Jarrett Allen contract details, grade: Cavaliers lock-in All-Star with extension
The Cleveland Cavaliers have had a busy offseason in hopes of keeping their main core of players intact for new head coach Kenny Atkins. Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley were each signed to contract extensions. One member of the starting lineup that was due for an extension was Jarrett Allen. Fans were waiting to see if a deal could be reached. Well, they were able to;.
On Wednesday, the Cavaliers and Allen have agreed on a three-year, $91 million contract extension that will keep him under contract for the next five years at $131 million, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Allen had two years and $40 million remaining on the five-year, $100 million contract he signed with the Cavaliers in the summer of 2021.
Jarrett Allen extension and contract details
Per NBA rules, the Cavaliers offered Allen the maximum allowable amount through extension. Teams are capped at offering 140 percent of a player's final year salary of their current deal in the first year of an extension. Subsequent seasons can feature eight percent raises, which means Allen will earn $28 million in the first season of his extension, then $30.24 million in 2027-28, and then $32.66 million in 2028-29.
Here is a breakdown of the contract
Season | 2024-25 | 2025-26 | 2026-27 | 2027-28 | 2028-29 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jarrett Allen Salay | $20,000,000 | $20,000,000 | $28,000,000 | $30,240,00 | $32,659,200 | $130,899,200 |
Salary as % of the Cap | 14.23% | 12.93% | 16.46% | 16.16% | 15.87% | 15.25% |
Salary Cap | $140,588,00 | $154,646,800 | $170,111,480 | $187,122,628 | $205,834,891 | $858,303,799 |
Jarrett Allen's extension is one of the best deals in the league
With the salary cap set to rise by 10 percent each season over the life of Allen’s deal, he’ll quickly be on one of the most team-friendly deals in the league. Since joining the Cavaliers in January 2021, Allen has blossomed into an All-Star caliber center. Over the past three seasons, he and Mobley have been the backbone of one of the league’s best defenses, and with Mobley missing significant time this past season due to knee and ankle injuries, he set career highs in points (16.5) and assists (2.7) per game, while finishing tenth in Defensive Player of the Year voting.
To put this contract in perspective, Isaiah Hartenstein’s three-year deal with the Oklahoma City Thunder will see him earn 21.34 percent of the salary cap in 2024-25, 18.43 percent in 2025-26, and has a team option for 16.75 percent of the salary cap in 2026-27. Hartenstein is a good player, but Allen is significantly better and more established, and he’ll count far less against the Cavaliers’ cap sheet over the next three seasons.
Allen is a walking double-double and one of the better defensive players in the association. He is currently a top-ten center but will be paid like a solid starter for the next five seasons through his age-30 season. While there are still questions over whether he and Evan Mobley are a long-term fit on offense, the pair are a dynamite defensive duo. Even if the Cavaliers decide to move off of Allen, his trade value around the league should be sky-high.
The Cavaliers have now handed out three massive extensions this summer to keep their core intact. Between Mobley, Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland, and Allen, the Cavaliers have their core four locked up through 2026-27. While Garland, Mobley, and Mitchell all landed true max extensions, Allen’s deal is a relative pittance. This is one of the best deals of the offseason, and the Cavaliers earn an easy A for their work.
Jarrett Allen contract grade: A
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