The Boston Celtics' decision to re-sign Avery Bradley to a four-year, $32 million deal in 2014 was actually a bit of a controversial one. At the time, Bradley was considered a defensive whiz, but a player whose physical style kept him on the shelf often, and wasn't a great offensive player. Then all of a sudden, he turned it around and became a really quality shooter, while his defense slipped.
This year, Bradley's put it all together. He's a force on the perimeter for one of the best defensive teams in the league in Boston, and he's shooting 37 percent from the arc. He's a major part of Boston's success.
Of course now, locked into another two years after this one at a salary below eight figures per season and with the cap set to swell up like it got stung after being allergic to bees, Bradley is starting to get a little perturbed about this situation, reportedly. From the Boston Globe:
Avery Bradley has changed agents from Mitchell Butler of the Rival Sports Group to Rob Pelinka, who also represents Kobe Bryant. Butler was able to procure the oft-injured Bradley a four-year, $32 million contract extension last summer, considered an above-market deal. Now Bradley is apparently unhappy with his contract, especially after seeing players such as Milwaukee’s Khris Middleton (five years, $70 million), Utah’s Gordon Hayward (four years, $61 million), and Cleveland’s Tristan Thompson (five years, $82 million) cash in with lucrative extensions, making Bradley’s deal appear to be a bargain with the new television money increasing the salary cap this summer.
Source: Gary Washburn: David Blatt never was the right fit for Cavaliers - The Boston Globe.
It's good that Bradley took a proactive approach to trying to resolve his situation. Unfortunately, there's not much he can do. He's locked into that deal for another two years when he can try and "make up" some of the money, but there's nothing to be done at this point unless he and the team can agree to a restructuring. According to the CBA, that can't happen until after his third year.
So theoretically, in the summer of 2017, if he can pressure the Celtics into a new deal, they can renegotiate the last year of his deal into an extension for more years and more money, but only to the extent of money that they have under the cap. When you look at that figure vs. what he could earn in free agency by just waiting out the season, it may not make financial sense.
It's understandable why Bradley's upset, though it should be noted that Hayward and Middleton are still substantially better players in that they can create their own shot, but this wasn't some effort by the Celtics to do him wrong. The cap jumped because of a TV deal the Celtics did not know would exist at the time of Bradley's signing, and you can't forecast out that kind of money jump, even if you wanted to. (And man, would they not want to.)
So it makes sense that Bradley's perturbed but at the same time, this won't affect how hard he plays every night, his professionalism, or his relationship with the team. It will likely impact, however, how intent he is on getting the biggest deal the next time he hits the open market, loyal or not.
