IN THE MONEY
Del Olaleye: 3 players who stand to get paid based on the NBA postseason
Del Olaleye
Apr 18, 2018, 4:42 am
Clint Capela is earning a big contract somewhere. Jason Miller
The NBA playoffs are under way and I could spend time using this space to breakdown matchups or what this postseason will mean to James Harden’s legacy. I could do that, but I won’t. I do enough of that on the radio and so do other people. I’m much more interested in the game inside the game. I’m talking about guys who could cash in on a big postseason. What is Clint Capela worth? Is Kyrie Irving being hurt the best thing that could happen to Boston’s Terry Rozier? Will the Wolves series against the Rockets change the way the NBA sees Derrick Rose?
Who is the next Jonathon Simmons? If you remember back to last year’s playoffs, Simmons became a playoff star for what he did in the Spurs-Rockets series. He helped the Spurs eliminate the Rockets while Tony Parker and Kawhi Leonard were injured. He scored 12 points in a pivotal Game 5 and 18 points in San Antonio’s 39-point Game 6 victory that closed out the Rockets in Houston. Simmons averaged 6.2 points in the regular season but scored in double figures 10 times in the postseason. His overall performance led to three-year deal worth $20 million from the Orlando Magic. A modest number by NBA standards but certainly a huge increase over the $874,000 Simmons made in his final season with the Spurs. Here are three guys who have a shot to duplicate the impact that Simmons provided and earn substantial raises because of what they do in these playoffs.
Clint Capela
Capela has done enough regular season work to get a big deal. This postseason gives him a shot to cement himself as a premiere big man in the league. He used Game 1 of his playoff run to dominate a big man with a pretty good reputation. The athleticism difference between Capela and the Wolves’ Karl Anthony Towns was a drastic one. Capela’s fluidity and his ability to get up down the court was evident and the box score reflected the difference between the two young centers. Capela put together a dominant all-around game that featured 24 points and 12 rebounds. Towns finished with eight points in 40 minutes. Capela’s impact on Houston’s success has been well documented throughout the season. Game 1 was just further confirmation of just how important he is to the Rockets. A successful playoff run for the Rockets could potentially put Capela in the discussion for max money this offseason.
Contract Status: Restricted Free Agent ‘18
Terry Rozier
Much like the inspiration for the piece, Rozier has been given an opportunity due to an injury to a star. Celtics point guard Kyrie Irving is out for the playoffs and Rozier goes from backup to starter on team that entered the season with title aspirations. As the backup at both backcourt positions Rozier had his best season as pro in his third season. He saw his minutes, points and shooting percentages increase significantly. In his first game as a starting point guard in the playoffs, Rozier scored 23 points, pulled down four rebounds and dished out three assists with no turnovers. Most importantly he made multiple big shots down the stretch, somewhat duplicating Irving’s big shot ability. A strong playoff run by Rozier could place him in high demand for a team desperate for a young and improving point guard. Rozier is set to make just over three million dollars in the final year of his deal. At a premium position like point guard a productive 2018 playoff run could land Rozier a deal worth eight figures annually.
Contract Status: Restricted Free Agent ‘19
Oklahoma City’s Jerami Grant
Grant’s regular season numbers are modest at first glance and they don’t make you think of a guy who is in line for a big deal but there is a precedent for springy bench players getting lucrative deals. Moe Harkless of the Portland Trailblazers used a strong playoff performance over eleven games in 2016 to see his annual salary increase from just over $2.8 million to just under $9 million. The Blazers rewarded him for his increased production over the course of those two 2016 series with a deal worth $42 million. Grant’s role as a energy bench player is important to the Thunder’s second unit. His style is a complement to Russell Westbrook’s frenetic style of play when Westbrook tries to push the pace. Grant’s energy leads to putbacks for himself and second chance opportunities for his team. Paid just over $1.5 million in the final year of his deal, a big playoff performance could see Grant’s annual salary multiplied by six.
Contract Status: Unrestricted Free Agent ‘18
Shoutout to Matthew Dellavedova, the ultimate playoff finesser. He went from making just over $1.1 million on a one year deal in Cleveland to getting paid $38 million over four years in Milwaukee. That raise was primarily based on a postseason where he scored in double figures seven times in 20 games as Kyrie Irving’s backup for Cleveland in 2015. He became a national story for all of five days when Irving was injured in the Finals against the Golden State Warriors. He’s still in Milwaukee by the way. As I type this he’s playing in garbage time as the Bucks are about to go down 0-2 in their series with the Celtics.
The playoffs can be lucrative for potential stars or the 8th and 9th men in a rotation.
Gerald Green, go get yours.
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With the Astros now officially ten games under .500 for the season, manager Joe Espada is taking a lot of heat from the fanbase for the team's struggles.
While we don't agree with the sentiment, we even hear fans clamoring for the return of Dusty Baker and Martin Maldonado, thinking the Astros wouldn't be in this mess if they were still here.
Which is ridiculous. First of all, Maldonado has been awful for the White Sox, hitting .048 (even worse than Jose Abreu's .065). And for those of you that think his work with the pitching staff justifies his pathetic offense. Let me say this: Where was Maldy's game calling genius for Hunter Brown, Cristian Javier, and Framber Valdez last year? All of them regressed significantly.
And as far as Baker is concerned, we have no idea how much a difference he would make, we can only speculate. Baker would also be dealing with a pitching staff ravaged with injuries. And let's not forget, Baker was the guy that refused to move Jose Abreu down in the batting order, even though he would finish the regular season with the ninth-worst OPS in baseball.
The reality of the situation is managers can only do so much in baseball. Which leads us to something else that needs to be considered. Is Espada being handcuffed by the front office? Espada and GM Dana Brown both said recently that Jon Singleton was going to get more at-bats while they give Abreu time off to try to figure things out. Yet, there Abreu was in the lineup again in the opening game of the Cubs series.
It makes us wonder how much power does Espada truly have? The Astros have some other options at first base. Yainer Diaz may only have eight games played at the position, but how much worse could he be than Abreu defensively? Abreu already has four errors, and Diaz is obviously a way better hitter. Victor Caratini isn't considered a plus offensive player, but his .276 batting average makes him look like Babe Ruth compared to Abreu. Let him catch more often and play Diaz at first. Starting Diaz at first more often could also lengthen his career long-term.
Maybe that's too wild of a move. Okay, fine. How about playing Mauricio Dubon at first base? I understand he doesn't have much experience at that position, but what's the downside of trying him there? If he can play shortstop, he can play first base. He's driving in runs at a higher rate (11 RBIs) than everyone on the team outside of Kyle Tucker and Yordan Alvarez. And he's producing like that as part-time player right now.
The other criticism we see of Espada is his use of Jon Singleton to pinch hit late in games. Let's be real, though, who else does Espada have on the roster to go to? Batting Abreu late in games in which you're trailing should be considered malpractice. Espada can only use who he has to work with. This all really stems from the Astros poor farm system.
They don't have anyone else to turn to. The draft picks the club lost from the sign-stealing scandal are really hurting them right now. First and second rounders from 2020 and 2021 should be helping you in 2024 at the big league level.
Maybe they go to Astros prospect Joey Loperfido soon, but after a hot start he has only two hits in his last six games.
Finally, we have to talk about what seems like a committee making baseball decisions. Lost in a committee is accountability. Who gets the blame for making poor decisions?
As time continues to pass it looks like moving on from former GM James Click was a massive mistake. He's the guy that didn't sign Abreu, but did trade Myles Straw (recently DFA'd) for Yainer Diaz and Phil Maton. He also built an elite bullpen without breaking the bank, and helped the club win a World Series in 2022.
The reality of the situation is Dusty Baker and James Click are not walking back through that door. And all good runs come to an end at some point. Is this what we're witnessing?
Don't miss the video above as we hit on all the points discussed and much more!
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