How MKG’s Deal Could Benefit the Sixers

By Sean Kennedy (@PhillyFastBreak)

Yesterday, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist reached a contract extension with Charlotte for 4 years, $52 million. It was almost universally lauded among NBA insiders as a great deal for the club. They locked down a hard-working 21-year-old who is already one of the best perimeter defenders in the league at a below market rate. Among those in the general public who disagreed with the deal, the reasoning was generally some version of ‘That’s way too much money for a guy who does nothing but play defense.’

Which brings me to my point, something that’s been documented before in basketball circles: defense doesn’t get you paid like offense does.

Felt like posting this given MKG deal– NBA’s Inequality Problem: Defense Earns 60 Cents on the Dollar @NylonCalculus http://t.co/ykCDckriBk

— Mika Honkasalo (@mhonkasalo) August 25, 2015

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Basically, if you’re more or less a one-dimensional player on the defensive end, the market knocks you down for it. However, if you’re a one-dimensional offensive player, the market basically shrugs and you get paid anyway. Case in point: Enes Kanter.

Kanter received a 4-year, $70 million deal from Oklahoma City this offseason despite being arguably the worst defensive player in the league. Now, he partly obtained that deal because Thunder management needed to show Kevin Durant it’s willing to spend money to prevent him from fleeing to DC or somewhere else. However, Kanter also got paid because he put up the emptiest 18 and 11 stat line you’ll ever come across while in Oklahoma City with no regard to his impact on one whole end of the floor.

So how does this tie back to the Sixers? Well, like his fellow former Kentucky Wildcat Kidd-Gilchrist, Nerlens Noel is also an elite defensive player with a below-average offensive game. And believe it or not, the Sixers will need to think about signing Noel to an extension as early as next summer, as he has just a club option for 2016 remaining on his contract.

While Noel could certainly improve his offensive game this season (and I’d be thrilled if he does), the bias against defense-predominant players in pricing market contracts could actually benefit the Sixers when it comes to negotiating Noel’s next deal. If the Sixers could get Noel locked in for a deal a few million below the ‘max’ he could make, that’s a huge win for the team.

While it may not seem like a big deal now given the team’s current bountiful cap space, any additional room could make a difference down the road when the team is actually looking to splurge in free agency. The bias against defense seems like a market correction that’s still some years away, and if there’s one thing Sam Hinkie is good at, it’s taking advantage of market inefficiencies.