Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, Suns guard Devin Booker, Timberwolves big man Karl-Anthony Towns and Grizzlies guard Ja Morant are all expected to reach verbal agreements with their respective teams on new long-term contract extensions soon after the NBA’s new league year begins Thursday night, according to Marc Stein (Twitter link).
Pelicans forward Zion Williamson and Cavaliers guard Darius Garland are also “widely expected” to receive extensions this offseason, Stein notes (via Twitter).
Morant, Williamson and Garland will be eligible for rookie scale extensions, with the exact figures yet to be determined. Rookie scale extensions are available for former first-round picks entering their fourth seasons. The three players’ offers will likely include Rose Rule language that allows them to earn a starting salary of up to 30% of the 2023-24 salary cap (instead of 25%) if they meets certain performance criteria.
Even though Morant, for example, earned an All-NBA spot this year, he would have to make an All-NBA team again next season to qualify for the higher max — the Rose Rule criteria require a player to make All-NBA in either the season before his new contract goes into effect or in two of the three prior seasons.
Williamson’s extension could take a little longer to figure out given that he’s appeared in just 85 career games and missed all of last season after setbacks following foot surgery last summer. Still, Pelicans executive VP of basketball operations David Griffin said he was “confident” that an agreement would be reached — the only question is how much money will be guaranteed up front.
Jokic, Booker and Towns will all be eligible for super-max extensions, also known as Designated Veteran Extensions, worth up to 35% of the salary cap. At least one of the following must be a true for a player to be eligible for a Designated Veteran Extension:
- He was named to an All-NBA Team in the most recent season or in two of the last three seasons.
- He was named NBA MVP in any of the three most recent seasons.
- He was named NBA Defensive Player of the Year in the most recent season or in two of the last three seasons.
Booker and Towns both made All-NBA Teams this past season, and Jokic was named the back-to-back MVP in addition to making All-NBA Teams the past four seasons.
Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard is also likely to receive a DVE once the new league year begins, as relayed by Sean Highkin of the Rose Garden Report and Stein (Twitter links). Lillard earned All-NBA honors in two of the last three seasons prior to missing the majority of last season due to injury.
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