I read somewhere last offseason saying that Durant knew how hard it was to acquire big salaries such as his and that when he reached free agency, he might pick his team and play for the minimum so that team could add talent. I only saw mention of it that one time and I can't recall where I read it .... But now we have rumors that he will in fact take a lower than max deal with the Rockets - the report is 2 years 100m. It's not a minimum contract by any standards but it is a significant discount from the 2/122 he could get. That 22m over 2 years could mean the difference between adding a piece or keeping a younger player and or staying out of that 2nd apron territory.
2 years/100M is still more than I think he's likely to be worth (especially in that final year) but it's not disastrous for the franchise I guess. If his decline is gentle enough, there will be worse players getting paid about the same or more when this offseason wraps up.
FVV got paid over his likely open market value. Jabari also got paid more than his current production has warranted, although it was certainly signed with potential growth in mind. Jabari could have held out on signing and maybe made more next offseason, but he took the guaranteed money. If KD does in fact sign that deal, it will be the first guy that clearly signed a below market team friendly deal.
Assuming 4 minimum contracts worth at $2.5M each (don't know exact number for next season), the Rockets would have $22M under the 2nd apron next season with Durant at that number with an 8% raise for 2nd season of extension. Tari's first seaon would need to be less than $22M.
