Isaiah Thomas is among the best bargains in the NBA right now, as the Celtics’ point guard will make just $6.3 million in 2017-18, but when he becomes a free agent he’s ready to get paid. After averaging 28.9 points and 5.9 assists per game to lead the Celtics to the top seed in the Eastern Conference, Thomas proved that he’s one of the league’s best scorers and worthy of far more than his present deal.
Boston will have to make a significant decision regarding Thomas next summer, as he has stated that he wants to cash in with a max deal when he hits free agency. To be exact, Thomas said the Celtics will need to “back up the Brinks truck” for him.
In case you were wondering how serious Thomas is about his paper, he revealed on Monday that he has a pair of sandals with the image of cash pouring out of a Brinks truck.
Isaiah Thomas has a Brinks truck on his sandals 💵💵😂😂
📷: @Isaiah_Thomas pic.twitter.com/hct02TfBan
— Dime (@DimeUPROXX) July 31, 2017
These are absolutely tremendous and are a not so subtle message from Thomas that he’s preparing this summer to ball out once again in a contract year in order to ensure he gets that big deal come July 2018. The question will be whether the market will be strong enough for Thomas to push the Celtics to making that max or near-max offer for him.
Free agents in 2018 could suffer from the massive spending of the past two offseasons, as there are fewer teams with the potential cap space to really flood the market with big offers. We’ve already seen a cutback this summer compared to last summer in big spending — although, some of that is due to big extensions being signed before guys hit free agency — and that is expected to be even more of a story next year. Thomas will hope that his play will entice someone to throw a huge deal his way, so he can finally stop being a bargain value.
