July 12, 2024

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Suns owner Mat Ishbia continues to make his mark—and show little restraint from the NBA’s salary cap—in pursuit of a title. … The rebuilding Pirates face some new pressure from a pair of Pennsylvania legislators. … Big money is on the line this weekend in tennis, golf, and NASCAR. … Plus: More on the NBA Cup, the New York Liberty, Harrison Butker, and the NFL.

— Eric Fisher [[link removed]]

The Suns Have Entered the NBA’s Uncharted, Punitive Territory [[link removed]]

Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports

The NBA’s $76 billion largesse from its new national TV deals [[link removed]] hasn’t yet started to reach individual teams. But it soon will, and the economic signs are already starting to show.

The Suns on Thursday signed guard Josh Okogie to a two-year, $16 million deal, with the second year not guaranteed. While hardly remarkable in itself, the agreement pushes the team beyond $400 million in total projected player payroll and luxury tax costs for the upcoming season, according [[link removed]] to ESPN salary cap expert Bobby Marks.

That $400 million figure had not been previously hit in league history, and Phoenix will be operating in the more punitive “second apron” [[link removed]] of the NBA’s complex salary cap, set [[link removed]] for this coming season at a threshold of $188.9 million. That higher level of exceeding the cap imposes a series of additional limitations, particularly around trades, and even raises the possibility of moving teams’ first-round draft slots to the end of the round.

But thanks in part to the forthcoming media money—more than doubling the NBA’s current pacts on an annual basis—the Suns have been emboldened to follow the lead of recent title-winning teams in going well past the cap. The Warriors have made a regular practice lately of paying hefty luxury tax bills, as a result of their prior, Stephen Curry–led dynasty.

The defending champion Celtics, meanwhile, just signed [[link removed]] a league-record individual player contract for the second straight year, this time with forward Jayson Tatum, even as the team is up for sale [[link removed]]. Boston, too, is slated to be a second-apron team this coming season.

Different Circumstances

Unlike those successful franchises that have rings to show for their high-spending ways, the Suns remain in an uphill climb competitively. The team did reach the 2021 NBA Finals, but since then has lost twice in the conference semifinals and this past season was swept by the Timberwolves in the first round.

Team owner Mat Ishbia, however, has shown a particularly aggressive [[link removed]] mindset, and his total player costs for the 2025–26 season are currently projected to rise even further and approach $500 million. Despite competing in a loaded Western Conference against talented teams such as the Mavericks, Nuggets, Thunder, and Timberwolves, the Suns are going all in, led by their trio of Kevin Durant, Bradley Beal, and Devin Booker, who will combine to earn nearly $151 million this year. The figure for just those three players will rise to nearly $162 million for the ’25–26 season.

Elsewhere in the league, however, the second apron of the salary cap has constricted [[link removed]] many teams’ offseason activity and, in many respects, is serving its intended purpose of controlling spending.

The Pirates Are Facing Political Pressure to Play Better [[link removed]]

Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

The hype [[link removed]], both in Pittsburgh and nationally, continues to build rapidly around Pirates rookie phenom Paul Skenes (above). But as the MLB club approaches the start of lease renewal negotiations for the publicly owned PNC Park, some Pennsylvania legislators are still unhappy.

As the Pirates are still three games under .500 entering Friday’s game at the White Sox and haven’t reached the playoffs since 2015, Republican state representatives Tim Bonner and Jim Gregory are arguing those losing ways are depressing taxpayers’ investment in the ballpark.

The pair requested a report on the team’s fiscal impact from the state’s Independent Fiscal Office, which has been published and estimated [[link removed]] that if the Pirates won just three additional games per year, gross fan spending would increase by $76 million. The IFO found that $31 million of that spending would occur outside of the stadium and support local businesses.

“If the taxpayers are going to put money into the stadium, the Pirates need to also invest in PNC Park, as well as put a worthy product on the field,” Bonner said in a statement. “Taxpayers deserve more than the bare minimum.”

The current PNC Park agreement expires after the 2030 season, and formal renewal talks are expected to begin over the next two years. The IFO developed [[link removed]] a similar study for the Phillies, who also play in a publicly owned facility and have generated much higher results.

Operating in one of MLB’s smallest media markets, the Pirates have long been an easy target for politicians, fans, media, and other constituent groups. The team has just four winning seasons in the last 30 years—three of which came in the Andrew McCutchen–led era of the mid-2010s—and its current $85.2 million payroll [[link removed]] is the 29th in the league, beating only the soon-relocating A’s. That figure is below Pittsburgh’s payrolls in each of the ’15–17 seasons that surpassed $90 million, despite a significant bump in national-level MLB revenues since then.

The club’s average attendance of 21,340 per game, up by nearly 7% from a year ago, is 24th in the league.

Team Response

Not surprisingly, the Pirates have pushed back on the legislators’ comments. Broad, performance-based lease agreements are not common across the industry, due in part to the many variables that contribute to teams’ on-field records, and are not likely to be included in the next PNC Park lease term.

“Focusing solely on major league payroll is limiting because there are countless other investments that clubs make to develop a winning team,” the Pirates said in a letter included in the IFO report.

The Bob Nutting–owned franchise, meanwhile, is seeking to amass a broader base of talent around Skenes, who quickly has captivated the sport. The frenzy hit another level Friday as Skenes was named as the starting pitcher for the National League in the July 16 All-Star Game at Globe Life Field. Skenes is just the fifth rookie pitcher to start an All-Star Game, and he’s the first MLB player to be drafted No. 1 and become an All-Star the following year.

“We have been very clear about our plan to build and sustain a winner at the major league level, and have made significant investments and progress in the execution of that plan,” the team added.

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STATUS REPORT Two Up, One Down, One Push

Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

NBA Cup ⬆ The league has finalized [[link removed]] plans for the second edition of the Emirates-sponsored [[link removed]] in-season tournament. The event will begin Nov. 12 and conclude Dec. 17, with the semifinals and title game again held at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Tournament groupings will be unveiled Friday night on ESPN.

New York Liberty ⬆ The WNBA’s season-long business boom continued Thursday as the Liberty drew 17,758 for its home game against the Chicago Sky, marking the team’s largest crowd at Barclays Center.

Harrison Butker ⬇ The embattled Chiefs kicker was eviscerated at Thursday’s ESPY Awards in Los Angeles. Following his controversial remarks [[link removed]] in May about the role of women in the workplace, Venus Williams said [[link removed]] at the ceremony, “So, go ahead and enjoy women’s sports like you would any other sports, because they are sports.” Her sister, Serena, followed with, “Except you, Harrison Butker. We don’t need you.” Actress Quinta Brunson then added, “At all. Like, ever.”

NFL ⬆⬇ The league argued in a legal filing that putting up a $14.1 million bond against its potential full liability in the antitrust case [[link removed]] regarding the out-of-market game package would be “significantly prejudicial” given the “unwarranted size of the verdict.” The argument joins commissioner Roger Goodell’s recent comments [[link removed]] that “we feel very strongly about our position [in the case], our policies, particularly in media.”

WEEKEND PRIZE POOL Taking a Swing

Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports

Front Office Sports tees up every weekend sporting slate with a ledger of the purses and prize pools at stake. Here’s what’s up for grabs this weekend:

Wimbledon, All England Lawn Tennis Club, London

When: July 1 to Sunday Purse: $64 million First place (singles): $3.45 million (men and women)

LIV Golf, Andalucía, Spain

When: Friday to Sunday Purse: $25 million First place: $4 million (individual), $3 million (team)

PGA Tour, Genesis Scottish Open

When: Thursday to Sunday Purse: $9 million First place (individual): $1.62 million

LPGA Tour, Amundi Evian Championship, France

When: Thursday to Sunday Purse: $8 million First place (individual): $1.2 million

NASCAR Cup Series, The Great American Getaway 400, Poconos

When: Sunday Purse: $7.77 million First place: Individual payouts are no longer disclosed

American Century Championship, Lake Tahoe

When: Friday to Sunday Purse: $750,000 First place (individual): $150,000

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