Udonis Haslem is going to be back for Year 20. The Miami Heat veteran staved off retirement yet again after announcing on Sunday that he's going to be returning next season. Haslem considered a handful of important factors before arriving at his decision, but there's no denying that the money aspect also played a key role in all this.
Haslem may not be a constant fixture in the Heat's rotation over the past few years, but he's still getting paid. So much so, that the 42-year-old is actually earning more money on a per-minute basis as compared to other NBA superstars such as Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant (h/t HoopsHype on Twitter):
Udonis Haslem is the highest-paid active player per minute in the last five seasons.
(Good for him). pic.twitter.com/0Dwwef3Qqu
— HoopsHype (@hoopshype) August 21, 2022
The second guy on the list is John Wall, who recently signed with the Los Angeles Clippers. Wall has played in just 40 games in the past three years despite the fact that he's earning upwards of $40 million per season.
As a comparison, Udonis Haslem has pocketed “just” $10.7 million in total over the past five years. However, he's played just 42 games for the Heat during that span, averaging 6.6 minutes per contest. That's undeniably a whole lot of money for such a brief period of time on the basketball court. To put it into perspective, both Curry and Durant aren't even earning half of what Haslem is pocketing on a per-minute basis. Wow.
Be that as it may, the Heat are more than happy to pay Haslem regardless of his lack of playing time. He's an integral part of the squad, and his leadership, influence, and veteran presence are all invaluable factors that he brings to the table. You simply cannot replicate these.
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