CrashingTheGoalie

by Ron Spence

In my recent posts, I compared the NBA’s average salaries with those of the NHL. I also listed the fifteen highest paid athletes in each league.

To make this relevant, I tried to show that a number of mediocre NBA players are making as much as the NHL’s best.

In addition, I showed the differences between the two leagues in minimum, maximum and rookie salaries. From the latter, it is apparent that a first overall NBA draft pick automatically receives a higher NBA salary, than 90% of veteran NHLers.

In this post, I would like to show the range of salaries for both an NBA and an NHL team. Rather than looking at a number of variables to match up teams from the two leagues, I simply evaluated the leagues’ champions: the Boston Celtics and the Detroit Red Wings.

DISPARITY: Boston's Highest Paid Player makes 34.78 times more than their Lowest Paid Player.

(The NBA Salary Cap for the 2008-09 season is $58.680 million. Boston’s salaries courtesy of HoopsHype.).

DISPARITY: Detroit's Highest Paid Player makes 15.69 times more than their Lowest Paid Player.

Detroit salaries courtesy of SportsCity.com

Thus, there is a significant difference in the disparities between the Highest Paid and Lowest Paid players in the two leagues – based on the Celtics and Red Wings examples. The NBA has a disparity of 34.78, whereas the NHL has a disparity of only 15.69.

And, to finish off this post, I will profile six NBA players who are literally at the bottom of the NBA food chain.

Each reader will know of five or six NHL players – in the same category – to compare them to. Sportsnet.com has all the information, such as I found in the Derek Meech Scouting Report:

Derek Meech's scouting report was available at: http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/players/Derek_Meech/

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Dominic McGuire will be paid $711,517 for the 2008-09 season, and $825,497 for 2009-10.

McGuire averaged ten minutes a game with the Wizards, and averaged 1.3 points and 2 rebounds in 2007-08.

Glen Davis will be paid $711,517 for the 2008-09 season.

Davis averaged 13.7 minutes, and scored 4.5 points a game and had 3 rebounds for the NBA champs.

James Singleton will be paid $797,581 during the 2008-09 season.

Singleton averaged 7.3 minutes per game, and scored 1.6 points, along with 2 rebounds.

Josh McRoberts will be paid $711,517 for the 2008-09 season.

McRoberts averaged 3.8 minutes per game, and scored 1.5 points, along with 1.3 rebounds.

Mario Chalmers will be paid $700,000 for the 2009-09 season, but has a three year deal.

Final Four Most Outstanding Player… Big 12 Championship All- Tournament Team… All-Big 12 Second Team… Big 12 All-Defensive Team (coaches)… Big 12 All-Defense Team (media)… NABC District 12 First Team..

Will Bynum will be paid $711,517 for the 2008-09 season.

In Israel, Bynum averaged 21.5 minutes per game, scored 9.9 points, with 2.7 assists and 1.8 rebounds.

The Preceding NBA Profiles Courtesy of HoopsHype.com.