Rivals say Sydney Kings are $4m above the rest
Rival NBL coaches have accused the league leading Sydney Kings of having a roster worth $4 million.
Rival NBL coaches have accused the league leading Sydney Kings of having a roster worth $4 million more than any other team.
Perth coach Trevor Gleeson started the criticism after his side’s 104-85 loss to the Kings last Sunday by saying that the Harbour City franchise had four imports.
Gleeson was including to Sydney’s Brazilian shooting guard Didi Louzada as one of the team’s imports even though he is a Next Stars signing.
Next Stars players like LaMelo Ball and RJ Hampton aren’t included in the salary cap as the NBL pays their wage.
Adelaide coach Joey Wright then chimed in on Tuesday when he was asked how teams close the gap to Sydney.
Wright cheekily replied: “Four million dollars.”
The 8-1 Kings are loaded with talent, including former NBA champion Andrew Bogut and ex-Melbourne United guard Casper Ware.
There is no doubting Sydney’s depth of talent but they are operating under the league rules.
Unlike the NRL’s salary cap limit, the NBL changed its salary cap set-up from a “hard cap” of $1m to a “soft cap” of $1.1m, meaning teams may exceed the soft cap provided that they pay a salary equalisation subsidy.
These funds can be filtered down to franchises that don’t exceed the limit.
The Daily Telegraph
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