Since leaving the NBA, Dwight Howard has become one of the biggest athletes playing international basketball.

Howard is a sensation in Taiwan and has brought his skill, size, and status to the country’s budding league.

But his new contract might force him to make quite a bit less than he’s used to.

According to taiwannews.com, Howard’s team wants him to take a 65% pay cut on his next contract.

The team’s CEO said this is all part of the team’s new calculations and incentive package and will hopefully encourage Howard to play more.

Dwight Howard’s team in Taiwan wants him to take a 65% pay cut on his next contract, per https://t.co/qJzuW57HMD

The CEO said that with the new incentive package, he hopes Howard can "play seriously and play hard" pic.twitter.com/Q3ExmhFKiu

— NBACentral (@TheNBACentral) June 9, 2023

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The news agency says that Howard played 30 out of 30 games last season, missing those other ten games due to injury.

The new payment program proposed by the team would provide bonuses for winning and non-bonuses for not playing, “combined with a fixed base salary.”

According to FTV News, Howard’s monthly salary was around $200,000.

Howard is allegedly not very happy with this new plan and has spoken out against it to the media in Taiwan.

All of this has created more speculation that he will try to return to the NBA.

Just days ago, Howard said he’d play in the association again if given the chance.

He has kept his profile high since departing for Taiwan, doing many interviews and giving his insight into the league via multiple media outlets and social media.

Now that he is arguing with his team about his salary, Howard might try even harder to play in America again.

Howard hasn’t been hesitant about sharing his opinions on a number of subjects so you can bet he will continue to publicly talk about this too.

The post Dwight Howard’s Taiwan Team Reportedly Wants Him To Take A Pay Cut appeared first on The Cold Wire.

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The Denver Nuggets are — obviously — Nikola Jokic’s team, and they’ll only go as far as their superstar can take them.

But Jamal Murray is no Robin to his Batman, at least not in the playoffs, as he’s been more of a 1B than a second-scoring option for Mike Malone’s teams.

As a matter of fact, the Canadian combo guard has been so spectacular in the NBA Finals, that he’s already passed Stephen Curry in career averages through their first three games at this stage.

According to StatMuse, Murray has averaged 26.0 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 10.0 assists per game on 51/38/91 shooting splits, while Curry averaged 24.0 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 6.3 dimes a game on 40/32/92 splits.

In their first 3 NBA Finals games:

Murray — Curry —
26.0 PPG 24.0 PPG
6.7 RPG 5.3 RPG
10.0 APG 6.3 APG
51/38/91%. 40/32/92%

And Jamal is a year younger than Steph was. pic.twitter.com/Md0ZrK8MlU

— StatMuse (@statmuse) June 8, 2023

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Moreover, Murray is now a year younger than Curry was in those NBA Finals, so maybe this could be the beginning of a new dynasty.

Of course, Murray isn’t on Steph Curry’s level yet — and chances are he never will be.

He’s very good in the regular season, but he hasn’t posted these kinds of numbers throughout his career; he’s more of a playoff performer than anything else.

Even so, it’s worth noting that the Denver Nuggets have now reached at least the Western Conference Finals twice with Murray and Jokic healthy and on the court, and they couldn’t find that same success when Murray was out with injuries.

Jokic and Murray have definitely made a case for being the best duo in the NBA right now, and the best part is that neither of them have reached their prime yet,

The post Jamal Murray Has Passed Steph Curry In Finals History appeared first on The Cold Wire.

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Not so long ago, the Cincinnati Bengals were far from a Super Bowl contender.

It all changed when they landed that No. 1 pick and got Joe Burrow, who didn’t need a lot of time to prove that he was special.

Burrow missed most of his rookie season after suffering a major knee injury, but he came back the next year to lead the franchise to the ultimate stage in his first full campaign under center.

Moreover, he’s led the league in passer rating since that 2021 season with a grade of 104.2, even better than Patrick Mahomes (101.8) and Aaron Rodgers (101.4).

Highest Passer Rating since 2021
(min. 15 starts)

Joe Burrow 104.2
Patrick Mahomes 101.8
Aaron Rodgers 101.4 pic.twitter.com/kXpmBccb4Z

— NFL on CBS (@NFLonCBS) June 8, 2023

The Bengals have done a great job of putting together a winning roster and fixing their issues every year since Burrow entered the league, but he’s the main reason behind that impressive culture turnaround.

He’s the most efficient and accurate passer in the league right now, and it’s not even close.

His ability to make reads in real-time and pickup defenses, extend plays, and hit his receivers in stride when the play is broken are second to none in today’s game.

Burrow was close to leading the Bengals to back-to-back Super Bowl appearances, and he’s next in line to sign a massive contract extension.

He hasn’t been in the league for that long, but he’s already established himself as a top-5 passer in the game, and he might not be fourth or fifth, and the scariest part is that he’s still years away from reaching his prime and will only keep getting better.

The post Joe Burrow Continues To Dominate The NFL In Elite Category appeared first on The Cold Wire.

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