The 13 Utah Jazz players stand to make a combined $28.5 million this season, an average of $2.2 million each. Pulling huge salaries for playing basketball sounds like a dream job - one that anyone would love. Yet even members of the team say the 1-3 Jazz have only been punching the time clock so far this season.
"It doesn't seem like we have much love for the game," said point guard Howard Eisley. "We don't have much enthusiasm on the floor. We're not competing as hard as we should. We might think we are, but we're really not."Jeff Hornacek concurred. "We think we're playing hard, but when we come into the locker room after a game we should be dead tired. I don't think we're dogging it, but we haven't had the intensity level that we need."
Utah's payroll, which was published recently in the Dallas Morning News along with the salaries of the other 28 NBA teams, ranks only 16th in the league, up from 18th last season. It is dwarfed in comparison to the salaries of teams like the Chicago Bulls ($70.875 million) and the New York Knicks ($53.974 million), but is the second highest in the Midwest Division to the San Antonio Spurs ($42.618 million).
The Jazz returned 11 players from last season's NBA Finals team. Nine received raises with the biggest jumps going to returning free agents. Bryon Russell made $385,000 last year, but will get $2.86 million this season. Hornacek went from $2.4 million to $4.2 million, Eisley from $298,000 to $1.24 million and Shandon Anderson went from the rookie minimum of $220,000 last year to $1.2 million this season.
Two Jazz players are getting paid less than a year ago. Antoine Carr took home $2.3 million a year ago and will make $1.6 million this year. John Stockton made $6 million last season, the first under his three-year $15 million contract. This season he will earn $5 million and he'll get $4 million next season.
That makes Karl Malone the highest paid Jazzman this season, taking home $5.12 million. The reigning league MVP is still just the 29th highest paid player in the league, however.
Certainly the highest paid Jazz member per minute played (including Stockton, who will get plenty of minutes after returning from the injured list) is Chris Morris. Morris will take home $3 million this year.
He's played a combined 25 minutes in the four games and has scored nine total points.
Jazz center Greg Ostertag will make "only" $647,000 this season, the final under his initial three-year rookie deal. Ostertag stands to make some "real money," as Malone has called it, next year when his six-year, $39 million contract extension kicks in.
Salaries are the least of Jazz coach Jerry Sloan's concerns now. Utah is off to its worst start since 1991. The Jazz head on the road this afternoon for back-to-back road games against divisional foes Friday and Saturday nights at Denver and San Antonio, respectively.
"We need to work to try to get back on track," said Sloan. "We need to compete a little bit harder. That's been the biggest disappointment for me - we haven't competed as hard as I think we are capable of competing."
Sloan fully expects the Jazz to be a contender in the Midwest Division - even with Stockton out until late December or early January after having surgery on his left knee.
"I hope I haven't over-judged our talent," he said. "I want to be fair in that. If I have (over-judged the talent), then I'll back off a little bit."
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Jazz salaries
Karl Malone $5,118,578
John Stockton 5,000,000
Jeff Hornacek 4,195,000
Chris Morris 3,000,000
Bryon Russell 2,857,144
Adam Keefe 2,300,000
Antoine Carr 1,600,000
Shandon Anderson 1,200,000
Howard Eisley 1,240,000
Greg Ostertag 647,400
Jacque Vaughn 601,320
Greg Foster 504,000
Troy Hudson 242,000
SOURCE: Dallas Morning News
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NBA team salaries
in millions
1. Chicago Bulls $70.875
2. New York Knicks 53.974
3. Orlando Magic 44.948
4. San Antonio Spurs 42.618
5. Phoenix Suns 42.422
6. Washington Wizards 40.445
7. Indiana Pacers 39.676
8. Seattle SuperSonics 37.592
9. Los Angeles Lakers 36.576
10. Miami Heat 35.273
11. Golden State Warriors 34.964
12. New Jersey Nets 32.599
13. Philadelphia 76ers 31.965
14. Sacremento Kings 31.195
15. Atlanta Hawks 30.702
16. Utah Jazz 28.505
17. Houston Rockets 28.358
18. Portland Trail Blazers 27.786
19. Minnesota Timberwolves 27.545
20. Charlotte Hornets 27.417
21. Dallas Mavericks 27.268
22. Boston Celtics 26.800
23. Cleveland Cavaliers 26.677
24. Denver Nuggets 26.513
25. Vancover Grizzlies 26.053
26. Milwaukee Bucks 25.919
27. Los Angeles Clippers 24.765
28. Toronto Raptors 25.020
29. Detroit Pistons 24.876
SOURCE: Dallas Morning News