List of players gone to Europe

Y not tho really??? They have the chance to be a someone over there and get better money. Plus over there the team pays all the agents fees and so forth so it better minutes and more money in their pockets.
 
makes financial sense really, if i found a job that paid me a lot of money and paid my taxes as well, i would jump at that opportunity!

could shake up the NBAs salary cap structure too, as the people leaving are not top level stars, but some are consistent role players
 
I think this will start to hurt the depth of the NBA. Role players and mid level players can make more money and such over in Europe so perhaps the league will end up with Stars (who will stay because aside from their large salaries, they get all the exposure in the world via media and they also get a heap of endorsement cash) and lesser players that need to step up. Could mean better cycling through of players though as the lesser players step up and get bigger roles before they too look at Europe.
 
I honestly don't think the NBA has anything to worry about. This is healthy for the league and basketball in general. More quality players will develop as a result of more basketball camps, more competitive leagues worldwide, better draft prospects and a far deeper pool of developed talent.

This can only be a good thing. I doubt David Stern is worried about the recent Euro signings. Not only that, but the system in place in the NBA with salary caps etc is actually just about spot on. If a cashed up NBA owner really wants to splurge they can, it just means they pay luxury tax. At the end of the day, the NBA is the best league in the world, the most competitive and I believe the most rewarding. The fact that the NBA has been making such a push to have preseason games in Europe (which always sell out well beforehand) and also developing a league in China means they want this healthy competition and exposure worldwide. I just hope they look at pushing into the Australian market. But the problem is the NBL is so poorly managed it's beyond a joke. And as a result Australian basketball will continue to suffer for a long long time.
 
DL42 said:
If a cashed up NBA owner really wants to splurge they can, it just means they pay luxury tax.
Click to expand...

They have to pay a huge amount more than a Euro team because of this though. Say a player gets offered US$10 million in Europe, because the taxes are covered, this is equivalent to a $20 million offer in the US (taxed at about 50%), now double that if its over the luxury tax ($40mill), now because the team has gone into luxury tax, they dont get the payout from the NBA for staying below luxury tax, this year that was worth $3 million.

So for a team that goes into luxury tax to give a player an equivalent deal to US$10 million from a Euro team, they have to pay $43 million. Thats quite a significant amount higher (>4x) than the original $10 million.

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong on this, Im confident on the luxury tax numbers, just not on the income tax numbers. Of course this only takes into account that player is purely driven by dollars, it doesnt take into account other things that will enable an NBA owner to offer less like prestige, and location.

Cheers
Rick
 
blackwind said:
They have to pay a huge amount more than a Euro team because of this though. Say a player gets offered US$10 million in Europe, because the taxes are covered, this is equivalent to a $20 million offer in the US (taxed at about 50%), now double that if its over the luxury tax ($40mill), now because the team has gone into luxury tax, they dont get the payout from the NBA for staying below luxury tax, this year that was worth $3 million.

So for a team that goes into luxury tax to give a player an equivalent deal to US$10 million from a Euro team, they have to pay $43 million. Thats quite a significant amount higher (>4x) than the original $10 million.

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong on this, Im confident on the luxury tax numbers, just not on the income tax numbers. Of course this only takes into account that player is purely driven by dollars, it doesnt take into account other things that will enable an NBA owner to offer less like prestige, and location.

Cheers
Rick
Click to expand...

Assuming a team is already well over their salary cap?

That $43 million seems grossly over-exagerated. I mean, way way too exagerated. Unless a team is already in luxury tax territory, and then have to make a max offer to a player, then maybe they might approach that, but $43 million per year? Sounds crazy to me. I'm not an accountant, but I don't think that is even halfway accurate.

In all seriousness, guys like Lebron or KG or Nash or Billups or ... heck even David Lee probably wouldn't even consider going to Europe. Unless they are stuck on a team with a history of poor draft decisions and trades, poor management and on top of that grossly underpaying players then of course the player might be offended and look elsewhere. Don't forget the only reason JC bolted Atlanta for Europe was because the management in Atlanta made an offer so poor he said himself he felt disrespected. If anything, the problem with the NBA is allowing franchises such as the Knicks, Atlanta, 'Sota and Memphis for example to be run and managed by the people currently running them.
 
DL42 said:
Assuming a team is already well over their salary cap?

That $43 million seems grossly over-exagerated. I mean, way way too exagerated. Unless a team is already in luxury tax territory, and then have to make a max offer to a player, then maybe they might approach that, but $43 million per year? Sounds crazy to me. I'm not an accountant, but I don't think that is even halfway accurate.
Click to expand...

Maybe I wasn't clear. That $43 million figure is not what the player is getting; $20 million to the player (which would be the $10 million after tax, which is what the Euro club offered in my example, so the NBA team is only equaling the offer), $20 million in luxury tax to the NBA (you pay $1 tax for every $1 you go over the luxury tax line), and $3 million is what the franchise misses out on by being in the luxury tax (every team not in luxury tax get 1/30th of the total amount of luxury tax paid).

You are right, its ridiculous, but the numbers are accurate in regards how much would be paid in luxury tax. The Euros havent gotten to the stage where they are offering US$10 million, but Chill got just under $7 million a year. To equal that amount, a team would have to offer $14 million as the amount would be taxed by 50%.
 
DL42 said:
If a cashed up NBA owner really wants to splurge they can, it just means they pay luxury tax.
Click to expand...

Forgot to mention on this point, that this isnt entirely true. You cant just pay a player whatever you want, even if you are prepared to pay the luxury tax. There are maximum salaries that you can pay a player. For a player that has played up to 6 years, that is around $14 million, then it gets higher based on how many years you have played up to 10+ years which is around $20 million.
There is also a clause which a player can earn more than the "max"; a players max salary cannot be less than 105% of their previous salary, so if they were already on the max, they can earn another 5%.

So even a cashed up NBA owner just cant throw whatever money they have at a player.
 
Fair points Blackwind but still I don't see a team already on the verge of luxury tax, chasing someone like Lebron, or a team putting itself in a position to be on the verge of luxury tax then making a max offer to a player. Teams like NY or NJ will do the opposite and shed huge contracts so that in a few years they can sign someone like Lebron to a max contract. But I do understand the salary rules and kinda overlooked that in my previous post. :p

Besides the salary issues, why would any NBA star ever want to go and play in the Euroleague. Guys like Arroyo go there and become superstars. If someone like Lebron went there, he'd get bored torching teams for 80 points a night while only playing 25 minutes a game. :lol:
 
DL42 said:
Fair points Blackwind but still I don't see a team already on the verge of luxury tax, chasing someone like Lebron, or a team putting itself in a position to be on the verge of luxury tax then making a max offer to a player. Teams like NY or NJ will do the opposite and shed huge contracts so that in a few years they can sign someone like Lebron to a max contract. But I do understand the salary rules and kinda overlooked that in my previous post. :p

Besides the salary issues, why would any NBA star ever want to go and play in the Euroleague. Guys like Arroyo go there and become superstars. If someone like Lebron went there, he'd get bored torching teams for 80 points a night while only playing 25 minutes a game. :lol:
Click to expand...

Teams by definition cannot chase a Lebron when they're near the luxury tax because if they are near the luxury tax then they are already way over the salary cap and cannot sign free agents to anything but the minimum. This is why teams are shedding contracts to get Lebron, because to sign a free agent, they have to fit their entire salary under the cap and Lebron's is going to be Maximum.
 
nenjabin said:
Teams by definition cannot chase a Lebron when they're near the luxury tax because if they are near the luxury tax then they are already way over the salary cap and cannot sign free agents to anything but the minimum. This is why teams are shedding contracts to get Lebron, because to sign a free agent, they have to fit their entire salary under the cap and Lebron's is going to be Maximum.
Click to expand...

You're right, there are exceptions to the rule (Bird rights, Trade exceptions, MLE, LLE) of course, the CBA is very confusing and has special provisions everywhere, but the salary cap in effect means there isnt a level playing field between the NBA and Euroleague teams. If the US dollar continues to stay weak, then its another advantage the Euroleague has over the NBA.

I agree that the big stars will stay in the NBA, though you might see some in their later years go to Europe to take the money, like you do in the NRL.
 
Add to that list Early Boykins....

Very strange amount of money to convince him to go, perhaps he's after a change of scenery??

Cats' Boykins latest NBA player to bolt for Europe, signs $3.5 million deal - NBA - ESPN

After a decade in the NBA, unrestricted free agent Earl Boykins has joined the growing legion of veteran role players unable to resist the lure of European riches.

Boykins' Cleveland-based agent, Mark Termini, announced Tuesday that Boykins has signed a one-year contract with Italy's Virtus Bologna. The deal, according to Termini, is worth more than $3.5 million for the 2008-09 season, which would make the 5-foot-5 guard Italy's highest-paid player.
Click to expand...
 
Shawn Kemp to Italy!:thumbsup:

At least he's trying to stay in good shape. Hope he does well in Italy.

From ESPN:

If more current players flee the NBA for Europe, they will see a familiar face.

The Italian team Premiata Montegranaro announced on Sunday that 38-year-old Shawn Kemp has agreed to play for the team starting in November.


"I am happy that a player that has made basketball history would come to Montegranaro," coach Alessandro Finelli said.

Finelli believed that the six-time NBA All-Star could still contribute.

"He is very motivated," Finelli said. "And he has been staying in shape to show up at our camp in good shape."

Kemp averaged 14.6 points and 8.4 rebounds over 14 NBA seasons. He played eight years with Seattle, three with Cleveland, two with Portland and finished with one season in Orlando.

Finelli did not know, however, if Kemp would be the key to the season for the Premiata, which plays in the top division of Italian basketball.

"We will discover with work in the gym if he will be a key player for our team," Finelli said. "Now, it's too soon to say that."

Kemp has flirted with attempting a comeback in the NBA many times since his last season in the league, working out for a number of teams but not sticking with any of them.
Click to expand...
 
Geez, what a tough choice.... play in the US for 10mil (after tax) or in Europe for 7mil, god damn thats a choice i would love to have to make. Seriousl 7mil is enough for any1 person for a lifetime, unless u piss it all away like most basketballers do.

Almost no1 plays for the love of the game anymore

Give me 1mil and id be set for life.
 
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