Nets want Kyrie best, and his contract incentives prove it
Kyrie Irving signed a fouryear, $140.6 million contract with the Nets that could pay up to $32.7 million in salary in the first year of the deal. But the Nets deftly worked unlikely incentives worth $1 million into the contract. If Irving wants the full value of his salary, he’ll have to be better than he’s ever been. And they’re not just individual incentives, either. The team as a whole has to be rock solid in the All-Star guard’s minutes on the floor.
ESPN’s Zach Lowe and Bobby Marks listed the incentives on Irving’s contract on Tuesday. They will challenge Irving to dispel the stigma that the Celtics — who made the Eastern Conference Finals without the All-Star guard two seasons ago, only to get bumped in the second round with a fully healthy squad last year — were a better team without Irving on the floor.
Those incentives are as follows:
• He appears in at least 70 regular-season games. Irving has appeared in fewer than 70 games in five of his eight NBA seasons.
• He appears in at least 60 regular-season games and averages fewer than 2.4 turnovers per game. Irving averaged 2.6 turnovers last season in Boston and has averaged fewer than 2.4 turnovers only twice in his career. He has also appeared in fewer than 60 games three times.
• He appears in at least 60 regular-season games and attempts at least 4.6 free throws per game. Irving averaged 3.7 free throws per game last year and has attempted 4.6 or more free throws four times in his career.
• He shoots 88.5 percent or better from the free throw line in the regular season. Irving has hit the 88.5 percent mark three times in his career and is an 87.5 percent career free throw shooter.
• He makes at least 2.8 3pointers per game in the regular season. Irving has averaged 2.5, 2.8 and 2.6 threes made in each of his past three seasons but has only hit the 2.8 mark once in his career.
• He commits fewer than 2.1 fouls per game in the regular season. Last season, Irving averaged 2.5 fouls per game, but his career average is 2.2.
• The Nets score at least 114 points per 100 possessions in the regular season with Irving on the floor. For reference, the Celtics scored 113.6 points per 100 possessions with Irving on the floor last season, while Brooklyn boasted an oncourt rating of just 108.1 in minutes D’Angelo Russell spent on the floor. Only five teams ran five-man lineups that played at least 40 games and boasted an offensive rating of at least 114: Boston, Golden State, Portland, Utah and, somehow, Charlotte
• The Nets allow 106 or fewer points per 100 possessions with Irving on the floor. For reference, the Celtics allowed 107 points per 100 possessions with Irving on the floor, versus Brooklyn’s defensive rating of 107.9 in minutes Russell played. Seven teams ran a five-man lineup that appeared in at least 40 games last season and posted a net rating of 106 or lower: Memphis, San Antonio, Utah, Portland, Orlando, Oklahoma City and Golden State
Each of these incentives is worth $125,000 for a grand total of $1 million, accounting for just three percent of his salary for the year. Irving could miss on each one and still pocket $31.7 million, but it’s the thought that counts, and the thought is as clear as day: The Nets want Irving’s best, and he’ll have to bring it if he wants all his money.