Carter Bryant's glowing Wembanyama comments miss a controversial point

Just a couple of days ago, Victor Wembanyama signed his rookie extension, and praise for his selflessness immediately followed. The reigning Defensive Player of the Year opted out of the option to include escalators in his deal that would turn a max contract into a supermax.

The extra $51 million will help the Spurs keep a strong team around him. The NBA doesn't have a strict hard cap, but the penalties for going into the second apron are no joke. Carter Bryant, available because of his Summer League stint, was asked about Wemby's sacrifice, and he nailed the overall perception of Wembanyama.

He's absolutely right, and that's one of the many reasons people are enamored by the Alien. But it's also exactly the problem with this situation.

Wembanyama shouldn't have to sacrifice millions for the Spurs

Vic took less than he could have, and that's a huge benefit to San Antonio. That includes the fans because, at the end of the day, we all want the team to win. His selfless act is great for continuity, for morale, and it will certainly help with long-term success. But "General Manager" isn't a part of Wemby's job description.

After Wembanyama's deal was announced, one of my family members joked that the Spurs thought they were negotiating with their franchise player when, in reality, Wemby is negotiating on behalf of the entire roster. While it was an obvious joke, there was a disturbing truth to it.

The CBA has not-so-quietly shifted part of roster construction from the front office to the players themselves, and that's not right.

The NBA's new financial system punishes the biggest stars

The Spurs are worth over $4 billion, according to the most recent valuation via Forbes. There's no reason why Wembanyama should be focused on saving them money, especially since he's the main attraction who will continue increasing the franchise's value.

Now, this isn't a referendum on Brian Wright and San Antonio's ownership. I'm sure they would have been happy to give Wemby the supermax. But the reality is that doing so would have made keeping an organically built team together difficult. Teams shouldn't be punished for getting their roster construction right, and superstars should be forced to choose between money and winning.

Wembanyama's deal is set to begin in the 2027-28 season, but the escalators wouldn't have elevated his contract until the 2028-29 campaign, as he would have had to win another DPOY, made All-NBA, or won MVP, so let's look at that year.

Wemby's reduced salary this season will place him as the 25th-highest-paid player in the league, behind guys like Chet Holmgren, Austin Reaves, and Franz Wagner, according to Spotrac. That ranking will only get worse as more guys get paid. And we're talking about a top-five superstar emerging as the face of the league here.

The NBPA has already spoken up about Wemby's deal

The situation has even brought about statements from the Players Association voicing their concerns over the whole thing. Their view is that if someone like Wembanyama takes a pay cut, franchises will use that against other stars.

Contenders get broken up, and franchise players get the short end of the stick financially as a consequence of the collective bargaining agreement. They reportedly plan to ask the NBA to "soften the second apron" sooner rather than later. If not, they'll likely opt out of the CBA when they get their first chance on October 28, 2028.

So, yeah, Bryant is 100% right. He captured why Wembanyama's teammates and the fans love him. He's selfless, he's about winning, and he's willing to sacrifice. Those are admirable qualities. However, the NBA shouldn't require its generational player to leave tens of millions of dollars on the table to give his team a fighting chance to compete.

The Spurs are fortunate that's in Vic's character, but the league can't count on every superstar following suit.

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