Thunder's latest Cason Wallace rumor further proves Jalen Brunson's Knicks value

Jalen Brunson’s pay cut has been well documented. It’s one of the most important pay cuts in NBA history. And the latest Cason Wallace extension rumor just further cements how insane Brunson’s money is. According to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, Wallace could get similar money to that of Christian Braun, Jalen Suggs, and Dyson Daniels. Of those guys, Suggs will make the most next year at $32.4 million, which is just around $5 million less than Brunson.

If Wallace hits that number, he will be making similar money to Brunson to be a fourth option on a championship-caliber team. Brunson was just the best player on the New York Knicks’ first championship team in 53 years. That type of perspective just shows how insane Brunson’s pay cut truly was.

Without it, the Knicks may not have ever been able to win a title with him at the helm. His sacrifice gets more ridiculous to think about every time a new contract is handed out.

Cason Wallace could make almost as much as Jalen Brunson

Wallace is a good player. And in all honesty, he’s worth the type of money that’s being reported. That’s just what high-level role players are going for in today’s NBA.

Just last year, Wallace was named to an All-Defensive team, and in Game 7 of the Western Conference finals, he enjoyed a ton of success, even on the offensive end of the floor.

Top-end NBA role players are worth the money. The Knicks know that as much as anyone, as they have paid their role players a ton of money to stick around in New York.

The Knicks were able to give Karl-Anthony Towns, OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges, and even Josh Hart the money they deserved because Brunson took a massive pay cut.

Now, Brunson – despite being the best player on the Knicks – is just the third-highest-paid player on the team. Meanwhile, Wallace is could potentially make marginally less than him as the fourth option (at best) in OKC.

Again, this isn’t to say that Wallace isn’t deserving of that type of contract. He absolutely is, especially considering how much he could improve in the coming years.

But it’s still an insane reflection of just how big Brunson’s pay cut really was. He’s making high-level role player money as one of the best players in the entire league.

His pay cut paved the way for the Knicks to win an NBA Championship, and without it, who knows where they would be right now.

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This article was originally published on dailyknicks.com as Thunder's latest Cason Wallace rumor further proves Jalen Brunson's Knicks value.