Prior to injuring his hip, Isaiah Thomas is convinced he’d done enough with the Boston Celtics to earn a max-level contract.
Instead, the 29-year-old is now a backup point guard for the Denver Nuggets on a minimum deal.
"I'm not worried about starting or coming off the bench now. I'm worried about playing well and showing the world who I am again."@isaiahthomas sat down with @wojespn to discuss his injury, money and playing high-level basketball again. https://t.co/LZ1Om9FOfP
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) July 23, 2018
IT concedes that he came back too soon from the injury last season—he’s determined to prove that he’s healthy and worth big money again.
Per ESPN:
“People are scared of my hip now,” Thomas says. “I just had to be real with myself. I had to understand that it’s not going to be about the money this summer. I’ve got to show people that I can play — and play at a high level again. And I will.”
He completed a four-year, $27.5 million contract this year, a deal that he signed with the Phoenix Suns in 2014. Between then and now, Thomas became a two-time All-Star, a second-team All-NBA player and, somehow now, left behind.
“I understand it, but I don’t accept it,” Thomas says. “So many other people get injured and get chance after chance again. They get the big break. They get the big money — no matter if they’re injured. There’s a lot of people out there who’ve gotten serious injuries and gotten paid still. In my circumstance, it was bad timing. You’ve never seen a little guy like me get paid big dollars. Never seen it in the NBA.
“People know that I’ve earned and deserved the max contract, and that’s the only reason why I didn’t get paid what I deserved. Because I got injured. I get that. The biggest thing for me was to get to the best opportunity for me this summer and show that I’m healthy.”
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Isaiah Thomas Discussed Possible Return to the Celtics
