Victor Wembanyama could take a pay cut to help the San Antonio Spurs keep their team together moving forward, just like Jalen Brunson did for the New York Knicks. And if he does that, it could create a ripple effect throughout the entire NBA. One guy doing it is one thing, but for another – a guy destined for max money throughout his entire career – to do it, it could start a trend.
Not only did Wembanyama tweet this out: “Spurs family, I’m here to stay. Whatever it takes🖤,” but Jake Fischer of The Stein Line reported on Twitter that there has been buzz in Las Vegas about the idea of Wemby taking a pay cut: “There has been word this morning in Las Vegas that Victor Wembanyama is considering signing less than his maximum rookie scale extension to provide San Antonio greater financial flexibility.”
That would be great for the San Antonio Spurs, perhaps good for the league, but bad for current-days contenders that have already paid their stars.
Wembanyama taking a pay cut like Brunson could start an NBA trend
The Spurs are going to get very expensive, very quickly. Obviously, Wembanyama is the head of the snake, and San Antonio was going to pay him no matter what, but the Spurs have other guys to pay, too.
Dylan Harper just enjoyed an incredible playoff run. He looks poised to be an absolute superstar in this league, and though he was only a rookie last year, he’s going to need a big-time payday relatively soon.
Then, there’s Stephon Castle. He’s about to head into his third season, and lik Harper, will probably be looking at a max extension when his rookie deal expires.
Under today’s CBA, having three guys on max contracts makes life very hard. The Boston Celtics just traded Jaylen Brown, supposedly because they didn’t want to have two guys making two supermax contracts.
So, if Wemby were to take a pay cut, it would really help the Spurs keep their team together. Just like how Brunson’s pay cut helped the Knicks keep their guys.
But what if every star starts to copy Wemby? What if Wemby copying Brunson ends up with a ton of other players around the league deciding that they are also taking pay cuts?
Teams would probably be able to keep their talent longer. They’d be able to build out better rosters. Winning would get ever harder for every team around the league.
Wemby, who already copied Brunson, may start an NBA trend.
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