How Much Should the New Orleans Pelicans Pay Lonzo Ball?

New Orleans Pelicans: Comparing Lonzo Ball to his Peers

A quick look at NBA contracts shows that point guards are some of the highest paid players in the league, with Russell Westbrook, Stephen Curry, and Damian Lillard leading the way.

These guys are the Alpha-Dogs of their team (or were when they signed), three of the best players in the league and all headed to the Hall of Fame.

In other words, Lonzo Ball is not in this tier yet.

He’s also not in the Chris Paul, Kemba Walker and Kyrie Irving tier, as he does not have the service time and isn’t eligible for the same max.

Three guys to look at are Ben Simmons, D’Angelo Russell and Jamal Murray. All were the same age as Lonzo will be when they got their extensions and may be benchmarks for what Lonzo can expect.

Simmons signed a 5 year, $169 million extension with Philly, Russell got 4 years, $117 million and Murray received a 5 year, $169 million extension.

First of all, those numbers are mind boggling for three guys who have achieved very little in the NBA so far. Simmons is the best of the three, averages nearly a triple-double per game and is one of the league’s best defensive players, but still, wow.

I knew I should have been an NBA point guard! (HA)

I don’t blame Philly for splashing out for Simmons, as he is a talented two-way player who contributes in myriad ways even though he can’t shoot. The Russell and Murray extensions are scary though, as both are mainly scorers who do little else.

In my humble opinion, Lonzo is better than both Russell and Murray, but the question is whether he’ll be paid like it.

That all depends on Lonzo. If he wants to sign a max extension for 5 years, $100 million, then the New Orleans Pelicans will hand him the pen.

If he is looking for Murray money, then the Pels might hesitate, as they will already have Jrue Holiday making $27 million, Ingram on a likely max extension and some guy called Zion Williamson not far behind.

Lonzo may also opt for a shorter deal that would allow him to enter free agency after seven years of service, which would make him eligible for even more of the cap.

Hopefully the New Orleans Pelicans and Lonzo Ball can come to a fair number that is somewhere around $18-20 million per season.

It’s not going be easy, or cheap, to keep this team together, especially if all of them want to be paid the maximum amount. If the New Orleans Pelicans can sell their team culture and potential, they might get a bargain in Lonzo, but I wouldn’t count on it.