Darius Bazley and Terrance Ferguson get Paid, Mark Cuban not as Optimistic
When Darius Bazley took a year off of basketball to be an intern with New Balance, I foolishly thought Rich Paul had done him a disservice. Not only did Paul get Bazley a potential $14,000,000 with an endorsement deal but, the time he spent working on his combine drills paid off when the Thunder took him 23rd overall in 2019.
We should all be so lucky to sign a deal with Klutch sports. Whatever complaints you have about Paul, the one he does is take care of his clients.
As owners debate exercising the force majeure clause, which would allow them to withhold 1.08 percent of players' salaries for every game missed this season, Paul's clients are sitting pretty. Per Mark Stein of the New York Times, 90 percent of NBA players have been paid less than half their salaries for this season.
However, nine players (who have signed with Klutch Sports), including Darius Bazley and Terrance Ferguson, have "all you can get" contracts. Bazley and Ferguson, as of April 1st, have received 90 percent of their pay for the 2019-2020 season.
Less than 20 players in the association have the all you can get deals, which accelerates your payments on a six-month schedule vs. a 12-month plan. If the season doesn't resume, Bazley and Ferguson will have made out better financially than the majority of the league, while Paul will be taking calls from countless players who will be looking to switch agents.
The NBA Will Put Saftey First:
A few days ago Mavericks owner Mark Cuban was hopeful the league would be playing by mid-May now, he's not so sure. When asked by Mike Greenberg about where things stand for the NBA after the recent setback for the Chinese Basketball Association, Cuban said: "I have no idea."
Cuban continued "We're gonna put safety first, and we're not gonna take any chances.".."We're not gonna do anything that risks the health or safety of our players, our fans, our staff or the whole organization.".."I really don't have anything new to say."
As far as what it will take to get players back on the floor, Cuban says all the health experts have to agree it is safe. "It's such a moving target, and nobody really has specifics."..."I haven't had any conversations where anybody has even discussed an actual date."
