The Veterans' Minimum in the NBA

Why do some NBA players hang around long enough for people to forget that they’re even in the league? I mean why would someone willingly choose to go from this to this in their career. Aside from the obvious love of the game most players have, what it really comes down to, is the fact that it the association, it pays to be a veteran.

A few other players you may not know are still in the league include: Ben Gordon (Bobcats), Keith Bogans (Celtics), Kwame Brown (Sixers), Elton Brand (Hawks), Hedo Turkoglu (Magic), Richard Jefferson (Jazz) and Jermaine O'Neal (Warriors). In the MLB and NFL former relevant players seldom linger around until they're forgotten, with the exception to the rare backup-QB like Brady Quinn (Rams) or Matt Hassleback (Colts).

This is a result of how each league's respective collective bargaining agreement is designed. Anyone familiar with human resources knows that a delayed compensation model rewards employees who have accumulated tenure with the organization. This is how the NFL and NBA pay their minimum wage players. Major League Baseball, on the other hand, no discrepancy exist between veteran players and rookies (at the league minimum). All minimum wage players earn the same salary of $480,000 (as of 2012).

In the National Football League players earn an increasing minimum salary each of their first three years in the league at a rate of $75,000 per year. Once a player reaches his fourth season as a professional, he is not owed another raise in pay until his seventh season and from there he is not owed another bonus until he reaches a decade of tenure in the NFL. The biggest jump in pay from the aforementioned list comes when a player enters his seventh year his minimum salary increases by a whopping $125,000.

Because of this, you seldom see non-contributing players hang around the NFL. Teams simply can not afford to pay them what they're owed. From a player's perspective, even if they believed the team would pay them the increase, it is hard for many of them to see the light at the end of the tunnel since they can't expect a raise for 3 seasons. The lack of pay incentive causes many to retire within one of those three year gaps.

The National Basketball Association, on the other hand, awards an increasing minimum salary for every year a player has been in the league. Aside from the increase between a player's rookie and second season of around 50% of their previous salary, the increase is usually a small fraction of the previous year's contract. A negligible increase from the team's perspective. From a players prospective, the fact that each season brings in a pay raise keeps people like Kwame Brown in the league.