5 players, US$1.1 billion: NBA free agency starts with a bang
- 5 players – Jokic, Beal, Towns, Booker and Morant – had more than US$1.1 billion in money committed to them in their new deals
- Beal alone will make US$251 million over the next five seasons after re-signing with Washington
The NBA generated more basketball-related income than ever this past season, the total number coming up just short of US$9 billion.
Business is good. The first night of free agency underscored how good.
Nikola Jokic agreed to the biggest contract in NBA history, Bradley Beal agreed to a deal worth a quarter-billion dollars, and the money just kept flowing. Soon after midnight Friday in the Eastern time zone, three more players – Karl-Anthony Towns, Devin Booker and Ja Morant – also agreed to huge-money extensions.
Towns and Booker agreed to four-year deals that will commence in 2024 and are worth at least US$224 million, their agent, Jessica Holtz of CAA, said. Morant will sign his first rookie extension, one that’ll be worth at least US$193 million and could reach the US$230 million range, according to Tandem Sports, which represents him.
Those five players – Jokic, Beal, Towns, Booker and Morant – had more than US$1.1 billion in money committed to them in their new deals, highlighting the moves made Thursday when the NBA’s annual free-agent negotiating window opened.
Jokic agreed to a supermax extension to remain with the Denver Nuggets, the two-time reigning MVP guaranteeing himself at least US$264 million over five seasons starting with the 2023-24 campaign. The final number may go up slightly depending on what the league’s salary cap is going into the ‘23-24 season and if it exceeds current projections.
Beal will make US$251 million over the next five seasons after re-signing with Washington, one day after turning down US$37 million for this coming season from the team with whom he’s spent the entirety of his 10-year career.
Towns and Booker got their deals not long afterward, as did Morant. More big-money extensions are coming at some point, particularly rookie extensions – Miami’s Tyler Herro and New Orleans’ Zion Williamson among the names on that list.