Kawhi Leonard Extension: Where does LA Clippers star's reported $152.4 million contract rank among biggest extensions in NBA?
Kawhi Leonard has been in the NBA for 12 years now and has already spent four seasons with the LA Clippers. Despite struggling to find success with the team, it appears that Leonard is happy in LA as he recently signed a contract extension with the team. The LA Clippers offered him a three-year contract extension worth $152.4 million. More or less he'd be making an average of $50.8 million a year.
Kawhi Leonard is one of the biggest stars in NBA history. It's usually guys like him who are offered some of the largest contracts in the league. However, while Leonard's current contract worth $176.26 million was ranked 34th all-time, his upcoming contract is no longer within the top 40 in history. Despite taking a slight pay cut, $152.4 million is still bigger compared to other contracts in the league today.
Kawhi Leonard’s extension compared to biggest extensions in NBA history
Given how Leonard recently signed a three-year deal worth $152.4 million with the LA Clippers, some might be wondering if it's on par with the biggest contracts of all time.
To answer that question, the answer is no. Kawhi Leonard's upcoming contract is not even within the top 40 contracts in league history. With that in mind, one might ask how much are some of the biggest contracts of all time. Compared to Leonard's $152.4 million, he's $151.6 million shy of the league's largest contract in history.
Here's a look at five of the biggest contracts to date:
#1. Jaylen Brown
Jaylen Brown of the Boston Celtics currently holds the top spot for the biggest NBA extension in history, worth $304 million. Brown's supermax extension will be effective beginning next season.
#2. Nikola Jokic
Before the conclusion of the 2022-23 season, Nikola Jokic re-signed with the Denver Nuggets which would last him five more years with the team. He agreed to a contract extension worth $270 million. The Nuggets' investment in Jokic was worth it as he brought the team their first championship in franchise history last season.
#3. Bradley Beal
Then there's Bradley Beal who initially signed a five-year extension worth $251 million with the Washington Wizards in 2022. Beal was the Wizards' best player at the time and wanted to keep their superstar happy. However, it appears that Washington wanted a change in direction as they willingly traded Bradley to the Phoenix Suns during the offseason in exchange for younger talent.
#4. Giannis Antetokounmpo
As for Giannis Antetokounmpo, he holds the fourth spot in the all-time list of biggest contract extensions. He's currently signed to a five-year contract worth $228.2 million and is playing in the third season of the deal. Antetokounmpo already signed a new contract with the Milwaukee Bucks effective come the 2025-26 season. However, it's only worth $177.1 million, which is still higher compared to Kawhi Leonard's upcoming contract.
#5. Devin Booker, Karl-Anthony Towns
Then finally there's Devin Booker and Karl-Anthony Towns, who are tied for fifth place with a matching salary of $224 million within four years with their respective teams.