Would Pierce take a paycut in 2010-2011??

[PRIDE]

In the salary cap sticky I noticed Pierce has a player option for the last year of his contract. Could he opt for free agency and sign a much cheaper 3-4 year deal? Ray Allen would be a free agent in the same offseason and we don't have many other contracts. We would have enough room for a guy like Bosh or Wade right?

[CelticsWhat35]

According to hoopshype, 2010-2011 is not a player option, but if it is, there's no way Pierce would give up $21 million at the age of 33.  He may take a pay cut to pay the final few years after that to stay with the Celtics and finish out his career here, but that would also partly be due to the fact that no other team would be willing or able to offer him anything in that realm at his age.

[PRIDE]

The motivation for Pierce to take a paycut is the Celtics can bring in a younger superstar to keep them competing for rings. It would be a very high class move. I think Pierce is the kind of player that would do somethhing like this to keep winning.

[Jeff]

he's not Gilbert Arenas

no way he can make up $21M plus whatever he could sign for the next year with a reduced price contract from the Celtics unless it stretches out 10 years (not allowed under CBA)

so, short story is no

[BillfromBoston]

Well, technically, Pierce could opt-out, get a 6 year extension at 6 mill per, play as long as he feels like it, and then retire...say he sticks to his word and plays 5 more seasons total...subtract the 21 million and you are left with 15 over 3 years-or 5 million per year he would play...

Not saying this is likely, but the Celtics organization is excellent at communicating objectives to the players...if these guys want rings and there is a chance to add a major piece that makes it likely the team could compete for rings throughout, I could see Pierce giving up short-term money for the chance at long-term glory...

[bostonfan23]

he's not Gilbert Arenas

no way he can make up $21M plus whatever he could sign for the next year with a reduced price contract from the Celtics unless it stretches out 10 years (not allowed under CBA)

so, short story is no

It's just a totally different situation... Arenas signed a massive contract and opted out when he was only due for what, 11-15m? He still got a huge deal... but I definitely give him credit. We're asking Paul to walk away from 21m at 33? Won't happen, and I don't blame him.

[cordobes]

Sure, he can help the team to restructure the salaries, if Ainge's idea is to give him an extension after 2011. Be paid less in that season and more in the subsequent ones (more than the he'd get without the previous pay-cut, of course). Not exactly a paycut and no way that could help us to land Bosh or Wade. Just a chance of trying to save a bit on the luxury tax during the 2011-2014 period, for example.

[zerophase]

with pierce's confidence, he'll still think he's the best player in the world at 33 years of age.

[hwangjini_1]

he's not Gilbert Arenas

no way he can make up $21M plus whatever he could sign for the next year with a reduced price contract from the Celtics unless it stretches out 10 years (not allowed under CBA)

so, short story is no

unless the celtics write up a "personal service" agreement that would kick in upon retirement. the celtics might give pierce the same number of millions, but over a few more years.

does anyone know if this is allowed?

[MVP]

I doubt he would take a significant enough pay cut, but if we need it he might restructure his contract. For example, say the Pierce decides before that year that he wants to play for 3 more years and his agent expects him to be worth ~7M for those last 2 years in the open market. So he could opt out of the 21 million final year and sign a contract worth ~ 3 years, 35 million...about 12 million annually. He would still get about the same amount of money he would have gotten eventually but it might clear enough cap space to sign a max free agent or close to it...although i'm not sure  who we could get that's worth it.

[Neurotic Guy]

I do realize that posing speculative hypotheticals is both the right and lifeblood of bloggers, but this one seems as close to a no-brainer as possible.  Very little chance that anyone in the NBA (or in America for that matter) passes up 21 million at the latter stage of a career (which at this point is a fair assumption) to earn possible glory and much less money.  I believe (could be wrong as I am unsure when agents are compensated) that his agent would also have a thing or two to say about passing on $21 million. 

Despite the notion that once you have 'x' amount of money, it becomes more about the glory and the rings, players time and again demonstrate that money is usually pretty darn high on the 'motivator' list right up until earning power starts to wane dramatically.  When he's in the 4-6 million range, then perhaps he'll talk about rings over money, but not when we're talking 21 million. 

One thing I always think about when I am tempted to make a value judgment on a person choosing money over other valued considerations, is that all players have a limited time frame within which to make the 'big bucks' and many have charities and businesses that they sponsor or operate.  I'd like to think that some of these players think that every dollar they pass up is a dollar they cannot give back to their hometown or their charity or businesses that perhaps employ many people and make a difference in people's lives.  It's my way of choosing to place rose-colored glasses on a situation that often seems only about greed.