Kyle Kuzma took home MVP honors in Friday night’s Rising Stars game during NBA All-Star Weekend in Charlotte, and that’s no coincidence. The financial incentive attached to the win was a driving force behind his effort.
Kuzma scored 35 points in Team USA’s 161-144 win over Team World, played by first and second-year players in the league. He said after the game that he wanted the $25,000 bonus that goes to players on the winning team.
Kuzma wanted the $25,000 MVP bonus so he broke the huddle with Bonus 1-2-3 pic.twitter.com/6ryfzqDoUW
— Rob Perez (@WorldWideWob) February 16, 2019
Kyle Kuzma said after the game that he was out to lead Team USA to win this game to get the $25,000 bonus that goes to the winning team.
Was he being serious?
"Facts."
— Tim Bontemps (@TimBontemps) February 16, 2019
Kuzma, further, on going after the winner's check: "I think it was the second huddle, I broke it, '1-2-3-BONUS!' So there you go."
— Tim Bontemps (@TimBontemps) February 16, 2019
You may be thinking to yourself, Kuzma plays for the Los Angeles Lakers, what does he care about $25K? Well, he was just the No. 27 overall pick in 2017 and did not receive a huge contract. He made $1.423 million last season, and he’s making $1.689 million this season. For someone like him, every bit makes a difference. Plus, as he already has made clear, he likes performing on big stages.
