Josh Smith has just become the NBA's most spoiled brat in more than a decade.
And he has given the Los Angeles Clippers a public relations headache.
The Detroit Free Press reported on Smith's introductory news conference as a member of the Los Angeles Clippers earlier this week when he channeled his inner Latrell Sprewell in discussing his 2015-16 salary.
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Smith is scheduled to make $1.4 million from the Clippers but also will receive $5.5 million from the Detroit Pistons not to play there, for a total of $6.9 million. He signed a four-year deal with the Pistons in 2013 worth $54 million but the team waived him in December when it was still on the hook to pay him $28 million, according to Hoops Hype.
It's truly a rough time in the Smith household these days.
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"At the end of the day, you know, I do have a family," he said with a straight face. "So it is going to be a little harder on me this year. But I'm going to push through it, you know."
The comment conjures memories of Sprewell, the one-time member of the Minnesota Timberwolves who in 2004 felt a three-year, $30 million deal from the team was "insulting."
"I have a lot of risk here," Sprewell explained, as recalled by the Free Press. "I got a family to feed."
The publication added that Smith, a 10-year NBA veteran as made $91 million during his career. Other reports have said he has made as much as $100 million.
The website Sportress of Blogitude gamely tried to defend Smith's statement, however, commenting on the drastic percentage reduction in pay.
"But it warrants pointing out that the $6.9 million salary falls well short of the $14 million he would have received annually from the Pistons in 2014-15 and 2015-16," Sportress of Blogitude reports. "Smith essentially took a 50 percent pay cut, a precipitous drop in income no matter what tax bracket one finds oneself in, although he did have other options before opting to sign with the Clippers."
(Smith's comment begin around the 14-minute mark)
The site also points out that Smith said it was going to be harder, not impossible.
Nice try. Any NBA player that complains about his salary publicly is never going to get sympathy. Nor should he. Considering a family income of $50,000 per year, Smith is going to earn as much as 140 families - this year.
Does Josh Smith deserve any sympathy for the 50 percent reduction in his salary? Comment below or tell us @SportsWN.
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