I estimated Andrew Bogut’s value to be $12.0-$12.5 million per season. Apparently, he and the Bucks both think it’s more than that.
The Bucks are making a serious commitment to center Andrew Bogut, who will sign a five-year extension of around $72.5 million, according to agent David Bauman.
Bogut’s deal is one of the largest in franchise history, ranking with the six-year, $91 million deal signed by Michael Redd in the summer of 2005. Point guard Mo Williams signed a six-year, $51 million contract last summer, when he was an unrestricted free agent.
So that’s $14.5 M a year for a guy that averaged 14.3 points, 9.8 rebounds and 1.7 blocks last season. The contract looks better when his performance after the All-Star break (16.3 points, 11.6 rebounds and 1.7 blocks) is taken into account. Bogut is also one of the best passing big men in the game; he has a career average of 2.6 assists per game.
The bottom line is that, at 23, he’s one of the best young big men in the game, but I still think the Bucks overspent a little. Unfortunately, that’s the case for most small-market teams – they have to overspend to keep their stars.
The good news is that Bogut’s personality should mesh with the hard-nosed philosophy of new coach Scott Skiles. With the addition of Richard Jefferson and Joe Alexander, the Bucks will be an interesting team to watch this year.
Update: The base salary of this contract is five-years, $60 million, with incentives (All-Star appearances, etc.) possibly taking the deal up to $72.5 million. The deal looks a lot better when it’s laid out in those terms. I estimated Bogut’s worth to be $12.0 M – $12.5 M, so I think the Bucks did pretty well here.
