Knicks’ Jalen Brunson accepts $156.5M, $113M less than ’25 deal

In an unprecedented financial concession to give roster flexibility to a contending franchise, New York Knicks All-NBA guard Jalen Brunson has agreed to a four-year, $156.5 million contract extension – $113 million less than the $113 million guaranteed for when he signed. is capable. Next year from now – his agent, CAA’s Sam Rose, told ESPN on Friday.

The deal, which begins in 2025-26 and will cost Brunson $37.1 million over the next three years, comes with a fourth-year player option, Rose said, and would net Brunson $113 million over four years. Will help to do. A maximum extension of $323 million in 2028 or a new five-year, $418 million deal in 2029.

Brunson, 27, became eligible to negotiate and sign a max extension on Friday.

Here’s what it looks like pic.twitter.com/AKsU33fmby

– Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) 12 July 2024

While there is an inherent risk of injury and unexpected complications that comes with Brunson’s decision to push back his most lucrative NBA payday, his priority is to remain in the prime of his career with the franchise’s most talented and deepest roster since the 1990s. is to be maximized.

The consequences of Brunson opting for a four-year, $156.5 million max deal versus a five-year, $269.1 million deal through 2025 are the result of the Knicks continuing to make roster moves to keep this team together and close the gap on a championship. The capacity is massive. Brunson’s deal keeps the Knicks out of the second-apron level of the salary cap, a punitive cap that severely limits the team’s ability to make trades, sign players and use draft picks.

Brunson’s study of championship organizations and franchise stars – Patrick Mahomes’s Kansas City Chiefs, Tom Brady’s New England Patriots and Derek Jeter’s New York Yankees – gave him a blueprint for MVP-level players who tailored contracts to give their teams the best. Did. The possibility of a sustainable title run.

Brunson’s arrival to the Knicks two years ago on a four-year, $104 million free agent deal has been one of the league’s most transformative acquisitions of the last decade. After starting his career as a backup point guard with the Dallas Mavericks, Brunson has become one of the NBA’s most influential players and leaders. Brunson had his best NBA season in 2023–24, earning All-NBA honors and finishing in the top five in MVP voting. He averaged 28.7 points per game and made or assisted a franchise-record 3,481 points. According to ESPN Stats and Information, Brunson, who had 11 40-point games in the regular season, became the first Knicks player with 40 points and five assists in four straight playoff games.

The Knicks potentially got better – and undoubtedly more expensive – this offseason. New York signed forward OG Anunoby to a five-year, $212.5 million deal and signed Brooklyn Nets forward Mikal Bridges with two years and $48 million left on his contract.

Brunson’s relationship with the Knicks runs deep and reflects his confidence in the organization. Knicks president of basketball operations Leon Rose was Brunson’s agent before joining the team in 2020. Brunson’s father, Rick, is an assistant coach with the Knicks and was a longtime client of Rose’s in his agent days. The Knicks have surrounded Brunson with his former national championship teammates at Villanova to create a remarkable synchronicity on and off the floor.

In the modern era, the All-NBA player waiver to allow salary cap flexibility has included San Antonio’s Tim Duncan taking $11 million less than the maximum in 2007 to retain Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker, and Golden State’s Kevin Durant Took $10 million less to retain Shaun Livingston. And Andre Iguodala in 2017. LeBron James agreed to a two-year, $2.6 million, $101 million deal this offseason to avoid the second apron for the Los Angeles Lakers.

This time, Brunson stands to lose $37 million to capture the title with the Knicks, for a total risk of $113 million.

ESPN’s Bobby Marks contributed to this report.