Toronto Raptors have one of the highest paid starting lineups in the world
By Curtis Panke
According to a recent survey by Sporting Intelligence, the Toronto Raptors are among the biggest spenders in the world when it comes to their team’s salary.
Over the past two seasons, the Toronto Raptors have been willing to crack open the check books to keep their big trio of DeMar DeRozan, Kyle Lowry and Serge Ibaka together for the next three years.
As a result, the Raptors are in some elite company as having one of the highest paid starting lineups in all of sports.
According to Sporting Intelligence, who published their eighth annual Global Sports Salaries Survey on Sunday, the Toronto Raptors have the 11th–highest average salary per player in the world, with $7.8 million ($151,027 per week).
Oklahoma City Thunder No1 earners in sport as gender gulf endures https://t.co/cI8k08LKdE pic.twitter.com/vSJXUNQY7M
— Nick Harris (@sportingintel) November 26, 2017
Lowry is the Raptor’s highest paid player this season, with a base salary of $28.7 million. While DeRozan and Ibaka are the second and third highest paid with $27.7 million and $20.1 million salaries respectively.
The next highest paid player on the team is Jonas Valanciunas, who will make $15.5 million this season.
The survey ranks teams across the world based on Sporting Intelligence’s “average first-team pay,” which, according to their website, allows for “the best like-for-like comparison between vastly different sports in leagues and countries around the world.”
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However, the survey does not mean that the Raptors are one of the most valuable teams in the world, with the survey only ranking team salaries.
The Raptors are one of nine NBA teams to crack the top 12 list, while the remaining three spots go to soccer giants Barcelona, Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain.
It’s the second straight year the Toronto Raptors have ranked 11th on Sporting Intelligence’s Global Sports Salaries list.
With the NBA salary cap at an all-time high this year thanks to new lucrative TV deals, it’s not surprising to see so many NBA franchises rank so high.
But it is interesting to see just how much money the Raptors have invested to build a championship contending team in Toronto, especially with the recent rumours that the team is interested in trading for Memphis Grizzlies centre Marc Gasol.
Next: Toronto could be a landing spot for Marc Gasol
What is your take on Sporting Intelligence’s survey? Do you think the Toronto Raptors are getting the most bang for their buck this season? Let us know in the comments.