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NBA Dunk Legend Nate Robinson Can Relate to Cooper Rush's $500K Situation

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Angelo Guinhawa | Last updated Jan 7, 2025 8:05 AM ET

Former NBA player Nate Robinson couldn't help but comment and share his experience after reading Cooper Rush's bonus situation with the Dallas Cowboys.

Rush missed out on a $500,000 bonus with the Cowboys after he failed to reach the required snap count (55 percent of the team's snap this season) to be eligible for the incentive. That was after Dallas decided to bench him and start Trey Lance in their Week 18 game against the Washington Commanders.

The backup quarterback, who took over the starting QB job after Dak Prescott's Week 9 injury, did qualify for a $250,000 bonus for playing 45 percent of the team's snaps. Still, he could have earned more had he played. He was so close to earning it, having played 52.5 percent of the team snaps heading into the season finale.

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, however, denied that starting Lance had anything to do with Rush's incentives. In fact, the Dallas exec claimed that he "didn't even know about it" until he saw it in the news.

After Bleacher Report made an Instagram post about the story, which included Jones' remarks, Robinson found the whole situation relatable and commented on it.

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"The Celtics did me like that too, coach doc rivers knew all about it smh," Robinson said.

The three-time NBA Slam Dunk contest champion was part of the Celtics from 2010 to 2011, with Doc Rivers as head coach. Robinson has previously opened up about the bonus he missed because of Rivers, saying that the veteran head coach intentionally prevented him from achieving his bonus for games played.

In an episode of "The OGs" podcast with Udonis Haslem and Mike Miller, Robinson said he would have "made like $2 million or $1.5 million" if he "played a certain amount of games."

"Doc Rivers gives me a DNP the game where I needed one more game to get $1.5 million," Robinson said in the podcast. "I never even asked him, but I know he did that [expletive] on purpose."

Cooper Rush has yet to speak out on getting benched after being so close to his massive bonus. But in case he needs someone else to share his grievances with, Nate Robinson is certainly someone who can relate to his situation.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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