's elite but he's very good. He's had some amazing playoff performances and was very instrumental in the Nuggets winning the championship the season before this one. However, he also 'plays his way into shape' most seasons. He's never been named to an All-Star team (if what I heard on local radio is accurate). He gets hurt often (product of not being in shape?).

The rumor on Denver radio is that the Nuggets are offering a 4-year extension for $208M ($52M/yr). While I don't know much about the NBA economics, that seems like a huge overpayment for what he's done thus far. This most recent season, only Steph Curry made similar money ($51.9M). I find it difficult to believe that Murray is worth that kind of money.

Pretty wild. Fred Van Fleet makes $43M a year for worse shooting and less overall production. He does have an amazing AtoT ratio but yeah man, NBA contracts are insane.

Murray is really good though...so seeing that his contract is about $40M more than FF isn't very surprising. The salaries are just staggering though.

 

[BBBLazing]

That seems to be what the Nuggets think, also. MPJ is rumored to be on the trading block for several reasons: 1) almost never gets to the foul line, i.e., just an outside shooter at 6'-10", 2) disappears in way too many games, 3) high salary (>$30M/yr), 4) not a great defender, 5) can't create his own shot. Nuggets are kind of in a tough spot: want to keep the championship window open but need a dependable #3 and have almost no cap space. Certainly paying Murray this amount will hamstring them for several years going forward. They need several of the guys on rookie contracts to make big steps forward, imo.

I love the "I don't know much about NBA economics" followed by a detailed breakdown of Denver's budget and what they can afford and need to do financially. I wish people would just actually admit that they watch, and like the NBA.