[Lestat_1795]

Originally Posted by Underdog

Bingo...

Dirk was 100% willing to take another paycut this season if the Mavs could land sizable FA -- they didn't, so he basically signed a 1-year contract, allowing the FO to try again next season... The $25m/year was decided upon because that's how much cap space was left, and it came against a $94m cap... This deal allowed the Mavericks maximum flexibility moving forward.

Kobe, on the other hand, demanded a 4-year max contract because (according to him) he was "the best player in the world," even though his numbers indicated otherwise... The $25m/year was decided upon because that's the most money he could possibly get, and it came against a $58m cap... This deal hamstrung the Lakers for the rest of his career.

Anybody who doesn't understand the difference between these two situations has absolutely no business talking about NBA contracts.

Bingo indeed.
The ESPN guys don't get it.