The Indiana Pacers and Utah Jazz can’t be particularly pleased with the 2017 All-NBA teams.
The three All-NBA teams were announced Thursday, and neither Indiana’s Paul George nor Utah’s Gordon Hayward made the cut. While that might seem like a bummer but not a big deal for the two players, it actually could cost them and their current teams.
This development means neither player can sign a super-max contract with their current teams this summer. Without an All-NBA nod, the Jazz can’t offer Hayward, who can opt out of his contract this offseason, a five-year, $207 million super-max contract, according to The Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski. George, meanwhile, can’t opt out of his contract until after next season, but the Pacers could have inked a super-max extension with him if he made the list, as Wojnarowski pointed out.
A super-max contract is one of the best pieces of leverage a player’s current team has in negotiations, and it’s good for the players, too, since they get even more money. But Utah and Indiana lost that leverage Thursday.
The Boston Celtics have been linked to both Hayward and George, and the same goes for the Los Angeles Lakers with George. So this could be good news for the NBA’s two most storied franchises.
Thumbnail photo via Brian Spurlock/USA TODAY Sports Images
