Spencer Dinwiddie Will Make Just $1 If the Wizards Win the NBA Championship
Typically, winning an NBA championship does wonders for profitability. However, Washington Wizards swingman Spencer Dinwiddie will hardly reap the benefits even if his team hoists the Larry O’Brien trophy thanks to contract incentives.
Dinwiddie is preparing for an entirely new chapter in D.C. The 28-year-old is coming off a partially torn ACL but will nonetheless attempt to help Bradley Beal steer the franchise in the right direction. He just won’t exactly be paid handsomely in the event the Wizards shock the world.
The Wizards acquired Spencer Dinwiddie via sign-and-trade
The Washington Wizards had to jump through quite a few hoops to land Dinwiddie in a sign-and-trade.
Washington reportedly came closer to a contractual agreement with Dinwiddie at the start of last week, though the Wizards needed a few more days to expand the deal. In fact, multiple moves were folded into the Dinwiddie move and made it a five-team trade.
The Russell Westbrook trade became a part of the deal. Washington also sent Chandler Hutchinson and a 2022 second-round pick to the San Antonio Spurs, while the Brooklyn Nets received a future second-round choice and a pick swap. When the dust settled, Dinwiddie inked a three-year deal worth north of $60 million to join the Wizards.
However, while the annual number of around $20 million appears to be a decent representation of the market, it’s the nuts and bolts of Dinwiddie’s contract that make the deal more interesting.
Dinwiddie will make all of $1 if the Wizards win an NBA championship
No, that’s not a typo.
Bobby Marks of ESPN laid out some of the incentives the Wizards included in Dinwiddie’s contract. One of those incentives is a humorous $1 bonus should Dinwiddie help lead Washington to an NBA championship.
Now, on its surface, that type of incentive seems utterly absurd. Pointless even. But the other bonus more than make up for the financial component that incentives usually necessitate.
Dinwiddie will make an additional $1.5 million if he plays in at least 50 games, per Marks. That is a fairly massive sum for a games played incentive, even for a guy who is coming off a major injury. Perhaps it explains in part why the championship incentive is so low. Regardless, it’s a pretty humorous structure, one that got a chuckle out of Marks.
The Wizards are unlikely to make much of a championship push. Still, Dinwiddie could play a vital role in the future of one Bradley Beal, who is integral to the team’s competitive desires.
Dinwiddie’s dynamic with Bradley Beal looms large
One of the most pressing questions for Wizards fans is likely to be: how will Dinwiddie mesh with Bradley Beal?
The Los Angeles native had been a valuable combo guard for the Nets before sustaining the ACL injury last season. Dinwiddie averaged 20.6 points, 6.8 assists, and 3.5 rebounds during the 2019-20 season, becoming the top playmaker and shot creator with Kyrie Irving on the shelf for much of the campaign. His ability to score off the bounce and make plays for his teammates in the painted area will be important for the Wizards.
Yet, what Dinwiddie offers on the floor practically feels secondary to how he clicks with Beal. Washington’s star 2-guard has a player option for the 2022-23 season, making the upcoming campaign of immense importance for the Wizards to show Beal they are primed to compete in the near future.
Can Spencer Dinwiddie be a winning player who complements Beal’s skill set? The answer to that question might soon define the organization’s trajectory.
Stats courtesy of Basketball Reference.
