Top 5 Highest Paid Centers in the NBA right now
The role of centers on an NBA team has gradually changed over recent years. In the late '90s and early 2000s, players at the five spot only needed to be a presence in the paint. But now, head coaches encourage their big men to be more versatile and have a perimeter shot, with players like Maxi Kleber and Kristaps Porzingis being great examples.
Given how important centers are in the league, it makes sense that they receive some of the biggest contracts. Keeping that in mind, here are the Top 5 highest paid centers in the NBA right now.
Top 5 Highest Paid Centers in the NBA today
For this list, we will look at the 5 highest paid centers by the NBA itself. This means that any income that the player may get from an outside organization for shoe deals or other partnerships will be disregarded completely.
With that in mind, let's get started.
#5 Joel Embiid (Philadelphia 76ers)
NBA Contract: $147 million over 5 years
Coming in at number 5, we have Joel Embiid. The 26-year-old is arguably the best center in the NBA today, and is one part of the Philadelphia 76ers' superstar duo.
Embiid has most definitely done more than enough to warrant his large paycheck, and the franchise will hope he can bring them multiple championships in the near future.
#4 Nikola Jokic (Denver Nuggets)
NBA Contract: $147 million over 5 years
Another candidate for the best center in the NBA right now, Nikola Jokic has already shown a high level of production in the NBA. The 25-year-old was one of the Denver Nuggets' best players in their run to the Western conference finals. Though they lost that series, Jokic even gave eventual champions LA Lakers a lot of problems on both ends.
Given how much he has improved in such a short amount of time, the Nuggets will probably feel like his contract is an absolute bargain, rather than being one of the highest in the league today.