The Indiana Pacers signed Bruce Brown Jr. to a 2-year, $45 million contract on Friday. Before now, Brown made just a touch over $15 million in his five total years in the NBA. What prompted the Pacers to offer such an unprecedented contract to Brown? The new NBA Collective Bargaining Agreement and its salary requirements.
The new CBA requires all NBA teams to spend at least 90% of the salary cap, otherwise known as the salary floor. If a team fails to spend up to the salary floor, it is not eligible to receive the end-of-season cash distribution to teams dodging the luxury tax (Marks, ESPN).