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As Big Tech showers employees with perks to win the talent war, Nvidia built a nearly $5 trillion company by making people pay for their own lunch

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1

As Big Tech showers employees with perks to win the talent war, Nvidia built a nearly $5 trillion company by making people pay for their own lunch

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MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year

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Current price of oil as of July 1, 2026
NBA

Mediocre Player Scores $64 Million Contract Because the NBA Has Too Much Money

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Alicia Adamczyk
Alicia Adamczyk
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Money
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Alicia Adamczyk
Alicia Adamczyk
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Money
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July 5, 2016, 12:49 PM ET
2016 NBA Finals - Game Seven
OAKLAND, CA - JUNE 19: Draymond Green #23 of the Golden State Warriors goes to the basket against the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game Seven of the 2016 NBA Finals on June 19, 2016 at Oracle Arena in Oakland, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2016 NBAE (Photo by Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images)Nathaniel S. Butler — NBAE/Getty Images
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This piece originally appeared on Money.com.

Apparently all it takes to earn an eight-digit salary in the NBA are some very average stats and serendipitous timing.

Former Cleveland Cavalier Timofey Mozgov, who averaged just five minutes per game during the playoffs, according to Business Insider, signed with the Los Angeles Lakers for $64 million, or an average of $16 million per year, Yahoo reported. Meanwhile, Stephen Curry is set to make just over $12 million next year before he becomes a free agent in 2017. Ouch.

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As SB Nation wrote, teams are signing mediocre players at astronomical salaries because the NBA’s team salary cap rose so dramatically this year, from $70 million in 2015 to at least $94 million, the biggest leap the league has ever seen. Meanwhile, the supply of free agents leaves much to be desired.

“The $24-million increase is so sharp that the numbers normally associated with certain types of players can go out the window,” the site writes. That means players who signed lucrative contracts just last year would have been significantly better off, financially, had they been signed this year instead.

“To put it in very simple terms: there’s too much demand and not enough supply in this market,” writes SB Nation. Teams just have a ton of money floating around, thanks to the 9-year, $24 billion television deal the NBA signed in 2014. What’s more? Next year they’ll have even more: The team salary cap is projected to jump to anywhere from $107 to $110 million.

About the Authors
Alicia Adamczyk
By Alicia AdamczykSenior Writer
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Alicia Adamczyk is a former New York City-based senior writer at Fortune, covering personal finance, investing, and retirement.

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