What the Nets have to consider when re-signing Nic Claxton
The Brooklyn Nets have an important offseason ahead of them as arguably their most important matter to address is re-signing free-agent center Nic Claxton. While both sides have indicated that they would love for Claxton to come back to Brooklyn, there are some other factors for the Nets to consider during this process.
To start off, Claxton, general manager Sean Marks, and new head coach Jordi Fernandez have all made it clear that Claxton is in the plans for the team’s future, whatever the price is. However, this free-agency negotiation between Claxton and the Nets may not be as clear-cut as it seems from the outside looking in.
As has been reported by Michael Scotto of HoopsHype multiple times over the past year, executives around the NBA believe that Claxton’s new deal will range somewhere between $20 million and $25 million per season. However, Keith Smith of Spotrac recently wrote that Claxton could be seeing more money than that due to inflation, so to speak.
“$20 to $25 million is what non-All-Star centers have gone for in recent years. If we adjust up slightly, Claxton could be looking at a deal that lands between $100 and $120 million over four years,” Smith wrote. Per Spotrac, there are five centers making between $20 million and $25 million, with the highest among the five being Milwaukee Bucks center Brook Lopez.
However, some within the Nets fanbase have wondered what will happen if Claxton’s contract demands starts to go into that $25 million to $30 million range over four seasons. Brooklyn may have to prepare for that possibility if they want to make it so Claxton re-signs.
Also, part of the negotiation will be what other teams would be willing to offer Claxton to pry him away from the Nets. “Most of the cap space teams have centers already in place. In addition, most contenders, or would-be contenders, also have centers in place. That could work in Brooklyn’s favor for retaining Claxton on the lower end of the above range,” Smith writes.
At this moment, it seems that the Nets know what they are working with in terms of potential contract values for Claxton. Time will tell how these negotiations go and how much attention Claxton will receive on the open market.
