Players in the NBA’s G League will see a salary bump when they take the court this fall. The NBA announced on Tuesday that salaries in the NBA’s Gatorade-branded minor league’s base salary will increase to $7,000 per month, or $35,000 total for the 2018-19 season.
Last year, the G League’s two-tiered contract system maxed a player’s salary out at $26,000, with others making $19,000. The league also pays for housing for its athletes and gives them insurance, but the new salary minimum ensures every player receives a much improved base salary. The pay bump shows the growth of the league itself, which will be at 27 teams next season as we get closer and closer to every NBA team owning an affiliate.
It also might make the NBA’s minor league a more attractive option for pro prospects who need to play somewhere a year after high school. Last month, 2018 McDonald’s All-American Darius Bazley announced he was decommiting from Syracuse to sign a contract in the G League later this year. Two-way contracts will also see a bump from $75,000 to $77,250 for next season, with the potential to earn as much as $385,000 if they max out the number of allowed days spent with the NBA club at the prorated NBA rate.
ESPN’s Marc J. Spears reported Tuesday that league salaries are expected to rise again once each NBA team has a minor league affiliate.
“I do like it. It’s a start,” one G League team executive told The Undefeated. “Once all [NBA] teams have their own [G League] teams, then you will see the salaries go up some more. Plus, with these high school players not wanting to go to college, they needed to raise it up a bit.”
Whether the G League becomes a viable alternative to playing overseas or entering the NBA for the majority of pro prospects still seems unlikely, but it’s another sign that the NBA is serious about establishing the G League as a forum for player development for its pro teams. While $35,000 still isn’t a massive salary, as Marc Stein notes, players that earn NBA camp invites and stick with that franchise’s G League affiliate have the opportunity to bump their total income up into the $85,000 range.
Players also will remain eligible to earn affiliate player bonuses worth as much as $50,000, which are triggered when a player goes to training camp with an NBA team and then plays for that team’s G League affiliate.
As the G League continues to grow and set its sights on becoming an even better pipeline for future NBA talent, the financial commitment to the players will be critical. This is a solid step in that direction, but it hopefully is only the beginning.
