Celtics Guard Jaylen Brown’s Contract More Than Top 40 NBA Players From 1996

This summer, Jaylen Brown signed the most expensive contract in NBA history

This offseason, Boston Celtics All-Star Jaylen Brown signed the largest contract in NBA history with a five-year, $304-million extension.

The deal paid out more than the top 40 highest-paid players in 1996, which was roughly $294 million. Chicago Bulls great Michael Jordan led the way with $30, with Orlando Magic forward Horace Grant No. 2 at nearly $15 million.

NBA Hall of Famers among these players included Shaquille O’Neal, Hakeem Olajuwon, Reggie Miller, and Gary Payton. The consensus is that these players are much better than Brown but were paid a fraction of his contract.

On a recent episode of Fox Sports 1’s "First Things First," Nick Wright gave his input on Brown’s contract. 

"Jaylen Brown is going to take up about 30 to 35 percent of your cap over the life of this deal," Wright said. "That's what matters here; it's percentage of cap, not raw dollars," Wright said. "I don't think he's quite good enough for that to work... We all agree Jaylen Brown is a really good player, but we all agree he's not a top ten player."

In the regular season, he averaged 26.6 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 3.5 assists. He then struggled in the playoffs. With Jayson Tatum injured in Game 7 against the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference finals, Brown went 8 of 23 from the field for 19 points with five fouls, and eight turnovers.

Brown is often regarded as the second-best player on the Celtics, behind forward Jayson Tatum. His contract shows a pure increase in salary over the past 25 years.

Anthony Pasciolla is a contributor to Inside The Heat. He can be reached at anthonypasciolla36@gmail.com or follow him on Tik Tok @anthonysports_