Being Sydney my default position would be this is BS.

But then again I don't know their salaries and there are no recognised top tier talents in there so its possible.

When Casper Ware signed with the Kings in 2019 United's CEO said Ware rejected the largest contract his team had offered a player to sign with the Kings. There was speculation a large part of the reason Ware left United for the Kings is because the CEO told him he was the highest paid player on the team when in fact it was DJ Kennedy, said to be on $750K that season.

So if United offered Casper more than that and he rejected it to sign with the Kings instead it would be safe to assume he was on more than $750K a year in his 2 year deal at the Kings. Last season though players were asked to take 50% paycuts due to Covid to ensure the season went ahead after initially opting out of it Casper then opted back in and although he may have 'only' been paid say $400K last season I believe players salaries still counted for the original amount against the cap.

So Casper leaving has probably freed up around $800K in the cap.

Wasn't aware of the Indigenous Player rule - was this brought in for Cairns with Jawai initially? Good point though. One NS, one Indigenous Player, perhaps Cooks as a Marquee player. That means Martin/Hunter/Adams drawing typical import salaries (probably in that order, from high to low), Hunter paid starters money, DJ still on his rookie deal, Bruce/Glover/Vodanovich in that order from starter/rotation/fringe salaries, Wani minimum, and who knows with Matur Maker - presumably not a huge deal, given he will be competing for minutes with Makur. Seems realistic to me, taking advantage of every special salary cap exception minus the Asian player one.

Newley also although not on his original big money 3 year deal he signed with the Kings when he left Spain signed another 2 year deal after that which was probably still for good money just not the $300K a year his and Lisch's initial 3 year deals were supposedly for. Kickert too was probably still on half decent money last season.

Don't forget Xavier Cooks when he first signed with the Kings to a 2 year deal it was said he took a discount on the first year and to make up for it the second year was heavily backloaded, that second year was last season too. He's just re-signed to a new one year deal.

So with Casper & Xavier's big money deals along with Newley & Kickert's deals expiring all coming off of the books I could see how they might be under the cap.

Another thing too was Lisch retired with one year still remaining on his contract and the Kings kept him on as an assistant coach last season so who knows maybe the last year of Lisch's contract still counted against their cap last season too.

Newley also although not on his original big money 3 year deal he signed with the Kings when he left Spain signed another 2 year deal after that which was probably still for good money just not the $300K a year his and Lisch's initial 3 year deals were supposedly for. Kickert too was probably still on half decent money last season.

Theres always a first time if you believe them.What about all the previous years.Have they paid there luxury tax.

I disagree I don't think it's anyone's business whatsoever what the players are getting paid. Maybe publish total salary cap spends but not individual player salaries.

There was talk the league was going to release the salaries within each team without the names against each figure, this was during the raft of reforms accompanying soft cap / luxury tax.

It was never done.

But it never got to the detail of whether the raw data would be published or the taxable amounts published.

Overall I find it hilarious that the Kings who have been at the Avant Garde of over-spending, including :

- Bringing in Randle.
- Outbidding United for Ware.
- Having 4 imports 2 season ago.
- Selling their own proprietorship to Bogut.

And now extolling the virtues of prudent financial management.

And all those years of reckless spending they just decided to forfeit the Grand Finals, then bitch about it.

Well done Smith.

Don't forget giving an untried coach in Andrew Gaze a 3 year contract for $400K a year.

@ Zodiac: If DJ Kennedy really was on $750k that year, he outright robbed MU. I went to 4-5 games that year and wasn't impressed at all. Skill wise he was an average import at best. Struggled to shoot outside the paint and wasn’t nearly the athlete he was advertised to be. On top of that from memory he was injured a fair bit too. $750k was highway robbery Know he’s had critics but at least Casper was on the floor most of the time

ROFL
What a load of wank.

I would put this challenge to them:
Divulge your Salary Tax obligations for the last 5 seasons!

They have outspent everyone for years, trying to buy a championship, and have failed.
Now they have put the brakes on.

And keep in mind that since the soft cap is based on the average spend, it has increased dramatically since it was introduced.

There's also the simple fact that Sydney is a fucking disaster zone, so their chances of ticket revenue look extremely risky, for the 2nd season in succession. So naturally they are going to curtail their spend.
Let's see how long this commitment to transparency lasts, once things are back to normal in a year or two.

If DJ Kennedy really was on $750k that year, he outright robbed MU.

So naturally they are going to curtail their spend.
Let's see how long this commitment to transparency lasts, once things are back to normal in a year or two.

Weren't these multi year contracts discounted last year when already contracted players had their salaries reduced for COVID reasons? Or am I remembering that wrong?

" Last season was a financial disaster"

Isn't that a weird thing to publicly state even in covid times?

That sounds troubling

Ha! So Paul Smith has finally decided to stop recklessly spending and wants a pat on the back for it? It's a no from me.