The Christian Kokoko contract situation is starting to raise eyebrows.
It’s late August and the Toronto Raptors second-round pick remains one of the few unsigned draft picks expected to play in the NBA this season. Every pick ahead of Koloko has signed a contract and four of the five players drafted right behind Koloko have inked multi-year deals. Yet there’s been nothing on the Koloko front and, according to Brian Windhorst, league executives have started chatting about the unusual situation.
For Toronto, it’s all about flexibility. The Raptors gift Otto Porter Jr. a $6 million contract for next season, essentially all of the taxpayer mid-level exception. Therefore, their options are limited.
1. Sign Koloko to a two-year minimum contract
The first and easiest option is to sign the 7-foot-1 center to a two-year minimum contract. For the Raptors, it would create added flexibility from a financial perspective with virtually no salary cap hit. However, the upside of the contract is limited. If Koloko became an impact player in the next two seasons, the Raptors would have to pay him significantly more money a year or two earlier than most top second-round picks. Both Andrew Nembhard and Caleb Houstan, the two picks ahead of Koloko in the second round, for example, signed four-year deals worth over $8 million.
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2. Sign Koloko to a three or four-year deal with the taxpayer mid-level exception
The other option is a little tricky. Having already used up the taxpayer mid-level on Porter, Toronto would have to use the non-taxpayer mid-level exception to sign Koloko to anything more than a two-year minimum contract. In doing so, the Raptors would be hard-capped at the luxury tax threshold for this season because teams that use the non-taxpayer mid-level are prohibited from becoming taxpayer teams for that year. Using that non-taxpayer exception would therefore mean Toronto couldn’t dip into the luxury tax if, for example, someone like Kevin Durant became available.
Moving Forward
Now it’s a waiting game for Koloko and the Raptors who remain on the periphery of Durant trade talks. If there’s a big trade to be had, Toronto wants to be involved. Otherwise, the Raptors will give Koloko a multi-year deal, likely of three or four years like those players picked ahead of him.
Further Reading
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