ESPN’s Bobby Marks broke down what a supermax contract is expected to look like next summer. Based on the current projected salary cap increase, a supermax deal for Antetokounmpo would average more than $50 million per year over five years.
Here is the breakdown of the Giannis Antetokounmpo supermax extension that he is eligible to sign in the summer of 2020:
20/21 $43.75
21/22 $47.25
22/23 $50.75
23/24 $54.25
24/25 $57.75
Total $253.75M
— Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) June 30, 2019
Wow.
Giannis is obviously a once-in-a-generation talent, but almost every team in the NBA would have to think long and hard about writing that type of check. The Bucks would still be in a position to offer Giannis significantly more money than any other team with a regular max contract before he becomes an unrestricted free agent following the 2020-21 season, but he’s likely going to want all of the money he’s entitled to.
As we’ve seen with the way the Kemba Walker situation is unfolding in Charlotte, some teams simply don’t want to risk crippling themselves by having a supermax player on their roster. The Hornets were actually nowhere near offering supermax money to Walker, which isn’t a surprise. He’s not in the same class as Giannis.
If Antetokounmpo does sign the supermax deal, he would become the highest-paid player in NBA history.
