Jalen Brunson gazed towards Derek Jeter for inspiration when signing his new contract. The New York Knicks basketball guard took a massive pay cut when he signed his four-year extension on Friday. Also, while Brunson’s $156 million, four-year deal is higher than the current deal, he still left $113 million on the negotiation table, which he could have gotten if he had waited for another year. 

Brunson took the pay cut to help the New York Knicks acquire better players and keep some of his praiseworthy teammates. Although it was a pay cut for Brunson, the Knicks got away with a huge discount. Remembering the 2010 contract negotiations, Derek Jeter did the same thing. However, was the move as per his terms, or was it a forced one?

The reminiscent Derek Jeter deal with the Yankees

Derek Jeter and the Yankees, after ending their previous ten-year, $189 million deal, agreed on a three-year deal worth $17 million annually. The deal had an option to extend the contract to the fourth year, but the extension wasn’t finalized with a 3-year contract. Jeter accepted a massive pay cut from his 2010 salary which was $21 million. 

Derek was willing to have lesser pay despite going strong; the reason was simple. Like Knicks’ Jalen Brunson, he wanted his team to keep players like C.C. Sabathia, Alex Rodriguez, and Mark Teixeira.

Jeter was seeking a four to five-year deal for $23 million to $24 million annually. However, for the betterment of the Yankees and his teammates, he settled for less than he deserved. Yankees general manager Brian Cashman even said that Jeter should look for other options if he was unsatisfied with the offer. While the shortstop controlled his emotions, he eventually admitted that he was angry over the contract. 

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Was Jeter’s contract a forced one?

While Jeter tried to keep the heated talks quiet as both sides were negotiating, the Yankees went a notch ahead. It went public when the Yankees asked the fans about Jeter’s contract, considering his age and decreasing MLB numbers. “I was pretty angry about it, and I let that be known. I was angry about it because I was the one that said I didn’t want to do it. I said I was the one that wasn’t going to do it.” Jeter said after finalizing his three-year, $51 million contract.

Following the November 8, 2010 meeting, talks turned into a heated debate, where both sides expressed their frustration. While Jeter wanted the negotiations to remain private, Brian Cashman gave him a clear answer to explore the market. Also, Jeter wasn’t happy with the public reflection regarding the negotiations, especially, when the public perception about him was different than reality.

From Derek’s perspective regarding talks, he said he would not discuss playing for other teams. In the end, the sides negotiated the entire week including a face-to-face conversation. Eventually, Jeter agreed on the contract with a pay-cut clause to support his teammates.

Although the Yankees legend wanted higher pay, he had to settle for less if he wanted to be with the Yankees. Perhaps the doors were open for him to leave the Bronx. But the veteran chose loyalty over a higher pay that could hamper his team’s overall performance.

As our readers, what do you think? Was Derek’s decision right, or could he have chosen a higher-paying team? Let us know in the comments.