Drummond to the Nets?

[Jbirdp5]

Guys on the last years of deals have been getting bought out for years and years this is nothing new.
It’s not like Andre is going to be giving back half his contract in the buyout either folks.
The upside is he gets to play on a contender with lots of eyeballs that can help earn him that money back in free agency.
its a good move all around, especially being a net fan!!

 

[auror]

Why would Drummond agree to a buyout of significantly less than his remaining contract? He is in the prime of his career. You typically only see geezers agree to that. Why would Drummond play for below market when Kyrie, Durant and Harden are all getting paid? It's possible, but NBA players are generally smart enough to know they got to get paid in their prime because that prime is pretty short.

On the flip side, why would the Cavaliers pay Drummond the majority of his contract to have him go to the Nets? Playoffs are not out of the question for the Cavs.

Drummond has already made 130 million. He likely wants to win (his team's won like 40% of their games with him, with 0 playoff wins), and also wants to sign a new, fat contract. Giving up a net of 3-5 million this year and getting him to a contender with a chance to impress teams in the playoffs may be worth it. If he pursues a big contract this offseason, he may not have a ton of suitors and may not get to prioritize going to a winner. So this may be one of his few chances to do so in his prime.

The Cavs would do it because paying some is less than paying all. And because Jarrett Allen might be better than Drummond anyways so it doesn't cost much on the court.