NBA players are underpaid compared to the revenue they bring in for their teams but the fact is, there’s a hard salary cap and owners and GM’s don’t have the same freedom as say Major League Baseball. Basketball players themselves however don’t usually discuss this topic as it’s seen as taboo. Kobe Bryant however has been brutally honest lately, calling it old man honesty, since he’s “70 in basketball years” as stated in his latest Sports Illustrated cover story.
Bryant discussed that he and LeBron James are both underpaid in an interview with Sports Illustrated’s Chris Ballard:
Kobe Bryant believes players like him & LeBron are underpaid (put LBJ free market at ~ $75 mil). Bryant believes it’s important to set an example in contracts… But, “that being said, I took a pay cut. I’m very very lucky to be with LA. They could have lowballed me, but that’s not what they stand for.”
And last one, from Kobe talking about the pressure for players to take less money to help a team win, when he feels that’s unfair….
KB:”As athletes, you get the pressure of playing for the love of the game .Of course we do. But do owners buy teams for the love of the game?”
While Kobe makes good points, it may sound weird to some coming from him at this time. The Lakers gave Kobe a two-year, $48.5 million contract extension at 36-years old and coming off two major injuries, a knee fracture and torn achilles tendon. The extension left the Lakers slightly cap strapped and unable to bring in any big names for fear of not being able to create a solid bench. Of course you can’t blame Kobe for taking a contract that was offered to him, it’s just not the right time to compare himself to LeBron.
