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On Monday evening, Washington Wizards guard Spencer Dinwiddie spoke with the media in a press conference for the first time since he was part of a five-team trade where he will be in Washington on a three-year, $62 million contract.
According to Keith Smith of Sportrac and SB Nation’s CelticsBlog, his contract is only partially guaranteed for $10 million in the 2023-24 season.
Spencer Dinwiddie's contract with the Washington Wizards includes some unlikely bonuses and partially guaranteed year:
— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) August 8, 2021
21-22: $17,142,857
22-23: $18,000,000
23-24: $18,857,143
Final season is partially guaranteed at $10,000,000.@spotrac
Furthermore, he has an interesting bonus if the Wizards win a championship. He will get an extra dollar, according to Bobby Marks of ESPN. The contract also becomes fully guaranteed in 2023-24 if he plays at least 50 games this season and next.
Going back to the press conference, Dinwiddie was asked about the $1 championship bonus, which seems peculiar. After all NBA players make a lot of money and winning championship shouldn’t just be for $1, right? His reply? He’d take this bonus in the form of 100 pennies!
Dinwiddie said he'll take his $1 bonus for a title via 100 pennies! pic.twitter.com/81ECDysTJA
— Bullets Forever (@BulletsForever) August 9, 2021
There are also some more highlights that Dinwiddie had during his availability. He described his free agency journey this past summer as a game of “musical chairs.” With the Brooklyn Nets, his previous team, Dinwiddie would have likely been relegated to the bench as a sixth man if he were healthy for the entire season. He also didn’t consider Washington as a destination initially, because Russell Westbrook was here last season and under contract. But once Westbrook wanted to get traded to the Los Angeles Lakers, the Wizards appeared to be a natural fit.
On choosing the Wizards, Dinwiddie described FA as a game of musical chairs and looking for a possible fit. He also thought the fit with Beal from an age standpoint and in terms of style of play worked.
— Bullets Forever (@BulletsForever) August 9, 2021
Dinwiddie is also aware of the role he is taking as the Wizards’ point guard. For nearly 20 years, the starting point guard has been an All-Star and major franchise figure. Gilbert Arenas was one of the league’s most dynamic scorers when he was a Wizard. John Wall was the second No. 1 overall pick the franchise made and was the franchise’s all-time leading assister during his time in D.C. And Westbrook averaged a triple-double in his one season in the nation’s capital. That said, he’s more worried about having his style of play mesh with Bradley Beal and other frontcourt players like Rui Hachimura and Daniel Gafford.
Dinwiddie makes it clear he’s not his predecessors at point guard ( Gil, Wall, and Russ). He respects them but has his own style of play.
— Bullets Forever (@BulletsForever) August 9, 2021
Dinwiddie has done his homework on the roster and is describing how his ability to "wreak havoc" can work with Kuz and Rui attacking closeouts, Gafford as a lob threat, etc..
— Bullets Forever (@BulletsForever) August 9, 2021
All-in-all, we had a good first impression from Dinwiddie’s press conference. He probably won’t be the prolific scorer Arenas was or the floor general that Wall or Westbrook were. That said, the Wizards appear to have a deep roster where players can play multiple roles, Dinwiddie being no exception given his 6’5 frame. Here’s hoping that that he meshes well with Beal, Hachimura and their numerous new players this season.