Chapter 321 Bird rights super cap, super big contract
At 9 a.m. on the 13th, at Suns headquarters, Colangelo hosted Hoxman in his office.
This was an agreement between the two of them. At the end of the season, they would have a communication about Wang Tiejun's contract. It was not an informal negotiation.
In addition to the two of them, there is another person in the office, Colangelo Jr., who will officially take over the general manager position of Colangelo Sr., and he will also be responsible for the team's subsequent lineup construction.
However, Colangelo still had to deal with Wang Tiejun's contract renewal in person, and he was not sure about leaving this issue to his son.
Colangelo made an introduction, and after the three exchanged pleasantries, they got down to business.
"Mr. Hawksman, is Mr. K sure about jumping out of the last year of his contract? In fact, I already said it to the media yesterday. I hope to renew the contract with him in advance. This is my attitude."
Glo said with a smile.
Hoxman also smiled and said: "Mr. Colangelo, in fact, Mr. K has never said clearly before that he wants to get out of the contract. This is the main reason why I have refused to negotiate with you."
Colangelo smiled and nodded, and Hoxman continued: "I briefly talked to him after the finals last night. The communication time was very short, but he told me that I could discuss it with the management.
It’s time for the next contract.”
"marvelous!"
Colangelo became excited. This meant that Old K had jumped out of his contract. As long as the signing was completed, Old K would stay with the Suns for a long time and no longer had to worry about other teams poaching people.
"Mr. Hawksman, please take a look first. This is the new contract we have prepared for Lao K. If you are not satisfied with it, we can continue to negotiate."
At this time, Colangelo Jr. took out a stack of contracts and placed them in front of Hawksman.
This is of course a concise document, containing only the most important clauses. Other general clauses are not included. Those are standard clauses, and it is the most important clauses that need to be negotiated by everyone.
Hawksman gently picked up the contract and opened the first item.
He is also looking forward to it and doesn't know what kind of contract the Suns will offer Old K.
In just three seasons, Old K created an era of behemoths. This is a real era, not as illusory as the so-called super center era.
The so-called era of the three super centers has no actual results to support it. The three of them combined did not even win a championship, but Old K won two championships in three years. This is the performance of the era of behemoths. This is the performance of an era.
support.
If the era of super centers is illusory, then the era of behemoths is real.
The two-year, $21 million-plus contract the Knicks gave Ewing is a symbol. A super center with no hard honors can earn tens of millions of dollars in annual salary. So K, who personally created an era, can only earn more than this contract.
High, definitely not less, and if it's a long-term contract, don't give him a short-term contract of one or two years. This is his bottom line.
In addition to the bottom line, he also has an upper limit on Old K's contract, which is Jordan's future contract.
It was rumored that David Frank offered an offer of 20 million per year. He had also heard this news, and it had been confirmed through some channels. He even knew that the Bulls boss had not rejected the offer.
As someone who defeated Jordan twice in the finals, K's contract ceiling should not be lower than Jordan's.
Of course, this has to take into account the issue of years. At Jordan's age, it is impossible to receive an annual salary of 20 million and also get a five-year or six-year contract. That is almost impossible.
At the same time, taking into account Jordan's influence, currently it still exceeds that of Old K, so Old K's annual salary can be less than 20 million, but the difference should not be too far.
After all, Old K is the first person in history to average 50 points per game in the finals. He showed the most powerful dominance in history in the finals. He is only 22 years old and has no injuries, which is enough for him.
Qualified to win the most expensive contract in the league.
When Hoxman opened the contract, Colangelo nervously wiped the palms of his hands on his legs. His palms were sweaty.
Based on his experience, this is unbelievable, but it is true.
Because this contract is related to the future of the Suns. As long as Old K is retained, the future of the Suns will be fixed.
Now give him a Jordan. If you don't consider influence and other factors, but only consider strength, he will not trade for the old K.
This is not a question of potential, but that Old K has defeated Jordan twice to win the championship, and his value on the court exceeds Jordan.
What Jordan currently surpasses Old K is influence, ratings, and value created for the league.
But for these things, Jordan is not in the Suns, and the Suns can also enjoy his value, so he only needs to consider the value of Old K on the court.
Moreover, Lao K’s style of play is very popular, and jerseys and other peripherals are selling like crazy. If Mammoth hadn’t relied on Lao K, they would have gone bankrupt long ago, so Lao K’s influence is also very powerful.
After this finals, in the entire league, it can be said that Jordan is even more influential and valuable than Old K, and everyone else is below Old K.
The contract he prepared for Old K was not compared to Larry Johnson's so-called billion-dollar contract, but to the media's revelations about Jordan's contract renewal next year.
Larry Johnson's 100 million yuan contract is for 12 years and 110 million yuan. It contains many incentive clauses. If it is not met, he will not get a real 100 million yuan contract.
Moreover, there is absolutely no comparison between Larry Johnson and Old K. Using his contract to tailor a contract for Old K would be an insult to Old K.
Jordan's influence currently exceeds that of Old K, so his annual salary of 20 million is reduced by 10%.
Of course, this is an initial contract with great sincerity, leaving some room for negotiation.
The contract is 61, and the last year is a team option. It ends in the summer of 2002. The starting salary in the first year is 18 million US dollars, and the following six years are 21.6 million, 24.84 million, 27.32 million, 30.05 million, 33.05 million, and 36.35 million.
, the increase was 20% in the second year, 15% in the third year, and 10% in the next three years. The total contract amount reached a terrifying US$19,121, nearly 200 million.
This contract is so big that it is either the first in the league or the largest contract in the history of the league. He has been thinking about it for several months and finally finalized it after yesterday's finals.
Jordan may be able to surpass Old K in terms of annual salary, but I believe that in terms of total amount, he will never get such a contract.
He not only has to consider the value of Old K, but also what the Suns can afford.
Fortunately, the Suns' operations have been very good in the past two or three seasons, especially this season's operating income has soared. He has received contracts from two TV broadcasters. In the following seasons, the Suns' annual TV broadcast income alone will be
It can reach tens of millions of dollars, and good operating income can fully support Lao K's contract.
He believes that this contract cannot be matched by other teams because they have no salary space at all.
According to the information provided by Stern, the salary cap next season may reach 23 million US dollars. If any team wants to give him a contract with a starting salary of 20 million, for example, there will only be 3 million left. What?
Form a team?
It can be said that the contract he gave basically completely cut off other teams from reaching out to Old K.
But he knows there is another problem. Other teams may make crooked moves to steal players.
"Starting salary of 18 million?"
When Hawksman saw this number, he nodded in his mind, but he still had to have the attitude he needed. If Colangelo could give this price, there would definitely be room for negotiation.
However, he has not yet had a detailed discussion with Lao K, so he can only come here today and find out Lao K's attitude in a few days before negotiating.
"Mr. Colangelo, I see the sincerity of you and the Suns from this contract. I believe we will cooperate happily." He said with a smile.
"That's great!"
Colangelo said happily.
Hawksman's attitude told him that Old K had no strong desire to leave Phoenix, which made him very happy.
Although he has come up with such a big contract, it is not impossible for teams like the Lakers and Knicks to come up with it, and metropolises like Los Angeles and New York are very attractive to young people. Compared to Phoenix,
The city in the desert was the world of flowers, and he was also worried that Lao K would choose to leave.
And he is still worried about one thing. Some teams may use methods other than contracts to make up for the shortcomings of the contract. Using such a crooked trick can avoid the problem of insufficient salary space, poach the old K, and at the same time still have room for construction.
The lineup meets Lao K’s requirements for winning the championship.
So even if he offers a sky-high contract, he may not be able to keep K.
After sending away Hawksman, Colangelo and his son began to discuss the lineup.
According to the relevant terms of the Bird Rights, the team must set aside a virtual salary space for Old K, which means that the team will use the Bird Rights to sign Old K, and this space is the salary space of the team occupied by Old K. The remaining space,
Then normal free agent signing can be carried out.
There are regulations for this virtual salary space, which is 1.5 times the salary of players with Bird rights last season.
Lao K's salary this past season was US$2.36 million, 1.5 times that is 3.54 million US dollars.
In other words, if next season's salary cap is 20 million, then apart from Old K's 3.54 million, the remaining 16.46 million can be used for signings (excluding the remaining share of the existing contract).
Old K only occupies more than 3 million yuan of space, which is quite beneficial to the Suns. While the team is selecting potential rookies for reconstruction, it still has room to build a competitive lineup.
Similarly, if Jordan signs with the Bulls over the cap next year with the Bird Rights, it will have the same meaning to the Bulls. Jordan will also have an annual salary of 4 million next year. As long as 6 million is reserved in space, the rest can be used to sign contracts.
AC Green will definitely be sent away. Glider wants a long-term pension contract, which the team cannot provide, and Glider has a strong desire to return to Houston and cannot force him to stay.
In this way, two of the top five starters will be gone, leaving only Lao K, Lightning, and Thunder.
The management does not want to sign the remaining substitute, Danny Manning, who is seriously injured. Old K is so young, so the next lineup to be built is a young lineup.
Veteran Danny Ainge chose to retire, leaving only a few substitutes and marginal players, leaving a huge gap in the lineup.
The core old K has successfully renewed his contract. Next, what kind of lineup will be built around him is the first thing the management must consider.
But the first thing to consider now is the goals for the next few seasons and the goals for next season, which are related to the upcoming construction of the team.
After winning the championship in 1993, Colangelo gave up defending his title. Then he had a lightning season and almost reached the finals. He regretted it so much that this time, he would choose to defend his title.
We don't expect the Lightning to suddenly break out for another season. The Lightning will be 30 years old next year and their condition will definitely continue to decline.
Moreover, Lei Gong will be 31 next year, and his condition should continue to decline next year.
The reason why I chose to defend my title is because of Lao K.
According to his observation, the mentality of Old K now is completely different from that of Old K after he won the championship in 1993. At that time, Old K didn’t care much about defending the title. Now try saying in front of Old K that I am not going to defend the title next season. Old K
How many more seasons do you want to wait for me to slowly complete the rebuilding?
So he must choose to defend his title, otherwise K's renewal will be very troublesome.
Moreover, the current situation of the Suns is also different from that of 1993. The current operating situation is already very good and can support the salary required to defend the title. If he chooses not to defend the title again, it will be a huge blow to the Suns fans, and the fans will
If you believe that the team has no ideals, you will lose confidence in the team and have a great impact on the football market.
After all considerations, he needs to choose to defend his title.
If you choose to defend the title, then the lineup construction cannot just be based on the reconstruction of the old K, but must also be accompanied by reinforcements.
In rebuilding, we must focus on potential rookies, and at most select one or two veterans to lead a group of newcomers. The newcomers will get a lot of opportunities, such as playing time, shots, ball rights, etc., all of which are dominated by newcomers.
As for reinforcement, it is necessary to introduce the main players in their prime years, mainly core and main players. The opportunities given to new players are not as many as those of rebuilding the team, and the new players will grow much slower.
In fact, there are people like this in the team now, Robert Horry, and the rookie K. In his rookie year, he played the main small forward in Mosaic, but he did not get much training opportunities in the Suns because the team wanted to compete for the championship.
There aren't many opportunities to give him some exercise.
"Brian, what are your thoughts on lineup construction?" Jerry Colangelo asked testingly.
Brian Colangelo has already considered the issue of the new lineup and conducted a lot of analysis. After hearing this, he immediately said: "Father, the first thing we need to strengthen is the third and fourth positions. Thunder and Lightning are okay for the time being.
Use it, don’t be too hasty.”
After seeing his father nodding, he smiled and said: "What we need at the third and fourth positions are the main players. The fourth position is positioned as a coolie next to Old K. Because the back line is aging, our requirements for the third position should be higher."
If it is higher, he will need to take on more outside tasks..."
After listening to his son's thoughts, Colangelo asked: "So do you have any specific ideas for transactions and reinforcements?"
Colangelo Jr. nodded and said: "I want to make a deal with the Spurs to get Da Chong. The Spurs have been letting the news out, and they should be very interested in trading Da Chong.
And I have tried it out, and the asking price is not very high, similar to that of ordinary rotation players. In addition, Da Chong still has a one-year contract with the Spurs, with an annual salary of 2.5 million. We can use it for at least one year, and if we do not renew the contract in the future, we can also free up the salary.
space."
Colangelo said: "The big bug has no shooting ability, but his rebounding and defensive abilities are good. In terms of ability and style, he is indeed suitable to be next to Old K.
I wanted to get him two years ago, but the Pistons rejected our bargaining chip. Now he has a tense relationship with Spurs general manager Popovich. Popovich refused to re-sign his contract, so the Spurs want to trade him.
, do you want to trade Green for him?"
"Yes, father."
Colangelo Jr. thought for a while and said: "It's just that I'm worried that he will destroy the stability of the locker room and have conflicts with Old K. This guy is now a typical negative figure in the league. The Spurs have suffered greatly and want his team.
I’m very worried, the trading situation is not good.”
The elder Colangelo nodded and said: "This is an issue that must be considered, and it is very important. The big bug has troubled the Spurs so much in the past two years. Popovich hates him very much, so the Spurs want to sell him at a low price."
"Not many teams are willing to take him, so they are worried that he will ruin the team's atmosphere."
Colangelo kept shaking his head, which showed that he had great concerns about Big Chong and had not really decided to make a transaction.
He thought for a while and then said: "Actually, it can be traded. If it doesn't work, if he comes in and causes trouble, we can buy out his contract."
Colangelo also nodded. Green's contract is huge. This deal has two purposes. The first is to get rid of Green's contract, and the second purpose is to bring in the big bug.
He suggested: "You can find an opportunity to talk to Lao K about the Big Chong transaction. Lao K will be our core for many years to come. You need to maintain a good relationship with him. I can't help you with this. You have to do it yourself."
Do."
"I understand, father."
Little Colangelo nodded and suddenly said with a smile: "Actually, father, I'm just worried that the big insect will anger Old K and be beaten to death by him."
Old Colangelo was startled and couldn't help laughing.
