OKC spent $822 million to close their finals window 🏆 #shorts
The Thunder spending $822 million to lock up their big three seems like a win until you realize that’s not how the NBA works anymore. There’s a reason we’ve had seven different champs in seven straight years. The NBA’s contract rules are anti-dynasty and OKC will be the latest victim of the CBA. Look at it like this. The extensions don’t really kick in until the season after next, but it gets ugly quickly. Their roster will cost a league high $268 million, and that doesn’t even include a massive $183 million luxury tax bill. Now, if they do back up the Brinks truck, they’ll break the Warriors record for largest tax bill ever paid. But they won’t. This year’s Celtics are the best example. They look like they might have a 5-year window, but the bill stacked up quickly, and even if they won the chip this year, Boston’s roster was going to be completely unaffordable moving forward. Turns out they had a 2-year window, and OKC will have the same. For the record here, I don’t like how the CBA works. There should be some sort of cap or tax discount for extending players you drafted. It’s more fun to have at least some continuity. Now, if OKC was in a big market with an absurdly rich owner like the Clippers, I might think differently about their window closing after next year. But they’re not. They’re owned by Klay Bennett, who has a net worth of $400 million. Or, in other words, he’s one of the poorest owners in pro sports and just signed three deals that equals more than double his net worth. I’m Fig Smith and that’s my
28 Comments
Really enjoyed it! Thank you for the vivid emotions and useful information! ✨🍓
Nah they’re smart with this. It’ll hurt them but won’t prevent them from another title
well good thing they have a million frps to fill the roster after losing most of their depth in FA over the next few years
That’s why the NFL owners want to change the salary cap already on lower salaries because you can’t afford to pay someone $100 million & still think you can afford to pay everyone else. Now before you all attack me think it’s not just the NFL players, it’s the employees who work 24/7 in the stadium, pay local & state taxes for most teams. Plus when that $100 million players hurt your whole season is over then what? No playoff extra revenue just saying people.
I disagree with this as a Celtics fan. They may have 268, but they can shed 28.5 of that and get 5 million under the 2nd apron assuming they decline Hartensteins team option. Plus, if they choose to move on from kendrich williams, that will open up even more room. Additionally, they will still have Cason Wallace and topic on rookie deals and can always trade one or more of their 15+ second rounders to get off contracts like Caruso, Joe, etc.
They have picks to replenish the depth and have Jaylin Williams on 8 mil a year the next 3 years, and their rookie center that can get paid very little for the next 4. Unlike my Celtics, they have very easy options to get rid of salary and have all of their pick control the next 7 years.
Nah I get it. They keep their big 3 and with so many draft picks they can let guys go or trade them and keep recycling players. They just need to make sure they keep every coach they got that helps with developing.
I like the outros they are my favorite park of the video practically other than the topic
Great video Frank. I totally agree, God bless
Holy crap this is such a casual take. They have another year before it kicks in. Jdub and Chet need to make another all NBA team to get all that money. Plus OKC is the best team at developing young players. That’s why they haven’t traded any picks so that they can just stock up with future replacements. That’s why they drafted Sorber this year, to replace IHart. This way they can keep their big 3 and still cheap role players.
The Celtics comparison is dumb asf to. Celtics would’ve kept the team together if it wasn’t thanks to the Tatum injury. They traded KP and jrue because they don’t want them for 2 years later they want them now.
Clay Bennett is the main guy but OKC is owned by several people. They’ve paid the luxury tax several times in the past and have even had the highest payroll in the entire league before. They’ve been one of the cheapest rosters for the past several years to prepare for this moment.
Here you go again, ignoring the other context or other side of the argument. This channel just pushes narratives based on emotions 😭
OKC has 15 1st round picks in the next 5 years and if Presti needs to trade a core role player, they're getting a return obviously. We're talking about a team governed by Sam presti and you're pushing this "window closing" narrative. There are ways around cap hell, and clearly OKC has the front office to avoid it.
Also the Thunder are going to be fine lol they have so much young developing depth and so many draft picks that they can avoid the luxury tax easily by moving non-core pieces who make just a little too much once the extensions kick in. Caruso, Hartenstein, and Dort are not irreplaceable players and they could save 50-60+ million by trading them, more than enough to avoid the luxury tax provided the replacements options do in fact make those moves worth it.
What’s worse is a lot of it is wasted on a foul baiter who only won because the NBA is afraid of European greatness
“Poorest owner” net worth of 400m 😭😭
I feel like maybe making a rule where if all of a team's 15 million+ dollar apy extensions are homegrown talent then they can stay in the first apron
Amen!
I wish this were true
It's working to maintain competitiveness.
It counters the GREED of wanting maximum $$$
You want to win Chips then learn to take less like Brady but most won't
This way there's no monopoly on championships.
That keeps majority of fans interested
The OKC Thunder franchise is probably worth about $4B, maybe 5.
Chew on that a minute.
>the Thunder have to trade their guys and start tanking
>the Thunder are tanking too egregiously
>the Thunder have too many picks
>the Thunder better trade Shai he doesn’t match the time line
>Shai will never be an all star
>shai will never be a go to scorer
>shai will never be all nba
>the Thunder may be the first seed but they won’t make it past the pelicans
>they won’t make it past the mavs. See too small
>they’ll never spend in free agency
>they’ll never get rid of Giddy
>shai can’t be an MVP
>they won’t make it past Denver, JDub isn’t that guy
>they won’t make it past any-man
>they won’t beat the devil magic Pacers.
>they won’t resign all these guys
>they’ll break up this core bc of salaries
—-You are here——
>they won’t repeat
>they won’t threepeat
>they won’t get four in a row
how the owner the poorist if the owners net worth is 400 ms, and he owns the team that signed players for $800 ms.
the man has more than 400$m’s. IRS and poor people just have to think otherwise
No matter what everyone in the comments says you can’t kick out Caruso Dort hartenstien and other guys of that level and replace them with rookies, those guys are good bc of their experience and can’t be replaced just like that even if the rookie is really good
I want em to buck the trend n be rewarded for taking this kind of loyalty risk
This is why the nba is in decline because of stupid like this
NBA needs a hard cap imo,
Seems so anti-competitive to near-fully lean into the fact that some teams have much much more money than others.
Just make the cap the same,
It’s not like the players are going to abandon the league, if they don’t like the pay, they get traded, that’s the whole point, and, there’s no where else for them to go and earn this kind of money anyways 🤷♂️
Im clay bennetts biggest hster
You win multiple titles by having your star players take pay cuts (brady and mahomes) or restructure contracts to extend the window.