LAS VEGAS — He had a chance to sign a nine-figure contract for the second time in his career, but Jalen Brunson didn’t get it.
Negotiations on a potential contract extension (if they can even be called negotiations) can’t begin until late Friday night ET, but the All-Star point guard was expecting an offer from the team long before any legalese was even thrown around.
The New York Knicks were willing to give Brunson everything they could, even if the contract wasn’t commensurate with his reputation.
The team was capped at how much they could pay Brunson, limiting him to a contract worth much less than what he could get if he waited until free agency in 2025 and re-signed with the team then.
Brunson decided long before he was eligible that he wanted to stay in New York, that he was in love with the franchise, that he valued the security of a dollar today over more money tomorrow, that he wanted to continue playing for coach Tom Thibodeau and with his friends at Villanova and that he wanted to challenge for a title with a team he considered a contender beyond this season.
But come Friday, Branson had bigger plans.
Instead of prioritizing business, Brunson was hanging out with his best friend and teammate Josh Hart, and he held off on re-signing because he wanted to stay with the team, because he was too busy with the team.
Let’s build a statue for him 🥲
— Josh Hart (@joshhart) July 12, 2024
Brunson signed his contract extension on Friday afternoon, a historic moment for the Knicks, as no other player in league history has recommitted to a franchise in this way.
The extension will pay him $156.5 million over four years, $113 million less than he would have received if he had waited until free agency — no player has ever given up that much money before, especially not so early in his prime.
The most famous cases of deep discounts in the NBA have come from players who were already hugely compensated. Dirk Nowitzki was already in his mid-30s when he signed a three-year, $25 million contract to return to the Dallas Mavericks in 2014. Tim Duncan took a huge pay cut from Nowitzki so he could play forever with the San Antonio Spurs, but he was already an established veteran by that point.
Instead of becoming a free agent in a year and being eligible for a max contract estimated at $269.1 million over five years, Brunson opted for a cheaper contract today.
There was also an argument to be made that locking in the money was worth it for financial reasons: Branson appreciated the peace of mind an extension would give him — it’s still more than some CEOs make in a lifetime — and the protection from injury wouldn’t hurt, either.
Also, signing the extension now would make him eligible for another extension a year sooner than if he had waited until free agency to sign a five-year deal, so those extra 365 days could make a difference.
But there’s a reason this is a notable moment: The Knicks are now in business in an era that will likely be dominated by punitive collective bargaining agreements that stifle the flexibility of any ultra-expensive team.
Based on dollar value alone, Brunson is the biggest financial boon in NBA history.
And it’s not even close.
His main focus in signing was taking every reasonable step possible to pursue a championship ring. The Knicks can move forward knowing Brunson is under team-friendly contract through at least 2028. His new deal kicks in for the 2025-26 season, with a player option for the final year. It comes with all the perks, including a 15% trade kicker, according to league sources.
New York’s hopes of staying under the dreaded No. 2 apron, not just through the 2024-25 season but the following season and maybe beyond, have become much more realistic. The Knicks, who traded Mikal Bridges for five first-round picks (including four unprotected) earlier this offseason, already believe they have an open chance to win a championship. The contract extension with Brunson makes that even more likely, especially through 2026.
Bridges, on a bargain contract up until that point, will make $23.3 million this season and $24.9 million thereafter. Brunson will make around $34.9 million in the first year of his contract, but the Knicks will have $153.2 million to spend on nine players — Brunson, Bridges, Hart, OG Anunoby, Mitchell Robinson, Donte DiVincenzo, Miles McBride, Pacome Dadiette and Tyler Kollek — who are expected to make around $207.8 million in their second season.
Keeping the payroll below $207.8 million would create a valuable resource for the Knicks; if they go above that threshold, they lose everything, including the mid-level exception and the ability to make most trades.
Brunson may have a chance to recoup much of the money he gave up. As The Athletic reported earlier this week, the extension would make him a free agent in 2028, his 10th year in the NBA. He would be eligible for the largest contract a player could receive, estimated at $417 million over five years. If Brunson signs the deal, the gap would be narrowed by salary spikes in 2028-29 and 2029-30.
But 2028 is four years in the future, and no one knows what will happen between now and then.
Players get injured. They fade. Small point guards like Brunson have historically been more susceptible to such misfortune. For whatever reason, the Knicks may have slumped by then and changed course. They may hire a new front office or coach. This is the NBA, and dramatic changes can happen overnight, let alone over four years.
There’s no guarantee that Brunson will get this money back, but of course he’s not doing this to get rich; he’s doing it to give his team the best chance to win.
(Top photo of Jalen Brunson: Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)
