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Guarenteed Contracts in the NBA & Poll

Guarenteed Contracts in the NBA are a cancer in my opinion, and I would assume several would agree with me.  I would love to see the end of them.

The reality of significant change is a longshot, but that doesn't change my feelings about it.

It seems to me that the NBA would put out a better product if players were held accountable in the sense that they could lose their millions of potential salary if they didn't perform well, were constantly out of shape, etc.  I believe it would spur on better competition, it would create more trade scenarios, and in general would be better for the game. More people would watch.  

Owners were either short-sighted and greedy, or they were fleeced into allowing the provision for guarenteed contracts in the Collective Bargaining Agreement.  

A few final thoughts and then a poll question...

I've suggested some benefits to getting rid of or abolishing guarenteed contracts.  The other side of the coin is that it could turn into an abuse by the owners though as well.

A player theoretically could be lured and signed to a 5-year 50 Million dollar contract by a team that has no intention of keeping that player longer than a year.  So a player might play one season, make 10 Million, and then be cut.  That is kind of deceptive in the sense that the player may have turned down other deals that might have actually provided them with some security (like a 5-year 40 Million deal) where the other team intended to keep them around.

If it were up to me, I think the ideal system would be where teams could cut players at anytime, but players are guarenteed somewhere around 30-40% of the origninal contract, and that 30-40% would count against the salary cap like it does right now. (Example; Cut Darius Miles and his contract still counts against our cap.)  

The current system is unfair to the owners, and more importantly the fans.  Players like Shawn Kemp, Jerome James, Darius Miles, Derek Anderson, Raef LaFrentz, Steve Francis, and Theo Ratliff got paid/are getting paid way over their value and we shouldn't have to get punished because of it. (Notice how many of those names are connected with the Blazers)

The NFL has a decent model for contracts, although I think the signing bonuses and manuevering to spread those bonuses out through the length of the contract is silly.

On to the Poll

Poll
How should the NBA deal with contracts?
Make a compromise similar to Silky's suggestion.
12 votes
NFL-like. Cut contracts don't hit the cap, but bonus money does.
11 votes
Power to the owners; players can be cut anytime, any reason, no penalty.
4 votes
Leave things alone. The system is flawed, but flawed for all.
14 votes

41 votes | Poll has closed

0 recs | Comment 11 comments

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Just to clear one thing up
The CBA doesn't guarantee contracts.  Precedence does.  The only contracts that the CBA forces to be guaranteed at all are rookie scale contracts and those are so loaded with team options in the later years that they are actually the least guaranteed contracts in the NBA.

by Gargen on Mar 14, 2008 11:42 PM PDT   0 recs

That may dictate pay scale limits for players...
But that doesn't change the fact that somewhere along the line, the union and owners cut a deal that said salary was guarenteed to the players. The players would otherwise strike.  I'm not sure when this occurred exactly, and I'm too lazy to look it up.

It is very hard to void a contract, and even when it does happen, the players union fights it all the way.  

I'm hip, I'm slick, and all the women want my phone number!

by silkybrown on Mar 15, 2008 1:02 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

They didn't
the union and owners cut a deal that said salary was guarenteed to the players

No they didn't, that's what I'm saying.  As it is right now, both the NBA CBA and NFL CBA have the exact same rules regarding guaranteed contracts... they have none.

The reason NBA contracts are guaranteed is because, back in the late 60s and 70s, teams started guaranteeing them to lure better players.  Once the precedence was set, the players quit signing contacts that weren't guaranteed and the owners had no choice if they wanted any free agents.  The NFL is only different because the owners never got themselves caught in that trap.

While it may seem like the owners should get together and just agree to not sign any more guaranteed contracts, it would be almost impossible to get everyone on board.  Some owner out there would say "freak you guys, I'm gonna sign all the best free agents now".  Even if they got all the owners on board, it would lead to a players strike that would likely last longer than a season and only get resolved when the NBA ended up like the NHL (i.e. they were gone so long nobody cared any more and they just signed a deal for the sake of the league not completely dissolving).

The only good way for the owners to get out of the hole is to sign smarter contracts.  Basically take a "sure, I'll guarantee it, but then I'm only going to sign you for 3 years instead of 5" stance.  That's actually what's happening now.  Rashard Lewis and the Knicks aside, the free agent market the past few years has been "down" because owners and GMs just aren't willing to sign huge long term deals for anything but the best blue chip players.  Deals like Trout's are quickly becoming the norm.

The NFL as a contrast, has been moving in the opposite direction.  In an effort to lure in th best free agents without spending cap killing dollars, more and more contracts are having the first few years guaranteed.

by Gargen on Mar 15, 2008 2:53 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

NFL is a good, but it's be hard to change
I don't think it makes sense to have a salary cap and guaranteed contracts. Baseball has guaranteed contracts but there's no salary cap so as long as owners will pay a bad contract doesn't stop a team from improving. In the NFL there's a cap but teams can cut players and only pay the signing bonuses.

When it comes time for the next CBA I don't think the players would agree to non-guaranteed contracts, even a partially guaranteed way like the NFL. I like the way the NFL does it because players still are guaranteed some of the money and teams are held responsible for bad signings, but one or two bad deals don't cripple a team if a player gets injured, stops developing and/or becomes shockingly obese immediately signing a deal.

Think about how many teams have at least one contract over $10 mil a year for a player that doesn't play at all or doesn't contribute much. We have Lafrenz playing just a few minutes, plus Miles and Steve Francis who haven't played a single minute for us this year. The Pacers and Knicks are horrible and won't even have a chance of rebuilding until contracts expire. It's hurting the league when teams can't improve because they're paying inactive players.

by terryisntbald on Mar 15, 2008 2:26 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

Contracts are agreements...
   As you have noticed a lot of teams get saddled with contracts that don't seem to align well with the ability of the player or the contribution of the player. But I don't think non-guaranteed contracts would be an answer. Not only because I don't think The Players Union or the Players would agree. It's not an answer because of the physical and transitory nature and risk of being a professional basketball player.

   When a player is up for a new contract as an unrestricted, that player and his agent usually look for the best situation for that player. That most often translates into that player looking for the most money for the most number of years that the player can get. Why shouldn't it be that way? In every example you site the original team AGREED to the contract. Plus even if the player was traded the team recieving the player knew about the contract in place. Franchises are not forced to give these players the contracts they get. Nor even in a potential trade is anyone forcing them to accept. It's an agreement.

  I argue that it's an agreement that is fair. Darius Miles is a good example. We signed him to a contract that in retrospect was far too much, for far too long. But only in retrospect. At the time The Blazers signed him to a contract they thought was representitive of fair market value for a player that was at the time showing the potential and talent that Miles was demonstrating. If it was a bad evaluation by Blazer management, too bad. Part of running a franchise.

  Do I blame players like Miles for looking for those contracts? No. Miles is a good example because look at what happened. I'm sure that at the time Miles signed the contract with The Blazers he thought he'd be playing basketball throughout the contract. His knees broke down. You sign the biggest contract you can get to guard against this type of unfortunate reality. Because as a pro-player given the physical nature of play, you never really know when your last play on the court might be.

  It balances out. I think players need the guaranteed contract because for them as players there is no guarantee of tomorrow.

  I also think there already has been an adjustment. Teams that have been burned by huge and lengthy contracts are no longer signing players to such large and long contracts. With exceptions to the elite I see more contracts being for shorter periods of time.

   My bottom line is it's a binding agreement, and not one that an agent or player can force a team into, franchises agree to them of their own free will, using whatever logic and evaluation they think makes sense. If time and unforeseen circumsance reveal they made an error, then too bad.

   Let the Buyer Beware.  

"Mother Nature started this fight, I think it's about time we ended it!"

by Krang on Mar 15, 2008 8:38 AM PDT   0 recs

however much the players make...
the owners make more.

Guaranteed contracts are simply a matter of respect.  Would you go to work for someone that said when they hired you: "We are not making any commitment to you. We will fire at any time for any reason and there won't be anything you can do. Good luck finding another job"? No!

Do you want a league like Football where noone cares about their team, are only out for themselves, and will ALWAYS jump for more money every time? That's because those contracts aren't guaranteed. Imagine what the NBA would have been like if the Blazers had simply cut Clyde Drexler when he started getting older. Would you have liked that?

Non-guaranteed contracts are the only thing the makes the NBA watchable.

by manzell on Mar 15, 2008 8:41 AM PDT   0 recs

err
Guaranteed contracts are what makes the NBA watchable.

by manzell on Mar 15, 2008 8:46 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

Ummmm...
Kind of like watching the New York Knicks?
I'm hip, I'm slick, and all the women want my phone number!

by silkybrown on Mar 15, 2008 3:27 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

The laws here in Oregon allow...
employers to do just exactly that. There is no guarantee that anyone not under contract is going to have a job tomorrow - including me. It is my job to make myself so valuable to the company that they have no desire to get rid of me - that is how I keep my job.

If I am injured in an accident, and can't work I had better have sufficient insurance to cover everything - which I don't because I can't afford it. After my PTO runs out I don't get paid and I might not have a job - tough chitlins.

Life has risks and nobody promised me a Rose Garden.

35:12 Min, 14-20 FG, 1-2 FT, +15 +/-, 1 Off, 6 Rebs, 4 Ast, 1 Blk, 29 Pts - LMA vs. Bucks

by LaMarvelous on Mar 15, 2008 10:38 AM PDT to parent up   0 recs

I disagree
Respect is something that is earned.  I could just as easily say that players who come to camp overweight and out of shape are not showing the same respect you seem to think the owners should automatically be giving out.  And the players deserve to be rewarded when they neglect their jobs?

I also believe that if I do a darn good job, my employer would be crazy and stupid to get rid of me.  It would be their loss, and some other employer's gain.  

I have not suggested the players be left out in the cold either.  If you refer back to my diary, I am a proponent for partially guarenteed contracts.

Last point:
You said, "Do you want a league like Football where noone cares about their team, are only out for themselves, and will ALWAYS jump for more money every time?"

Sounds a lot like the NBA or any other pro sport if you ask me.

If you don't offer a max contract to a player who in his mind thinks he should have a max contract, we'll see just how committed to the team concept he is.  He's going to go for the money almost every time.  Very rarely will a player give up money, unless they are at the late stage of their career, already have a lot of money, and decide to sign on with a contender for 'cheap' hoping for a shot at a ring.

I'm hip, I'm slick, and all the women want my phone number!

by silkybrown on Mar 15, 2008 3:37 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

This was a response to Manzell
I didn't reply to your thread...sorry.
I'm hip, I'm slick, and all the women want my phone number!

by silkybrown on Mar 15, 2008 3:38 PM PDT to parent up   0 recs

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