As the 2026 offseason draws to a close we have officially reached the NBA's Oct. 19 deadline for rookie extensions. First-round picks in the 2023 NBA Draft were eligible to sign rookie extensions until today, and ultimately, six of them did so: A total of seven 2023 first-round picks were not eligible for rookie extensions because they either had their fourth-year options declined or were waived earlier. The bulk of the 2023 class, however, was still eligible to negotiate, and we graded all of the deals that ultimately came.
Terms: Five years, $252 million, player option on the final year There is no contract Wembanyama could have signed that would not have represented an enormous organizational victory for the Spurs. The best player in the NBA in his early 20s, or really at any point in his career, always has one of the league's best contracts because the absolute top of the market is restricted by the very concept of a max salary. Nikola Jokić is underpaid even at 35% of the cap.
LeBron James was underpaid for virtually his entire career. There's no amount you can pay someone this good that isn't team-friendly. Yet Wembanyama's deal is especially notable because this isn't necessarily his max.
Wembanyama signed a contract that will start him at 25% of the cap and include the standard 8% annual raises thereafter. For most players, this is indeed a max contract. However, Wembanyama could have included Rose Rule escalators in his deal that would have vaulted that starting salary to 30% of the cap if he were to win MVP or Defensive Player of the Year, or make an All-NBA Team this season.
If he reaches the 65-game requirement, he is a virtual lock to do so. We've seen other players, most notably Tyrese Haliburton, play through injuries in ways that proved detrimental over the longer term for the sake of ensuring eligibility for that Rose Rule bump. The Spurs have been notoriously cautious with Wembanyama's health thus far in his career, and justifiably so given his uncommon physical proportions.
If Wembanyama had wanted the 30% max, the Spurs would have given it to him, and they almost certainly would not have stood in his way if he'd attempted to make medical decisions that steered him towards eligibility. The easiest way to burn a bridge with a player is to cost him money. Now, the Spurs won't have to worry about that.
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