Josh Smith: 'Harder on me' comment wasn't about money
Josh Smith created something of a controversy last week when he made comments related to how his new one-year deal with the Los Angeles Clippers was going to put a strain on him and his family, saying his contract is going to make it “harder on me this year.”
The fact that Smith is slated to make approximately $6.9 million during the 2014-15 NBA season ($1.5 million in salary along with the $5.4 million per year the Detroit Pistons will be paying him annually through the 2019-20 season after waiving him last year) rubbed many the wrong way. Some suggested that Smith was out of touch, even greedy.
In an essay titled ”Facts Only” published on The Players’ Tribune, Smith says his comments were misconstrued.
Smith writes that he was speaking to how he has had so little stability over the past year.
“Anyone who knows me, or knows how one-year contracts work in the NBA, understood what I was saying,” he wrote. “This is my third team in less than a year. I was talking about how moving affects my family. But the headline about greed was the one everyone ran with.”
He also insists his comments had nothing to do with how much money he’s making next season.
“The whole thing about it being ‘harder on me’ comes down to family. It seems obvious to me, but maybe I could have said it more clearly. If you know the NBA, you know that moving to a new team is a decision that affects an athlete’s whole family. That’s even more true when you’re signing a one-year deal. With a one-year deal, there’s less stability because you know you might be moving again in a year.”
Though Smith explains his side of the story well, maybe sometimes certain things are better left unsaid.
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