SALT LAKE CITY — His timing couldn’t have been better in late October, 12 years ago. Sweet-tempered Jazz forward Andrei Kirilenko had signed a six-year, $86 million maximum contract.
It seemed a sensible move, but equally important, it needed to be done. Kirilenko had made the All-Star team eight months earlier. With Carlos Boozer having arrived from Cleveland that summer, the Jazz hoped to quickly rebuild after the departures of Karl Malone and John Stockton.
So the team made Kirilenko just the third NBA player that offseason to get a max deal. The previous season he ranked third in blocks per game and fourth in steals. His plus-minus rating was fourth best in the league.
The fiscally conservative Jazz boldly signed the extension, skyrocketing his salary by 1,000 percent over the next few years. Yet Kirilenko never made another All-Star team.
While his freakish box score numbers continued, he quickly became a different player. Boozer was the big scorer, and a year after the contract deal, Deron Williams arrived, further limiting Kirilenko’s opportunities to shine. Later came the era of Paul Millsap and Al Jefferson, rendering Kirilenko an expensive bauble.
At the end, when he left to play in Russia, A.K.’s salary — almost $18 millon by then — was blamed for the team’s inability to sign new talent. He offered to pay the Jazz back if they felt he hadn’t given full effort. It never happened, but his Utah career was over.
Monday the Jazz announced the signing of Rudy Gobert to a four-year, $102 million extension. It had a familiar ring. The deal is only slightly below maximum contract money. He brings imposing rim protection and shot-blocking ability, a rarity in today’s NBA. The contract makes him the Jazz’s highest-paid player.
And once again, the Jazz had little realistic choice but to pay up.
Much like Kirilenko long ago, Gobert’s skill set isn’t easy to duplicate. Equally important is timing. The league’s salary cap just rose by 34 percent, to $94 million. Gobert could have become a restricted free agent next summer, but he liked the security and familiarity of staying in Utah.
Similar to the Kirilenko situation in 2004, the Jazz could ill afford to risk allowing a young, important player to go elsewhere.
In the traditional sense, Gobert shouldn’t be pulling down such exorbitant fees. He has never made an All-Star team. But then you consider his pterodactyl-like wingspan. He fits the description of Liam Neeson in “Taken,” wherein the actor tells a kidnapper he has “skills that make me a nightmare for people like you.”
The extension doesn’t come without risk. Gobert isn't a smooth big-man scorer like Blake Griffin or even Marc Gasol. He can’t go outside and shoot 3s. But the Jazz aren’t worried; they have their share of shooters. Gobert’s jersey should say “NO THRU TRAFFIC.”
If he prevents 10 points a night, and scores 10, it’s like a 20-point game.
Jazz management says it is thrilled to lock down the deal; he’s worth the money. Twenty-five million dollars a year may seem crazy, but pending free agency plus a rising salary cap equals inflated salaries.
The Jazz merely paid the going rate.
Utah might have waited until summer and matched other offers. But the Jazz tested that with Wes Matthews, only to lose him to a front-loaded “toxic” offer by the Blazers in 2010.
Gobert’s minutes, points, rebounds and blocks this year are at career highs. His attitude is at an all-time high, too. With him down low, teammates can gamble defensively, same as when Mark Eaton played. Eaton’s looming presence allowed John Stockton to become the NBA’s all-time steals leader.
Never underestimate the power of backup.
The Jazz expect to improve Gobert’s strength and decision-making, but the potential is there for a long and productive career. Clearly the Jazz are studying up on their French. One popular phrase says, “L’homme n’est point fait pour mediter, mais pour agir.”
“Man was not made to mediate; he was made to act.”
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