Playoff photo from zimbio.com.Hedo Turkoglu’s contract is winding up.
Earning $6.8 million in his fifth year as the Orlando Magic starting small forward and set to earn $7.4 next season, Turkoglu’s agent, Lon Babby, has been rumored to have demanded a minimum annual salary of $10 million for Turkoglu, or else he’ll walk. Sacramento and Portland are rumored to be interested in picking up the Magic man.
Although Hedo’s request might be warranted, he’s been going about asking all the wrong way. A $10M salary will be a burden to the team and force the owners to pay a luxury tax for going over the salary cap. This is a bad economy and many of us are worried about making the mortgage, much less, scraping up enough extra cash for season tickets next year.
Here’s the way Hedo should ask for his raise:
- This has been the best year ever! This has been the best team ever! Coach Stan Van Gundy has done a great job! I truly appreciate the team owners, the DeVos family, for all they have done. I really, really want to stay in Orlando. It’s become a home to me, second only to my homeland of Turkey. The people here are so wonderful. My contract is up, but I really hope I can stay in this beautiful city. Amway Arena’s a great venue and I’m looking forward to playing in the new arena. I don’t want to leave my friends, the fans, who have supported me and ignited an energy inside of me to win. I know the economy is bad, but I hope I can get a raise with my new contract. I know I have room for improvement, and I want to work hard for this team. My dream is to take the Magic to a championship, and someday, end my career here.
But, would the team be better off without Hedo? Would his absence allow other forwards -- such as Mickael Pietrus, Tony Battie, and Jeremy Richardson – more room to blossom? Marcin Gortat, who’s also a free agent and shopping around for more playing time, might make a good starting forward with a little work. Perhaps even Adonal Foyle, a center set to retire this year, might work as a forward.
Throughout this winning 2008-2009 Orlando Magic NBA Basketball Season, I’ve gotten to know starter Hidayet “Hedo” Turkoglu (pronounced Hee-doh Turk-oh-lue) from my upper level season ticket seats at Amway Arena. Unlike many of the other Magic players who tend to crumple under the gun, Turkoglu plays infinitely better when he’s under extreme pressure. Fake a foul so that Turkoglu is unfairly penalized and he’ll go up for a dunk or 3-pointer next chance he gets – and nearly always make it. Commit an intentional foul against Turkoglu, and he’ll foul you back. When he does get a chance to shoot a free throw, he makes the basket 81% of the time. Make him angry and you’ve unleashed a tiger. This means war and he’ll be on your back the rest of the game, matching shot after shot.
Turkoglu also plays much better when the crowd cheers for him. The day my friends and I brought "Hedo" signs to the game was one of his highest scoring games ever. Scream “Go Hedo,” and he’ll try to make a shot for you.
However, many of us in the crowd have also been disappointed. During fast complicated plays, I’ve seen Turkoglu accidentally throw the ball to a member of the opposing team; throw the ball into empty space; selfishly attempt to make difficult shots when another player is open (which he’ll nearly always miss); lazily let someone else try to get the rebound (even when he’s the closest); sluggishly walk down the court too late to do any good; and not put out enough energy to defend opposing players. I’ve also seen jealousy in his eyes when the Dwight Howard Superman t-shirts were left on every seat on Christmas Day, and when the crowd cheered excitedly whenever J.J. Reddick entered the court.
Hedo is an emotional player. Love him and he loves you back. But, don’t give him the attention he thinks he deserves and his energy level drops.
Does Turkoglu deserve $10 million? Is it worth it for the Magic Team owners, the DeVos family, to go over the salary cap and pay the luxury tax? When I first heard the figure, I growled, “Who does Hedo think he is? Let him go!” Then I saw the rest of the player salaries and I realized that he may have a point.
Pay Based on Expectations At Time of Signing
According to Hoops Hype and Yahoo sports, here’s last year’s breakdown, plus next year’s salaries:
| Position | Player | FG% | FT% | Min. | Reb | Ast. | PPG | 2008/09 | 2009/10 |
| Center | Dwight Howard | 57.2 | 59.4 | 35.42 | 13.8 | 1.4 | 20.6 | $13,758,000 | $15,133,800 |
| (backup) | Marcin Gortat | 56.7 | 57.8 | 12:35 | 4.5 | .2 | 3.8 | $711,517 | Match up to $5M |
| (backup) | Adonal Foyle | 63.6 | 50 | 6:35 | 2.9 | .1 | 1.9 | $294,530 | retiring? |
| Power Forward | Rashard Lewis | 43.9 | 83.6 | 36:12 | 5.7 | 2.6 | 17.7 | $17,238,000 | $18,876,000 |
| (backup) | Tony Battie | 48.9 | 65.9 | 15:35 | 3.6 | .4 | 4.8 | $5,746,000 | $6,292,000 |
| Small Forward | Hedo Turkoglu | 41.3 | 80.7 | 36:36 | 5.3 | 4.9 | 16.8 | $6,864,200 | $7,354,500 |
| (backup) | Mickael Pietrus | 41.3 | 70.9 | 24:36 | 3.3 | 1.2 | 9.4 | $5,300,000 | $5,300,000 |
| (backup) | Jeremy Richardson | 28.6 | 50 | 7:42 | 1.2 | .3 | 3.1 | $779,856 | leaving? |
| Point Guard | Jameer Nelson | 50.3 | 88.7 | 31:11 | 3.5 | 5.4 | 16.7 | $5,555,555 | $6,138,888 |
| (backup) | Rafer Alston | 41.3 | 70.7 | 29:30 | 2.9 | 5.1 | 12.0 | $4,900,000 | $5,250,000 |
| (backup) | Anthony Johnson | 40.4 | 75.3 | 18:30 | 1.8 | 2.5 | 5.3 | $2,000,000 | $2,160,000 |
| (backup) | Tyronn Lue | 39.5 | 66.7 | 9:11 | .8 | 1.0 | 3.0 | $2,250,000 | leaving? |
| Shooting Guard | Courtney Lee | 45.0 | 83.0 | 25:11 | 2.3 | 1.2 | 8.4 | $1,176,240 | $1,264,440 |
| (backup) | J.J. Redick | 39.1 | 87.1 | 17:23 | 1.7 | 1.1 | 6 | $2,139,720 | $2,839,408 |
| TOTALS: | $68,713,618 | $70,609,036+ |
It’s obvious that salaries really don’t match player skill or position. There’s no doubt that Allstars Rashard Lewis and Dwight Howard are two of our finest players. However, Jameer Nelson, also named an Allstar this year, only earns about a third of what Lewis and Howard earn.
How should players be paid? Here’s a few options:
Socialized Pay
Should everyone get paid the same based on position? In order to stay within the $70M average salary cap, the NBA could base pay on position, not stats. The assumption is that if a player is good enough to lead their team to the finals, they will get plenty of endorsements. Everyone knows, endorsements are where the real money is!
One possible breakdown based on a 15-man team:
Starters: $8M each ($40M total)
2nd string: $5M each ($25M total)
3rd string: $1M each ($5M total)
Performance Pay
In an attempt to place a numeric value on performance, I created the following chart. To get the following numbers, I first converted the average minutes played per game to a decimal number. Then I divided points per game into the minutes played, to determine how productive each player is during the time they actually play. (Sometimes a great ball player gets little playing time because they are not starters.)
To get the “Scoring Value,” I added the field goal percentage, free throw percentage, and points per game made per minute played.
Since a players’ worth can be based more on how they help other’s score or defend, not in how they score themselves, I also came up with a “Teamwork Value.” This is basically the sum of the rebounds, assists, steals, blocks and personal fouls per minute played, minus turnovers.
(All percentages and decimals are rounded and multiplied by 100 to get a whole number.)
Scoring Value by Player
Listed by position. Based on Regular Season 2008-2009 statistics.
Teamwork Value by Player
| Position | Player | Min. | FG% | FT% | PPG/ Min | Scoring Value | |
| Center | Dwight Howard | 35.7 | 57.2 | 59.4 | 58 | 175 | |
| (backup) | Marcin Gortat | 12.58 | 56.7 | 57.8 | 30 | 145 | |
| (backup) | Adonal Foyle | 6.58 | 63.6 | 50.0 | 29 | 143 | |
| Power Forward | Rashard Lewis | 36.20 | 43.9 | 83.6 | 49 | 177 | |
| (backup) | Tony Battie | 15.58 | 48.9 | 65.9 | 31 | 146 | |
| Small Forward | Hedo Turkoglu | 36.60 | 41.3 | 80.7 | 46 | 168 | |
| (backup) | Mickael Pietrus | 24.60 | 41.3 | 70.9 | 38 | 150 | |
| (backup) | Jeremy Richardson | 7.70 | 28.6 | 50.0 | 40 | 119 | |
| Point Guard | Jameer Nelson | 31.18 | 50.3 | 88.7 | 54 | 193 | |
| (backup) | Rafer Alston | 29.50 | 41.3 | 70.7 | 41 | 153 | |
| (backup) | Anthony Johnson | 18.50 | 40.4 | 75.3 | 29 | 145 | |
| (backup) | Tyronn Lue | 9.18 | 39.5 | 66.7 | 33 | 139 | |
| Shooting Guard | Courtney Lee | 25.18 | 45.0 | 83.0 | 33 | 161 | |
| (backup) | J.J. Redick | 17.38 | 39.1 | 87.1 | 35 | 161 |
Teamwork Value by Player
Listed by position. Based on Regular Season 2008-2009 statistics
Scoring Value Plus Teamwork Value by Player
| Position | Player | Reb/ Min | Ast./ Min | Stl/ Min | Blk/ Min | PF/ Min | Minus TO/ Min | Teamwork Value |
| Center | Dwight Howard | 39 | 4 | 3 | 8 | 10 | -8 | 56 |
| (backup) | Marcin Gortat | 36 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 14 | -3 | 57 |
| (backup) | Adonal Foyle | 44 | 2 | 0 | 14 | 6 | -5 | 61 |
| Power Forward | Rashard Lewis | 16 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 7 | -6 | 29 |
| (backup) | Tony Battie | 23 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 10 | -4 | 36 |
| Small Forward | Hedo Turkoglu | 14 | 13 | 2 | 1 | 8 | -7 | 31 |
| (backup) | Mickael Pietrus | 13 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 10 | -4 | 28 |
| (backup) | Jeremy Richardson | 16 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 6 | -4 | 22 |
| Point Guard | Jameer Nelson | 11 | 17 | 4 | 0 | 10 | -6 | 36 |
| (backup) | Rafer Alston | 10 | 17 | 6 | 0 | 7 | -6 | 34 |
| (backup) | Anthony Johnson | 10 | 14 | 3 | 1 | 8 | -6 | 30 |
| (backup) | Tyronn Lue | 9 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 10 | -1 | 30 |
| Shooting Guard | Courtney Lee | 10 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 8 | -4 | 24 |
| (backup) | J.J. Redick | 10 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 6 | -5 | 19 |
Scoring Value Plus Teamwork Value by Player
Listed by position. Based on Regular Season 2008-2009 statistics
Key:
Min -- Minutes played per game. This does not average in games where this player does not play at all.
FG% -- Percentage of Field Goals (regular shots) made per attempted shot.
FT% -- Percentage of Free Throws the player made per attempt.
PPG/Min – Points per game (per minute played).
Reb/Min – Rebounds, both offensive and defensive (per minute played).
Ast/Min – Assists, such as setting up the ball for other players so they can make a basket (per minute played).
Stl/Min – Steals (per minute played).
Blk/Min – Blocks, a defensive maneuver (per minute played).
PF/Min – Personal Fouls, a defensive maneuver (per minute played).
TO/Min – Turnovers, a very bad thing (per minute played).
Salary Plus Performance Pay
Often revered by employers everywhere, salary plus performance pay is one ideal way to give your employees a fair living wage plus an incentive to do well in their jobs. While Unions hate it, salespeople swear by this method, for it rewards those who truly hustle. The assumption is that not everyone will make the maximum in performance pay, so the salary cap can be maintained.
Starters: $5M base plus up to $5M performance pay each.
2nd string: $3M base plus up to $3M performance pay each.
3rd string: $1M base plus up to $1M performance pay each.
| Position | Player | Scoring Value plus Teamwork Value |
| Center | Dwight Howard | 231 |
| (backup) | Marcin Gortat | 202 |
| (backup) | Adonal Foyle | 204 |
| Power Forward | Rashard Lewis | 206 |
| (backup) | Tony Battie | 182 |
| Small Forward | Hedo Turkoglu | 199 |
| (backup) | Mickael Pietrus | 178 |
| (backup) | Jeremy Richardson | 141 |
| Point Guard | Jameer Nelson | 229 |
| (backup) | Rafer Alston | 187 |
| (backup) | Anthony Johnson | 175 |
| (backup) | Tyronn Lue | 169 |
| Shooting Guard | Courtney Lee | 185 |
| (backup) | J.J. Redick | 180 |
Key:
Min -- Minutes played per game. This does not average in games where this player does not play at all.
FG% -- Percentage of Field Goals (regular shots) made per attempted shot.
FT% -- Percentage of Free Throws the player made per attempt.
PPG/Min – Points per game (per minute played).
Reb/Min – Rebounds, both offensive and defensive (per minute played).
Ast/Min – Assists, such as setting up the ball for other players so they can make a basket (per minute played).
Stl/Min – Steals (per minute played).
Blk/Min – Blocks, a defensive maneuver (per minute played).
PF/Min – Personal Fouls, a defensive maneuver (per minute played).
TO/Min – Turnovers, a very bad thing (per minute played).
Salary Plus Performance Pay
Often revered by employers everywhere, salary plus performance pay is one ideal way to give your employees a fair living wage plus an incentive to do well in their jobs. While Unions hate it, salespeople swear by this method, for it rewards those who truly hustle. The assumption is that not everyone will make the maximum in performance pay, so the salary cap can be maintained.
Starters: $5M base plus up to $5M performance pay each.
2nd string: $3M base plus up to $3M performance pay each.
3rd string: $1M base plus up to $1M performance pay each.
