Nerlens Noel was the consensus No. 1 pick, but the Kentucky center took a costly slide to No. 6.
Basketball fans the world over were surprised when Nerlens Noel, the dominating center from Kentucky, wasn't selected first overall in last night's NBA draft. Noel has long been touted as the draft's top talent, and the Cleveland Cavaliers, an atrocious team with a dire need for a big man, seemed an obvious landing spot for the shot-blocking phenom. The Cavs took UNLV's Anthony Bennett instead.
That surprise turned to shock as Noel's name wasn't called second, third or fourth. Fans had to wait until the New Orleans Pelicans' pick at No. 6 for the consensus top player's name to come off the board (his rights were later traded to the Philadelphia 76ers).
Noel has noted that those doubting teams, which likely had concerns about the torn ACL in his left knee, will pay for passing up on the big man. But even if Noel makes good on his threat, he will still be the one paying for the draft-day slide in lost income.
Here is the rookie pay scale for the top ten picks in the 2013 NBA draft:
The third and fourth contract years are team options. Over the first two contract years, the top pick will make $3.7 million more than the No. 6 pick, and the earnings gap increases to $8 million if the teams pick up both options ($20 million total for No. 1 and $11.9 million for No. 6).
But rookies can be paid anywhere from 80% to 120% of the values in the above pay scale; in other words, the first overall pick can make from $3.5 million to $5.3 million in his first year. In the case of high first-round picks, however, it's almost always the case that players will net the full 120% contract value.
After adjusting for that 120% increase, these are the expected contract values of the top six picks in this year's draft:
Again, the third and fourth years are team options. That drop from first to sixth will cost Noel $4.4 million in his first two years. Include the team options, and Noel's potential earnings fall from $24 million to $14.3 million, a nearly $10 million dip.
That's a tough pill to swallow for a 19-year-old kid who has spent the last few months being told he was the draft's top pick. And the earnings dip doesn't necessarily end after those four years - his team's max qualifying offer will be $5.8 million when his contract expires in 2017. Bennett, who went first overall to the Cavaliers, will have a max qualifying offer of $9.5 million.
