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- Wed, Jan 15th, 2020
Wed, Jan 15th, 2020
A landmark moment for the WNBA — Ja Morant! — our game show results
Wednesday, January 15th, 2020
Historic, landmark, groundbreaking: All apt words for the WNBA’s new contract
Ja Morant!
A lot of you thought former prime ministers of the former Yugoslavia were current NBA players
That time Wilt got traded for three white guys named Connie Dierking, Lee Shaffer and Paul Neumann
1. The Lead: The WNBA and its union reach a landmark deal
Yesterday, the WNBA and its players’ union announced a new eight-year contract that will raise the average annual salary to around $130,000 and give the top players around $213,000, with the possibility of earning far more through bonuses and marketing agreements.The new contract also addresses maternity leave; contracts will be fully paid on such occasions, with a $5,000 child care stipend added in.The graph below illustrates how drastic a change in maximum league salary this new deal ushers in:
(Data via Spotrac)
Other important parts of the contract:
Players will get their own hotel rooms on the road, and will now fly economy instead of coach
The league’s minimum salary will increase from $42,000 to $57,000
Starting in 2021, the players will have a 50-50 split of revenue sharing between the league and its players, which was between 20 and 30 percent last year, according to the New York Times
WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert, on the new deal, also via the NYT:
“...a lot of these elements are setting up the future for the next generation of players to be in a great place -- for the current stars to leave behind a legacy for the next generation.”
[READ:
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2. Put Ja Morant in the All-Star Game
This pass, from Ja Morant to Jaren Jackson Jr. during last night’s 121-110 win over the Rockets, is all you need to know about the Grizzlies’ season so far.Memphis is:
8-2 in its last 10 games, and 19-22 overall
In eighth place in the West, a half-game ahead of San Antonio for the final spot
Morant is:
Positively delightful
A potential All-Star
A great Twitter follow
Shooting 57.5 percent from the field during this 8-2 stretch, and averaging 18 points overall on 49-40-80 shooting splits
Trashing talking Harden under his breath
Reminder: Andre Iguodala is still technically on the Grizzlies.[READ: Ja Morant’s invisible haters fuel his greatness]
3. Results from our game show
(Three-time prime minister of the former Yugoslavia Nikola Pašić)
Thank you to everyone who played our new game show segment on Monday,
Are these people current NBA players, or prime ministers of the former Yugoslavia?
It was interesting to see which people you thought were NBA players, and which people you thought were prime ministers of the former Yugoslavia.
In all, we got 35 responses. Here are the results:
Got all five NBA players: 4
Got four NBA players: 9
Got three NBA players: 11
Got two NBA players: 9
Got one NBA player: 2
Got zero NBA players: 0
The big takeaway: Most of you have no mortal idea who Alen Smailagić, forward for the Golden State Warriors, is. The majority of quiz-takers incorrectly chose Nikola Pašić from Group No. 1 as the NBA player; Pašić was in fact a three-time prime minister of the former Yugoslavia, though his initial reign was short-lived.From his Wikipedia entry, unedited for authenticity:
The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (SHS) was officially proclaimed on December 1918, and, being the Prime Minister of Serbia at that time, Pašić was generally considered the de facto Prime Minister of the new South Slav state, as well.[citation needed] The political agreement was reached that Pašić would continue on as Prime Minister when the first government of the new state was to be formed, but as a result of his longtime dislike of Pašić, regent Alexander nominated Stojan Protić to form the government. Consequently, Pašić stepped down on 20 December 1918.
Interestingly enough, Pašić would go on to recapture his former title
twice
more, acting as prime minister from 1921-24 and
again
from 1924-26.
So, in a way, Pašić was like the 2000s Spurs of 1920s Yugoslavia.
4. 1/15/1965: Wilt goes back to Philly
On this day 55 years ago, the San Francisco Warriors (who left Philadelphia for The Bay in 1962) traded Wilt Chamberlain to the Philadelphia 76ers (who left Syracuse for Philly in 1963), so he could head back to his hometown and stop annoying everyone on the Warriors.The Warriors’ haul: Connie Dierking, Lee Shaffer, Paul Neumann and less than $50,000From Sports Illustrated’s incomparable Frank Deford, in Jan. 1965:
“The trade itself is startling on more than one count. It is the most sensational basketball deal ever, but it is also the first time in the history of professional sports that an athlete of Chamberlain's stature has been traded while at the peak of his career. That he was exchanged for less than $50,000 (not the widely reported $300,000) and three guys named Neumann, Shaffer and Dierking whom most people never heard of is also extraordinary.”
Read the rest of the article,
Another big bluff
by Wilt
,
.
5. Quick Hits
Mark your calendars: Zion will be making his NBA debut on Jan. 22 against the Spurs.
A reminder that Rajon Rondo, Jimmy Butler and Dwyane Wade were all on the same team.
DeAndre Jordan with a clutch turnoverassist to Emmanuel Mudiay at the buzzer last night.
Here’s a cool feature on Lou Williams and Allen Iverson from when they were teammates in 2005.
Trae Youngcasually hitting a sitting 3 from the bench during warmups.