By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net
European basketball is on the rise, and EuroLeague salaries prove that beyond any doubt. Still, this list also proves that despite the new financial fair play rules, there are clubs that, due to their financial power or low local taxation, can pay a premium without much hesitation.
The fact that only four clubs are included on the list is evidence of that, but many of those who are missing, like Fenerbahce, Anadolu Efes, Real Madrid, or Milan, are no paupers. Even the famously financially strict Maccabi reportedly paid Yam Madar a $2M annual salary, proving that contract levels have changed rapidly and drastically. So in some cases, missing the top of the list means either the league has a more balanced financial distribution to players, or high taxes create a different market.
Οf course, those numbers are unofficial and a product of reporting. Hopefully this may change in the near future, bringing more transparency in the league.
The salaries are calculated in US dollars for comparison’s sake with NBA salaries and also because the Euro is not used in all EuroLeague countries. To compare directly with NBA contracts, just double the amount mentioned, since NBA deals are published in gross amounts and roughly half of them is their taxation.
1. Vasilje Micic $5,6M (Hapoel Tel Aviv)
Micic remains the highest-paid player in Europe, and there are reports, mainly from Israel, presenting even bigger numbers. What’s certain is that nobody in the EuroLeague gets more money than the Serbian guard, and also what was initially said by Hapoel owner Ofer Yannay and many considered a joke is true. Micic also has a – presumably – small percentage of the club’s ownership, making him probably the only active player in the world with equity in his team.
2. Kendrick Nunn $5,3M (Panathinaikos)
Panathinaikos star remains in the second spot on the list, and considering his status in Europe, this is a well-deserved spot. This number also seems to create a ceiling for the club’s salaries, with Nunn as the benchmark for every other contract.
3. Guershon Yabusele $5M (Panathinaikos)
Yabusele had very specific financial demands to return to Europe; it was well known, and Panathinaikos was ready to pay him, while the other team heavily linked to him, ASVEL, ultimately didn’t have the financial resources to complete most of the big deals they had lined up.
4. Nigel Hayes-Davis $4,5M (Panathinaikos)
This is the first number on the list, which can be considered really debatable. According to Panathinaikos sources, the whole deal that brought Nigel Hayes-Davis to Europe paid him $10M net, even if initially bigger numbers were reported. So Davis’ salary might be even closer to Nunn and Yabusele. However, according to Eurohoops sources, 4,5 is a pretty accurate number, which initially was enough to put Davis in the Top 3 earners in the EuroLeague after his return and now in the Top 4.
5. Sasha Vezenkov $4,2M (Olympiacos)
Last season’s MVP set the standard when he returned from the NBA, bringing a wave of unimaginable salaries in Europe until that point. He is still in the Top5 salaries and, considering that he is a EuroLeague champion, he is totally deserving of the money. More importantly, Vezenkov is in the third season of a five-year contract, and this kind of duration is reserved for very, very few in Europe.
6. Sylvain Francisco $4M (Panathinaikos)
If his deal with ASVEL was valid, then he would be even higher. He ended up getting 3,5M euros at Panathinaikos per season, which translates to $4M, and he is getting a star’s payday after a huge season with Zalgiris. Not a bad deal at all.
7. Elijah Bryant $3,6M (Hapoel Tel Aviv)
This is a number that’s also may be considered low, compared to Israeli reports. However, sources close to the negotiation agree that this number is pretty accurate for the final deal, which was discussed mid-season a few months ago when Bryant stole the show with his performance, and also the team was about to return to Israeli soil for games.
8. Dzanan Musa $3,5M (Dubai BC)
This is a number that was debated publicly by Dubai’s GM Dejan Kamenjasevic; still, it remains the consensus in all the reports about the move of the player from Real Madrid to the Arabian Peninsula. So, according to many sources, it’s accurate, and it’s also in line with other contracts offered or signed with Dubai.
9-12. Evan Fournier $3,2M (Olympiacos)
Last season’s Final Four MVP is ranked in what’s essentially the last spot of the Top10 list. Of course, considering the money he has made in his NBA career, having a contract like this seems to be more a matter of respect from the club towards his status and his wish to play for Olympiacos– a wish that created a fairy-tale-like season a few months ago, and not his real value, as it was paid in the US.
-. Mathias Lessort $3,2M (Panathinaikos)
He was “compensated” for his amazing EuroLeague run with Panathinaikos supporting him while he was injured. Also, that makes him the 5th player on this list who is a member of Panathinaikos, explaining, among other things, why the club paid a financial fair play “tax” of €3M last year. The number is expected to be the same or bigger this season.
-. Nikola Milutinov $3,2M (Olympiacos)
Initially, Nikola Milutinov’s contract was considered to include a net salary that was under $3M per season, but when it was all said and done, his salary is almost identical to the money that Fournier, Lessort, and one former teammate of his are getting.
-. Thomas Walkup $3,2M (Dubai BC)
Last but not least, Thomas Walkup is also among the highest-paid EuroLeague players. This also gives the chance to clarify the situation around his contract. In theory, this is a gross amount, and sources from Dubai insist that Walkup will make between $1.3 and $1.5M after US taxes, but this point of view might be irrelevant. When net salaries are mentioned, it’s because the clubs also cover taxes, usually the local ones.
So, in theory, to calculate the absolute net earnings for all US citizens, US taxes for everyone should be deducted since, when the local taxes are lower, US authorities are taking the difference. So the point is how much net money the club pays, not the player’s taxation in a different country, as it was explained in the past in the case of Mike James and Monaco. Also, it has to be noted that those US taxes are not part of the Financial Fair Play calculations.
The rest and the Larkin question mark
It’s crazy to think that getting $3M per season net is not enough to get you in the Top 10 anymore, but this is the reality of European basketball at this point. And the question is who the players who are marginally out of the Top 10 are, and that also means that they might be among the top earners, since there are no official announcements about numbers. Still, a starter getting a two million salary is not news anymore, and the list of players near the $2,5 mark.
Olympiacos‘ Jean Montero is around the $3M line, and that applies to Mike James in Anadolu Efes, who is now represented by Andrew Walton. Just under this threshold, you can find Real Madrid’s Walter Tavares, who missed the cut this year, having a net salary under $3M, while the list of the players who get around $2,5M is longer than expected. The Spanish high taxation explains why Spanish clubs and Spanish stars are missing from the top spots. Plus, Jonas Valanciunas returned to Lithuania for Zalgiris for a very modest, considering his status, $5,5M two-year net deal.
However, there’s also the peculiar case of Shane Larkin. He was at the top of the list not so long ago, and his last season’s salary in Efes was $3,75M. According to sources close to Fenerbahce, his salary dropped to $3M per season, which still makes him arguably the highest-paid player on the team. However, according to Eurohoops sources, his net salary is more than that, putting him without a doubt in the Top 10 but we have to respect the club’s position.
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