Top Ten NBA Teams with the Highest Luxury Tax in History, Warriors' $170 Million in 22nd Ranked Second

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In discussing luxury taxes, we cannot simply look at the numbers alone. For example, last season the Golden State Warriors had the highest luxury tax at $172.8 m i l l i o n, b u t a t t h e s a m e t i m e, t h e l e a g u e^{'} s s a l a r y c a p f o r t h e 2023 - 24 s e a s o n w a s a s h i g h a s$ 172.8million,butatthesametime,theleague′ssalarycapforthe2023−24seasonwasashighas136 million. In contrast, the Portland Trail Blazers paid only $52 million in luxury tax in 2003, but back then the salary cap was only a few tens of millions. Therefore, we will take a look at the ratio of luxury tax to salary cap!

Tenth place: The 2019 Warriors paid $51.5 m i l l i o n i n l u x u r y t a x, a c c o u n t i n g f o r 50.6 T h e W a r r i o r s d i d n o t p a y a n y t a x i n 2017, a n d t h e i r l u x u r y t a x w a s$ 51.5millioninluxurytax,accountingfor50.6TheWarriorsdidnotpayanytaxin2017,andtheirluxurytaxwas32.3 million in 2018. Then it reached $51.5 m i l l i o n i n 2019. T h e m a i n r e a s o n f o r t h i s w a s t h e a c t i v a t i o n o f S t e p h e n C u r r y^{'} s f i v e - y e a r,$ 51.5millionin2019.ThemainreasonforthiswastheactivationofStephenCurry′sfive−year,201 million top salary, as well as teammates Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and Andre Iguodala all earning over $16 million. Ultimately, the Warriors successfully made it to the finals. If not for Kevin Durant's sudden injury, the Warriors' luxury tax would have been absolutely worth it that year.

Ninth place: The 2018 Cavaliers paid $50.7 m i l l i o n i n l u x u r y t a x, a c c o u n t i n g f o r 51 T h a t y e a r, K y r i e I r v i n g^{'} s d e p a r t u r e e a s e d s o m e p r e s s u r e, b u t u n e x p e c t e d l y, t h e C a v a l i e r s l a t e r b r o u g h t i n G e o r g e H i l l w i t h a n a n n u a l s a l a r y o f$ 50.7millioninluxurytax,accountingfor51Thatyear,KyrieIrving′sdepartureeasedsomepressure,butunexpectedly,theCavalierslaterbroughtinGeorgeHillwithanannualsalaryof20 million. It should be noted that the departing Irving earned only $17.64 m i l l i o n . A d d i n g C l a r k s o n^{'} s$ 17.64million.AddingClarkson′s11.56 million, the Cavaliers' luxury tax instantly became the highest in the league at $50.7 million. Additionally, the Cavaliers traded away almost all of their draft picks, which naturally led to LeBron James announcing his departure.

Eighth place: The 2019 Thunder paid $61.6 m i l l i o n i n l u x u r y t a x, a c c o u n t i n g f o r 60.5 T h e T h u n d e r s e e m e d t o e n g a g e i n r e t a l i a t o r y s p e n d i n g, w i t h W e s t b r o o k e a r n i n g$ 61.6millioninluxurytax,accountingfor60.5TheThunderseemedtoengageinretaliatoryspending,withWestbrookearning35.65 million, George $30.56 m i l l i o n, a n d A d a m s$ 30.56million,andAdams24.16 million. In addition, core rotation players Schroder earned $15.5 m i l l i o n, R o b e r s o n a n d G r a n t w e r e a l s o i n t h e t e n s o f m i l l i o n s r a n g e . T h e s e s i x p l a y e r s a l o n e e a r n e d$ 15.5million,RobersonandGrantwerealsointhetensofmillionsrange.Thesesixplayersaloneearned124 million, while the salary cap at the time was only $101 m i l l i o n . U l t i m a t e l y, t h e T h u n d e r p a i d$ 101million.Ultimately,theThunderpaid61.6 million in luxury tax but lost 1:4 to the Trail Blazers in the first round of the playoffs.

Seventh place: The 2016 Cavaliers paid $54 m i l l i o n i n l u x u r y t a x, a c c o u n t i n g f o r 77 A f t e r r e a c h i n g t h e f i n a l s i n 2015, T T T h o m p s o n a n d S h u m p e r t b e c a m e f r e e a g e n t s . I f t h e y w e r e w i t h t h e R o c k e t s, t h e i r m a n a g e m e n t w o u l d d e f i n i t e l y h a v e l e t t h e m g o a n d r e p l a c e d t h e m w i t h o t h e r p l a y e r s, j u s t l i k e t h e y d i d b y l e t t i n g A r i z a g o i n 2018. H o w e v e r, t h e C a v a l i e r s d i d n o t d o s o, o f f e r i n g T h o m p s o n a f i v e - y e a r,$ 54millioninluxurytax,accountingfor77Afterreachingthefinalsin2015,TTThompsonandShumpertbecamefreeagents.IftheywerewiththeRockets,theirmanagementwoulddefinitelyhaveletthemgoandreplacedthemwithotherplayers,justliketheydidbylettingArizagoin2018.However,theCavaliersdidnotdoso,offeringThompsonafive−year,80 million contract and Shumpert a four-year, $40 m i l l i o n d e a l . A d d i n g t o t h a t, I r v i n g^{'} s r o o k i e c o n t r a c t e x p i r e d, c a u s i n g t h e C a v a l i e r s^{'} l u x u r y t a x t o j u m p f r o m$ 40milliondeal.Addingtothat,Irving′srookiecontractexpired,causingtheCavaliers′luxurytaxtojumpfrom7 million in 2015 to $54 million in 2016.

Sixth place: The 2004 Knicks paid $39.9 million in luxury tax, accounting for 91% of the salary cap!

After Ewing left, the Knicks' rebuilding path was a mess. Initially, they had Houston, Larry Johnson, and Spree组合, then Larry Johnson was traded for McDyess, followed by Spree being traded for Van Horn, and later they brought in Marbury and Penny Hardaway. Eventually, the duo became Marbury and Francis, paying luxury tax from 2003 all the way to 2010.

Fifth place: The 2021 Nets paid $102 m i l l i o n i n l u x u r y t a x, a c c o u n t i n g f o r 93 B e s i d e s t h e t h r e e t o p s a l a r i e s o f H a r d e n, D u r a n t, a n d I r v i n g, t h e N e t s^{'} J o e H a r r i s, D i n w i d d i e, a n d J o r d a n w e r e a l s o i n t h e t e n s o f m i l l i o n s r a n g e, w i t h H a r r i s r e a c h i n g$ 102millioninluxurytax,accountingfor93BesidesthethreetopsalariesofHarden,Durant,andIrving,theNets′JoeHarris,Dinwiddie,andJordanwerealsointhetensofmillionsrange,withHarrisreaching16 million. Ultimately, the Nets' luxury tax ranked second in the league behind the Warriors. In the playoffs, Harden suffered a hamstring injury, Irving was stepped on by Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Durant's game-winning shot was ruled a two-pointer due to stepping on the line, resulting in quite bad luck.

Fourth place: The 2003 Trail Blazers paid $52 m i l l i o n i n l u x u r y t a x, a c c o u n t i n g f o r 129 I n 2003, t h e t o t a l l u x u r y t a x i n t h e l e a g u e w a s o n l y$ 52millioninluxurytax,accountingfor129In2003,thetotalluxurytaxintheleaguewasonly40.27 million, yet the Trail Blazers paid $52 m i l l i o n i n l u x u r y t a x a l o n e . F o r c o m p a r i s o n, t h e R o c k e t s^{'} t o t a l s a l a r y a t t h e t i m e w a s$ 52millioninluxurytaxalone.Forcomparison,theRockets′totalsalaryatthetimewas50.18 million, the championship-winning Spurs had $53.18 m i l l i o n, a n d t h e L a k e r s, a p o w e r h o u s e, h a d$ 53.18million,andtheLakers,apowerhouse,had63.15 million. However, the Trail Blazers suddenly spent $105.6 million, with Pippen, Rasheed Wallace, Shawn Kemp, and Stoudemire all on top salaries, and Dale Davis, Derek Anderson, and Sabonis close to the million mark. This luxurious lineup ultimately lost 3:4 to the Mavericks in the first round of the playoffs.

Third place: The 2024 Suns paid $189 m i l l i o n i n l u x u r y t a x, a c c o u n t i n g f o r 134 T h i s i s t h e S u n s o f t h i s s e a s o n . D u r a n t^{'} s$ 189millioninluxurytax,accountingfor134ThisistheSunsofthisseason.Durant′s51.18 million is definitely not going anywhere, Devin Booker's $49.35 m i l l i o n t h e S u n s d o n^{'} t w a n t t o t o u c h, a n d B e a l^{'} s$ 49.35milliontheSunsdon′twanttotouch,andBeal′s50.2 million has a trade veto power that the Suns can't move. The Suns' salary space will be tied up for the next two to three years.

Second place: The 2022 Warriors paid $170 m i l l i o n i n l u x u r y t a x, a c c o u n t i n g f o r 152 T h e W a r r i o r s^{'} l u x u r y t a x h a s r e m a i n e d h i g h i n r e c e n t y e a r s . T h e y p a i d$ 170millioninluxurytax,accountingfor152TheWarriors′luxurytaxhasremainedhighinrecentyears.Theypaid117 million in 2021 but failed to make the playoffs, then $1.703 b i l l i o n i n 2022 t o w i n t h e c h a m p i o n s h i p . A f t e r w i n n i n g t h e t i t l e, t h e W a r r i o r s c o n t i n u e d t o i n v e s t, p a y i n g$ 1.703billionin2022towinthechampionship.Afterwinningthetitle,theWarriorscontinuedtoinvest,paying170 million in luxury tax in 2023 but lost in the second round of the playoffs. In 2024, they paid $172.8 m i l l i o n b u t f i n i s h e d t e n t h i n t h e W e s t a n d m i s s e d t h e p l a y o f f s . T h i s y e a r, t h e W a r r i o r s^{'} l u x u r y t a x h a s b e e n r e d u c e d t o$ 172.8millionbutfinishedtenthintheWestandmissedtheplayoffs.Thisyear,theWarriors′luxurytaxhasbeenreducedto14.61 million, finally putting an end to their days of high consumption.

First place: The 2014 Nets paid $90.6 m i l l i o n i n l u x u r y t a x, a c c o u n t i n g f o r 155 I n a n e r a w h e r e t h e s a l a r y c a p w a s o n l y m o r e t h a n f i f t y m i l l i o n, t h e N e t s p a i d$ 90.6millioninluxurytax,accountingfor155Inanerawherethesalarycapwasonlymorethanfiftymillion,theNetspaid90.6 million in luxury tax. For comparison, the Heat's Big Three paid only $14.4 m i l l i o n i n l u x u r y t a x i n 2014, w h i c h i s s i x t i m e s l e s s t h a n t h e N e t s . D e r o n W i l l i a m s e a r n e d$ 14.4millioninluxurytaxin2014,whichissixtimeslessthantheNets.DeronWilliamsearned18.5 million, Joe Johnson $21.5 m i l l i o n, P i e r c e$ 21.5million,Pierce15.5 million, Garnett $12.44 m i l l i o n, a n d L o p e z$ 12.44million,andLopez14.7 million. From a salary perspective, they were truly a team of five giants. Adding Terry, Kirilenko, Thornton, and others, they stopped in the second round of the playoffs in the first year and then traded away Garnett and Pierce before disbanding in the second year!