“You shouldn’t be punished for drafting well.” — CJ McCollum on the new CBA
July 25, 2025
“You shouldn’t be punished for drafting well.” — CJ McCollum on the new CBA
32 comments
“We’re all trying to find the guy who did this”
my brother in christ YOU negotiated the CBA that punishes teams for drafting well
The call is coming from inside the house.
Well then maybe you shouldn’t have agreed to this awful new CBA then
is he not the one who negotiated this?? the lack of self awareness amongst nba players is concerning
King Von once said “End gun violence.”
Devils advocate not looking for downvotes here but is this another reward for tanking? You don’t draft well without significant losing. Wemby could benefit from this sentiment the most just for not playing and the spurs for losing.
Cj you negotiate this awful cba whille your making 33mil this year your peers who aren’t super stars are forced to make less than ever before you kill the role player salaries in favor of rookies and killed free agency
I do want to say, for the guys who like really think CJ did it, remember he’s just like the head player rep, they had to sign off on it but all of the actual work is handled by lawyers. So really they need better lawyers. Lol
This new CBA can promote FO and fans alike rooting against their guys winning awards lol
I think it’s pretty universally accepted that a teams’ fans are more emotionally invested in star players that started out with their own team than a star that jumps on the boat mid-career.
The supermax/designated rookie extensions started out as mechanisms to incentivize star players staying with their teams, but the second apron has made it fiscally challenging for that to happen when you hit on more than 2 “homegrowns”.
I don’t know what the market correction is that would keep star players on the same team for their entire career (while getting fairly compensated), but this second apron and previous CBA changes came from the league wanting to “correct” other undesirable player/team behaviors (star free agents, big spending teams) with mixed results, so who’s to say the adjustment will have the intended impact?
King Von saying end the violence, Jeffery Epstein saying I hate pedophiles
The problem is there is so much talent now, and even if you just draft decently, you have to pay up or lose them to another team.
The parity of the league partly comes from how talented the young dudes are nowadays so no drafting well shouldn’t be protected from the aprons and caps
They can retain Chet and JDub. They’ll have to offload other players to do it, but they can keep them. What’s the problem?
Bro is about to be cast in both roles of the next dumb and dumber movie.
It’s a union people. All the players voted for this.
I’d implore everybody to actually watch/listen to this episode rather than just rage the bait with this clip. It’s a good cast of characters and really interesting listen. CJ does not have as much power and influence as a lot of users here give him credit for
This guy stinks!!!!
This dude’s head does not fit his body
i don’t get his point? all of the champions in last decades built around the player they drafted (other thank lakers). what’s he trying to say
and wasn’t he the player rep that negotiated the last contract ?
Guys, the owners put the aprons in place to essentially create a hard cap. They didn’t want golden state paying 200 mil + per year in tax to assemble shooter voltron because it meant that they would also have to pay that much to be competitive and the players would make way more money.
Why the fuck would the players ask for (essentially) a hard cap???
CJ fucked up to be sure but let’s stop acting like it’s him and Silver sitting at a table hashing out the CBA
No, we should keep giving teams like the Lakers, with years of mediocre FO decisions, all of our superstars! You’re not thinking of the ratings, CJ!
It’s funny that people keep using this line as an attack because I have yet to see a team actually punished for drafting well by the current CBA. Were the Suns punished for drafting well? Is that why they were in second apron hell? When the Celtics gave huge contracts to Kristaps and Jrue and decided to cut bait earlier than expected due to Tatum’s injury was that punishment for drafting well? When the Nuggets overpaid two often injured players in MPJ and Murray was that a punishment for drafting well?
The CBA is designed to disperse talent and improve parity, that has undeniably happened and having a super team with 3 super max caliber players is going to make team construction difficult but no one has actually been a victim of the CBA in this way. Teams that mortgage their future in pursuit of small championship windows have absolutely been punished, but no team that thoughtfully manages their cap or drafts well has been.
I love r/nba’s conception of CBA negotiation as, like, a dark souls boss fight. McCollum battling it out alone against nba ownership and associated legal reps; solely responsible for all positive and negative outcomes that result.
It’s a UNION. It’s a COLLECTIVE bargaining agreement. And it’s a two way street! Players ask for things, owners ask for things, eventually a compromise that favors the owners is reached, and we have an agreement.
Weirdly, no one treats ownership this way. Where are all the “lmao, Clay Bennett did this to himself 😂” comments when people complain that the Thunder can’t afford to pay their players?
Wish he was in a position to negotiate that type of decision.
I really don’t get the narrative of this is punishing you if you draft well. Teams that draft well are still at a major advantage over those that don’t. But not letting one team have 5 all stars in max contracts makes the league more competitive and makes it less feast or famin.
But if you draft well, then you’re not being punished. You keep getting great players who can fill in the holes you’re going to have after you don’t sign someone to a contract you can’t afford. Chet was great for okc, but is he actually worth a max contract? SGA should be getting a max contract on that team, and everyone else should be getting paid very well, but certainly not a max.
Legitimately it sucks that “teams” don’t exist anymore. How am I supposed to get attached to a team when every 3-5 years 95% of the roster is gone or traded.
Nobody can afford anyone, and prices have gotten too high.
Honestly if I was the NBA I’d cut pay to the top earners, and if they dont like it, Im sure players below them will take the money no problem.
If only he had the power to do something about it….oh wait
32 comments
“We’re all trying to find the guy who did this”
my brother in christ YOU negotiated the CBA that punishes teams for drafting well
The call is coming from inside the house.
Well then maybe you shouldn’t have agreed to this awful new CBA then
is he not the one who negotiated this?? the lack of self awareness amongst nba players is concerning
King Von once said “End gun violence.”
Devils advocate not looking for downvotes here but is this another reward for tanking? You don’t draft well without significant losing. Wemby could benefit from this sentiment the most just for not playing and the spurs for losing.
Cj you negotiate this awful cba whille your making 33mil this year your peers who aren’t super stars are forced to make less than ever before you kill the role player salaries in favor of rookies and killed free agency
I do want to say, for the guys who like really think CJ did it, remember he’s just like the head player rep, they had to sign off on it but all of the actual work is handled by lawyers. So really they need better lawyers. Lol
This new CBA can promote FO and fans alike rooting against their guys winning awards lol
I think it’s pretty universally accepted that a teams’ fans are more emotionally invested in star players that started out with their own team than a star that jumps on the boat mid-career.
The supermax/designated rookie extensions started out as mechanisms to incentivize star players staying with their teams, but the second apron has made it fiscally challenging for that to happen when you hit on more than 2 “homegrowns”.
I don’t know what the market correction is that would keep star players on the same team for their entire career (while getting fairly compensated), but this second apron and previous CBA changes came from the league wanting to “correct” other undesirable player/team behaviors (star free agents, big spending teams) with mixed results, so who’s to say the adjustment will have the intended impact?
King Von saying end the violence, Jeffery Epstein saying I hate pedophiles
The problem is there is so much talent now, and even if you just draft decently, you have to pay up or lose them to another team.
The parity of the league partly comes from how talented the young dudes are nowadays so no drafting well shouldn’t be protected from the aprons and caps
They can retain Chet and JDub. They’ll have to offload other players to do it, but they can keep them. What’s the problem?
Bro is about to be cast in both roles of the next dumb and dumber movie.
It’s a union people. All the players voted for this.
I’d implore everybody to actually watch/listen to this episode rather than just rage the bait with this clip. It’s a good cast of characters and really interesting listen. CJ does not have as much power and influence as a lot of users here give him credit for
This guy stinks!!!!
This dude’s head does not fit his body
i don’t get his point? all of the champions in last decades built around the player they drafted (other thank lakers). what’s he trying to say
and wasn’t he the player rep that negotiated the last contract ?
Guys, the owners put the aprons in place to essentially create a hard cap. They didn’t want golden state paying 200 mil + per year in tax to assemble shooter voltron because it meant that they would also have to pay that much to be competitive and the players would make way more money.
Why the fuck would the players ask for (essentially) a hard cap???
CJ fucked up to be sure but let’s stop acting like it’s him and Silver sitting at a table hashing out the CBA
No, we should keep giving teams like the Lakers, with years of mediocre FO decisions, all of our superstars! You’re not thinking of the ratings, CJ!
It’s funny that people keep using this line as an attack because I have yet to see a team actually punished for drafting well by the current CBA. Were the Suns punished for drafting well? Is that why they were in second apron hell? When the Celtics gave huge contracts to Kristaps and Jrue and decided to cut bait earlier than expected due to Tatum’s injury was that punishment for drafting well? When the Nuggets overpaid two often injured players in MPJ and Murray was that a punishment for drafting well?
The CBA is designed to disperse talent and improve parity, that has undeniably happened and having a super team with 3 super max caliber players is going to make team construction difficult but no one has actually been a victim of the CBA in this way. Teams that mortgage their future in pursuit of small championship windows have absolutely been punished, but no team that thoughtfully manages their cap or drafts well has been.
I love r/nba’s conception of CBA negotiation as, like, a dark souls boss fight. McCollum battling it out alone against nba ownership and associated legal reps; solely responsible for all positive and negative outcomes that result.
It’s a UNION. It’s a COLLECTIVE bargaining agreement. And it’s a two way street! Players ask for things, owners ask for things, eventually a compromise that favors the owners is reached, and we have an agreement.
Weirdly, no one treats ownership this way. Where are all the “lmao, Clay Bennett did this to himself 😂” comments when people complain that the Thunder can’t afford to pay their players?
Wish he was in a position to negotiate that type of decision.
I really don’t get the narrative of this is punishing you if you draft well. Teams that draft well are still at a major advantage over those that don’t. But not letting one team have 5 all stars in max contracts makes the league more competitive and makes it less feast or famin.
But if you draft well, then you’re not being punished. You keep getting great players who can fill in the holes you’re going to have after you don’t sign someone to a contract you can’t afford. Chet was great for okc, but is he actually worth a max contract? SGA should be getting a max contract on that team, and everyone else should be getting paid very well, but certainly not a max.
Legitimately it sucks that “teams” don’t exist anymore. How am I supposed to get attached to a team when every 3-5 years 95% of the roster is gone or traded.
Nobody can afford anyone, and prices have gotten too high.
Honestly if I was the NBA I’d cut pay to the top earners, and if they dont like it, Im sure players below them will take the money no problem.
If only he had the power to do something about it….oh wait
It is all on you Stephon Urkel
All this to stop the warriors