Kevin Durant got paid.
But the Houston Rockets didn't give him as much money as he could've gotten.
Durant was eligible for a two-year, $120 million contract extension.
But on Sunday, he signed a two-year deal for $90 million, according to ESPN's Shams Charania.
"Kevin Durant now holds the record for the highest career earnings in NBA history at $598.2 million based on current and future salaries, surpassing LeBron James ($583.9 million)," Charania wrote on X. "He has a total of three years and $144.7 million on his current contract."
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Why did Kevin Durant take less money in Rockets contract?
Durant took less money from the Rockets for team-building purposes.
The $15 million per year less on his deal than the max he was eligible for could be huge for the Rockets' future plans.
That includes the immediate of trying to get Tari Eason signed to a contract extension before Monday's 6 p.m. ET deadline for his rookie class contract extensions.
"Durant was eligible for a max extension of $120M, but understood when he chose the Rockets as a trade destination that he'd be sacrificing money – in this case around $30M less – so that the sides can partner for the long term and give the franchise team-building flexibility," Charania wrote on X.
KD, as noted above, has made more money from his contracts than anyone in NBA history. So he surely will be just fine even with a slightly lower payday.
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