Sports
NBA Rumors: Brandon Ingram to Wait Until 2024 Offseason for Pelicans Contract Talks – Bleacher Report
New Orleans Pelicans star Brandon Ingram is entering the second-to-last year of his contract, but he reportedly isn’t in a rush to secure a new deal.
According to Christian Clark of NOLA.com, “multiple sources” said Ingram “will wait until next summer before engaging in extension talks with the franchise that acquired him in the Anthony Davis trade four years ago.”
Clark also noted that “there is no anxiety” within the Pelicans organization about waiting until next summer to engage in contract discussions with Ingram.
“That is because both sides understand that Ingram can significantly increase his future earning potential with a stellar 2023-24 season,” Clark explained. “If Ingram makes an All-NBA team in the upcoming season, he will become ‘Supermax’-eligible. That means he could sign a five-year extension, the average annual value of which would start at 35 percent of the salary cap.”
Ingram is set to make $33,8 million this season, per Spotrac. While he remains eligible to sign an extension until the start of the 2023-23 season in October, he would only be able to extend his deal for three years for a combined total of $147 million, per Clark. If he were to sign a full five-year supermax extension, it “would be worth close to twice that amount in guaranteed money.”
Ingram was limited to 45 games last season largely due to a toe injury, but he continued his steady improvement when he was healthy. The 26-year-old averaged career highs of 24.7 points and 5.8 assists while shooting 39.0 percent from three-point range.
If Ingram wants to be eligible for a supermax extension next summer, he will have to stay healthy this year. The NBA’s collective bargaining agreement requires that players appear in at least 65 games to be eligible for All-NBA honors. He hasn’t played that many games since his rookie year in 2016-17.
