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The Philadelphia 76ers have offered Australia's Ben Simmons an historic new $US168 million ($240.4 million) NBA contract, according to US media reports.
If, as expected, the 22-year-old accepts the maximum five-year contract extension, it will be the richest deal ever confirmed for an Australian athlete.
The All-Star point guard and the 76ers are negotiating the extension, according to a person with knowledge of the situation who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
Neither the team nor Simmons revealed any details publicly.
ESPN originally reported the $US168m figure and said the 76ers and Simmons's agent Rich Paul were "expected to work through the details toward an eventual agreement".
Simmons will likely pocket more cash with the NBA's new salary cap projections expected to bump it up to $US170 million ($243.2 million).
Simmons will make about $US8.1 million ($11.5 million) this season, the last of his four-year rookie deal. Assuming the sides agree on what will be a full max, Simmons's salary for the following season would jump to about $US29.3 million ($41.9 million) and eventually rise to nearly $US39 million ($55.7 million) in 2024-25.
The 76ers' faith in the Australian comes despite the team suffering consecutive second-round playoff departures in the past two seasons.
It also comes as Simmons is reluctant to shoot the ball from distance, which goes against the modern NBA where three-point shooting from point guards through to centres has become crucial.
Simmons still had a year to go on his rookie contract, but the 76ers wanted the extension to lock in the athletic point-forward and triple-double machine.
- AFL players can collectively earn up to $224.1m each year under the salary cap
- NRL players can collectively earn up to $153.6m each year under the salary cap
- Australian cricketers signed a $500m deal over five years in 2017
- Scott Morrison earns $549,250 per year as Australian Prime Minister
The 76ers have had mixed success since free agency opened on Sunday.
The team was unable to retain All-Star swingman Jimmy Butler, who is joining the Miami Heat, and sharpshooter JJ Redick, who moved to the New Orleans Pelicans.
The team did retain forward Tobias Harris and in a potentially significant move signed Al Horford, the All-Star big man who had been a Philadelphia nemesis while playing for the Boston Celtics.
The 76ers are one of the favourites to not only win the Eastern Conference next season but take the championship after the Golden State Warriors were weakened by the departure of Kevin Durant to the Brooklyn Nets.
The Western Conference champions also traded away veteran Andre Iguodala, while guard Klay Thompson was expected to miss much of the regular season with a serious knee injury.
AAP/AP/ABC
Topics: basketball, sport, united-states, australia
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