Image via ERIK WILLIAMS/ USA TODAY SPORTS //
Doing Straya proud…
Aussie-born point guard Ben Simmons is really representing for us on the world stage, the young talent one of the most electrifying and exciting NBA players in 2020. It’s awesome to see his peers aware of his talents as well, copping mad praise from his contemporaries and notable NBA legends. Now, that appreciation has turned into financial gain, with Simmons being named to the All-NBA Third Team, which is the first All-NBA selection in his career.
With the selection comes an increase in Simmons’ entitlement. Specifically, due to Simmons increased earnings due to the selection, he’ll now earn 28% of the Philadelphia Sixer’s salary. As a result, his five year contract will jump from $158 million USD over five years to $177 million USD ($216 million AUD to $242 million AUD).
The pay-increase now makes Simmons the Sixer’s second highest player behind Tobias Harris, helping him get a bigger piece of the pie and become more integral to Philadelphia. But this also carries some risk for Philadelphia, as if they exceed their soft cap by a specific amount, they’ll have to pay a “luxury tax” in order to keep their current lineup. All the financial stuff gets quite confusing if we’re honest, but bottom line is, Simmons just made a huge payday, and we couldn’t be more happy for him. Check out his projected earnings over the next five years below.
Assuming the cap remains flat at $109,140,000 for 2020-21, here are the new numbers for Ben Simmons:
20-21- $30,559.200
21-22- $33,003,936
22-23- $35,448,672
23-24- $37,893,408
24-25- $40,338,144Total – 5 years, $177,243,360
Would have been 5 years, $158,253,000 w/o All-NBA.
— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) September 16, 2020
