Why RJ Barrett Made NBA History With His $120 Million Contract!

Before entering the final year of his rookie contract for the 2022-2023 season, R.J. Barrett has actually received some long-term security from the New York Knicks. But nobody is getting an extension if he is not worth it, right? Well, keep watching till the end of this video to see why R.J. Barrett is going to make NBA history. Let's get started. Entering the league. R.J. Barrett, the son of a former basketball player Rowan Sr. and a nationally-ranked college sprinter and long jumper Keisha Duhani, Barrett elected to play High School at Montverde Academy in Florida. Barrett was considered one of the top players in high school and won every major award, including a national championship. He was actually the first to do this since LeBron James, and that might be the impact of his family. Barrett elected to reclassify in high school so that he could enter college a year early. After just one season at Duke, Barrett was drafted by the New York Knicks in the 2019 NBA draft with the third overall pick. At just 20 years old, Barrett was one of the biggest pieces for the rebuilding New York Knicks. Barrett was drafted third overall by the New York Knicks in the 2019 NBA Draft, and he made his NBA debut on October 23, 2019. He scored 21 points and had five rebounds, along with two assists and two steals. He scored a career-high 27 points on December 17, 2019. Barrett finished the shortened 2019-2020 NBA season with 55 starts in 56 games. He averaged 14.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 2.6 assists per game. What the Knicks valued in him The New York Knicks have selected him with the number three pick in the 2019 NBA draft, and they have quite strong reasons for that. First of all, his signature strengths are his scoring instincts and improvisation. He's most effective in transition, using his change of speed and footwork to create easier angles and finishes. In the half court, he is a slasher and ball screen scorer who is able to get downhill, pull up in space, or toss up a runner. His 4.3 assists per game also reflect secondary playmaking ability, particularly out of pick and rolls. He can make passes into tight windows with finesse. And though Barrett isn't known as a shooter, he still buried 1.9 threes per game, showing confident shot-making skills when set. When it comes to defense, Barrett has the tools to defend at a high level. He can be really tough when his competitiveness kicks in. Hours after the Knicks drafted him, he delivered a straightforward message to the city, saying, New Yorkers, I am here. I love you. Let's try to get back to that championship way. Knicks general manager Scott Perry said that Barrett convinced the team that he was the pick during his workout and visit to the team facility even before the draft. When he came in, he kind of won our building over. When we bring guys in, we allow them to spend time with not only our front office staff, but our coaching staff, medical staff. It became apparent he was going to be a perfect fit from a culture standpoint. He just reaffirmed what we had seen done in the collegiate season, that he has a really good chance to be a great player at the NBA level. Made us really comfortable at number three, Perry said. His career high, 46 points. At the beginning of 2022, although it wasn't enough to help the Knicks get the win against the Miami Heat, R.J. Barrett exploded for a career high, 46 points. Barrett made six three-pointers and grabbed nine rebounds in his return from a four-game absence with a sprained left ankle. And his best game as a pro would have been even better if not for 14-for-22 shooting from the free throw line. He might even have reached the 50-point mark if he had made a few more of his free throws. But even though he didn't get to 50, his 46 points were the fourth most in NBA history by a Canadian. He started the first half on fire, as he had 30 of his 46 points by halftime break, and even the Heat center Bam Adebayo noticed something different in Barrett's game. You could see it in the body language. You could see it in his face. He wants to be that guy. You can see he wants to take his team to another level. He is playing free, Adebayo said. The current season. ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski was the first to report that the Knicks and Barrett are finalizing a four-year rookie extension that could wind up paying the former first-round pick $120 million in total. While it is not a surprise to see the Knicks wanting to keep Barrett, as he is one of the faces of the franchise, alongside all-star Julius Randle and recently signed Jalen Brunson, It is shocking to see New York come to terms on a new contract extension with their young star, given the ongoing trade talks they have held with Utah Jazz surrounding All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell. While it is still possible that R.J. Barrett could be included in a trade for All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell, it is highly unlikely due to his poison pill provision. While the Knicks would be hypothetically sending out his $10.9 million 2022-2023 salary, a team taking on Barrett's contract would need to have upwards of $26 million in space, either by trading away other contracts or having cap space available to take on Barrett and his contract. So all indications, especially after this extension, are that the Knicks will be keeping R.J. Barrett. 22 years old, Barrett now becomes the youngest player in franchise history to receive $100 million or more, and this extension with the former third overall pick in 2019 ends a 23-year drought in which the Knicks have failed to agree to a contract extension with a player coming off of a rookie contract. Every season that he has been in the league, Barrett has shown massive improvements, and the 2021-2022 season was a career year for him. Playing in 70 total games last season, R.J. Barrett ended up averaging 20 points, 5.8 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and shot 40.8% from the floor and 34.2% from three-point range. A multi-dimensional scorer who is very confident in attacking teams with his left hand, Barrett is on the doorstep to becoming an all-star-like player in New York, something the franchise definitely needs and something they are betting on now with this new massive contract extension. R.J. Barrett has come to regain his form beyond the arc after having a dreadful shooting slump to begin the season. Barrett is 5 for his last 10 from downtown after shooting just 4 for 28 from a 3-point distance through the team's first five games. Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau expressed confidence in him after last week's loss to the Milwaukee Bucks, stating that if he has the open shot, he should continue to take it, even if it's not falling. The more he does it, the better he's going to be. A lot of confidence in him, Tom said. There are steps that you take, and people forget he is 21 years old. He's learning. He's got great work capacity. He's done everything we've asked of him, and he continues to get better. I don't see that changing anytime soon. I think he's just built that way, so it's a big plus for us, Tom said in a different interview. Actually, Barrett has put in work in the offseason, becoming a more explosive finisher in the halfcourt and welcoming trips to the free throw line. Barrett has upped his average this season to career-high 5.3 free throw attempts per game, which is more in line with some of the game's best scorers like Bradley Beal, Zach Levine, and Devin Booker. And guess what? Everybody loves him. Did you know that Barrett is one of Twitter's favorite NBA players based on posts containing favorable content? With 21.8% of Barrett-centered tweets determined to be staged in a positive light, the fourth-year Knick ranks 10th in digital approval rating amongst users. Using data collected through the past year, only 9.9% of Barrett tweets were deemed a negative, with all others in a neutral setting. But when it comes to social media, Barrett has his own thoughts. Usually workout videos are a staple of the NBA offseason, but it seems that that's not for everyone. I don't play that game, man. People don't need to know what I'm doing. My thing is, I've never done that my whole life, and I'm going to stay true to that. I work out behind the scenes. Nobody knows. You just see it on the court. That's it. Barrett responded when asked about social media workout videos. And as it turned out, the issue is that too many people watch a 30-second clip of a player in an empty gym and start to form opinions based on what they see. So what do you think about R.J. Barrett? Let us know in the comments down below.