What's your Net Worth? (NBA Salary Cap)

LeBron James, Picture Courtesy of blog.sharpie.com

You ever work at a job and feel like you never get you fair share of the pie with the production that you have been giving out? I think this is a large majority of the work America. People tend to put in their hard hours everyday to make sure that a company can expand their revenue. The question people keep asking is, how fair is it when you continue to see your production add a maximizing value to a company and your fair share isn't even close to increasing.

The NBA has been tricky with their revenue because they have been able to compensate for certain areas with pay but also take away different opportunities for players because of their CBA (collective bargaining agreement). The CBA states that no one player can maximize their earnings past 35%. The CBA also states that there are opportunities for full guaranteed contracts. The NBA has not only provided a shift with the CBA but the players for the last 16 years have been trying to find ways of keeping themselves away from lockouts.

Money will always be the big target of focus for the any organization. People want their fair share but the golden idea for most companies are, how can I maximize my profit with having people work without having to give up as much so that I can keep it for myself. Over decades people have found ways around the loops and then ended up in court to do more negotiating because they want rights as laborers. So, the NBA and the players tarnish the game because they are more interested in finding ways to make their worth.

No doubt in my mind have I been blessed to see some of the greatest players off all time in Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Michael Jordan, Kevin Durant, Kevin Garnett and Shaquille O'Neal. These guys have all earned their due in the NBA and continued to entertain at the highest level. They have been able to get the right support behind them and earn as much money as they are able to do so. Well....Not actually. Based on a recent study through different sports management programs in the country, players are well underpaid. As the generations continue to flow in, the game of basketball continues to grow globally. As it grows globally, there's more access to funds to help build the brand and keep the net value of a league at an ultimate high.

The LA Clippers have shown that the party will continue to grow as they were just sold for over $2 Billion to owner who was banned for racial comments. If the LA Clippers, who have never won a title but have some of the most electric players in the world are worth that kind of money for a franchise, what kind of money are we talking about for other teams such as the LA Lakers, NY Knicks and Boston Celtics. Time will only tell but there is definitely a rise behind the idea of being able to sale a team for more money than it was worth. The idea that people will earn 300+% profit is very close to happening, especially when franchises only worth 700 million go for 2 Billion.

The NBA just got a new TV contract worth $24 Billion. Sounds crazy, well it is when the pie just got bigger but nobody's really getting a bigger slice except for the owners. I guess Adam Silver and David Stern have been really doing their job and worth every penny of their large amount salary, that reaches a number hire than 80% of the players in what they make per year.

Players should be scared, but I guess LeBron is ready to take a step. He just signed for a short deal with the Cavs and realize how much more money he could get. He's made over $300 million in endorsements but hasn't quite yet reached over $150 million in NBA game money. Michael Jordan is still the highest paid NBA player for one season but was highly underpaid for his career. His numbers were amazing off the court but is it fair to say that the NBA got off cheap only making over $5 million in his career twice, which happen to be 2 largest contract years, well over $30 million.

So now what, the market is much bigger, LeBron is a bigger icon and he's hasn't even begin to reach even close numbers to Michael Jordan. Believe it or not, because the game is more global, LeBron has drawn more attention than any player in the NBA history during his playing career. Think about it...LeBron was able to almost shut down the entire city of Cleveland after he left the team in 2010 by himself, losing an enormous income of over $100 million in a very short span. He did all of this by just saying he was going to Miami.

LeBron could easily without a cap get paid around $40 to $70 million a year. Some analyst have even said that he is worth about $100 million a year to play on the court. Kobe calls out the NBA on the new contract and LeBron and other would definitely like to see the change of the salary cap in the NBA but what's the risk. NBA Owners have already expressed that if done, they will make sure the money is not guaranteed. Only time will tell what will happen but whatever we see in the next few years, I know the players with some brains will find out a way, even when the people who pay the bills will find ways of their own to still win.