Bob Myers hits back at critics of Warriors’ high salary: ‘You should be allowed to spend money on your players’

This Golden State Warriors Not just the most expensive team in the NBA. They are undoubtedly the most expensive team in North American professional sports history. The Warriors paid their players about $176 million, but they also owe more than $170 million in taxes as a repeat luxury tax violator. Total expenditure was $346 million.This Los Angeles Clippers It is the second most expensive team in the NBA this season, with revenue of about $250 million. only clippers, Nets, lakers and Bucks This season is even half the cost of the Warriors, and the rest of the NBA isn’t thrilled about it.

Zach Lowe of ESPN It was reported earlier this week that “competitors are already complaining about Golden State’s competitive spending advantage,” but as Warriors general manager Bob Myers sees it, his team is only playing in the rules. operate within the scope. “I think at this point you should be allowed to spend money on your own players,” Miles Say In an interview with 95.7 The Gamemorning roast“I mean, we’ve picked a lot of these guys and we’ve nurtured them. It’s not like we go out and sign all these guys as free agents and build some teams that way.Larry Riley was the one who drafted [Steph] Curry, I was here when we drafted Klay [Thompson]we selected Draymond [Green]we drafted [Jordan] Poole, we exchanged [Andrew] Wiggins. Nobody wanted Wiggins, I mean nobody said anything at the time. “

Miles is technically correct. His Warriors team is built around three homegrown superstars. They have a fourth major salary position belonging to Andrew Wiggins thanks to a salary cap spike in 2016, which first came when Kevin Durant joined the team, but either way, the spike That may exist. The Warriors could have kept Harrison Barnes on a max contract as a restricted free agent with full Bird rights, it should be noted that they actually had to cut Andrew Bogut (Durant) and The main salary of Andre Iguodala (D’Angelo Russell, who turned into Wiggins) for certain supplements. The Warriors are not the New York Yankees of the George Steinbrenner era. They can’t and won’t outbid other teams for stars through sheer financial muscle. They usually find their players and choose to go ahead and renew their contracts.

But by NBA standards, it’s rare for Joe Lacob to be willing to pay for it. Look at these four teams that cost at least half as much as the Warriors. By trading Ibaka at the deadline, the Clippers cut about $30 million in salary and luxury tax. The Nets have made a number of financially driven decisions in recent years, including bypassing the taxpayer’s mid-level exception in 2020 and giving up the draft pick for DeAndre Jordan in 2021. The Lakers left Alex Caruso bankrupt. The Bucks did the same with PJ Tucker.

The Warriors generate significant revenue through their new arena, the Chase Center, but many teams simply pocket that revenue as a profit. Others make less money on their stage, but make up for it with massive local TV deals (the Lakers being a notable example). The Golden State Warriors may have significant revenue streams, but its willingness to put that money back into winning is to be applauded. Other teams can do this, but choose not to.

Things have only gotten more expensive for the Warriors after their NBA Finals matchup with the Celtics. Gary Payton II, Otto Porter Jr. and Kevin Looney will all be free agents this offseason. Jordan Poole is eligible for an extension. Wiggins expires after next season. ESPN’s Bobby Marks estimates that if they get the entire team together, their combined salary and taxes could reach $475 million. No other NBA team can come close to that number, but no rule that actually prevents the Warriors from doing so is worthless. While there are certain mechanisms to trigger a hard cap, there is no clear cap on payroll spending. By keeping their own players and adding expensive new ones only through trades, the Warriors are basically free to spend whatever they want, as long as they don’t violate any of the CBA’s other rules.

This seems to be their trajectory.Miles Recently it became clear The Warriors plan to re-sign Poole. Who else they choose to keep is more of a mystery, but Lacob has made it clear he’s willing to pay a premium for talent. If other teams don’t want to do the same thing, that’s their problem.