How did NBA players get paid? Back when he was just a fan, Link had always been curious about that question.
For those contracts worth tens of millions, even hundreds of millions, did the owners have trucks haul cash over to the players, or did they just write checks?
And what did it feel like to suddenly possess assets worth tens or hundreds of millions?
But today, Link finally got an answer to the mysterious question of "how NBA players got paid." And the answer left him rather disappointed.
He had thought he would happily head home today with two million dollars in hand. But after Jeff Austin ran the numbers, Link was dumbfounded.
"First, there's federal tax, at 33.61%. Then state tax—Tennessee's state tax is 7%. Then there's my 3% commission on the contract, plus third-party escrow fees and so on. The amount you'll ultimately receive will be around 1.26 million dollars."
Looking at the number on Jeff Austin's calculator, Link was stunned. So nearly half his salary had been cut away just like that!
Still, going home with a million dollars wasn't bad at all. A million dollars—that was a number that had only ever appeared in his dreams before.
However, after putting down the calculator, Jeff Austin spoke again.
"Under NBA rules, November 15 is the first payday each year. After that, salaries are paid on the first and fifteenth of every month—twice a month, twenty-four payments a year. Since you only signed with the team through the end of the season, you don't have twenty-four payments, only twelve. So, the amount you can take today is..." As Jeff Austin spoke, he tapped at the calculator again.
"The salary you can take today is 105,000 dollars. Congratulations, Link. You're now a real NBA player."
"Uh..." Link pursed