NBA’s Designated Veteran ‘Super-Max’ Rule Sets Stage for 2025-26 Contract Watch
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The NBA’s Designated Veteran provision, commonly referred to as the “super-max,” lets select players lock in a starting salary worth 35% of the league’s salary cap before they complete 10 seasons of service. The exception applies to players with seven to nine years in the league who satisfy specific on-court benchmarks.
To qualify, a player must meet at least one of the following conditions:
- Earn All-NBA honors or win Defensive Player of the Year in the most recent season, or in two of the previous three seasons;
- Claim the league’s Most Valuable Player award in any of the past three seasons.
Since its 2017 debut, the mechanism has produced 14 Designated Veteran contracts across nine off-seasons. Reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander became the latest to join that group this summer, signing a four-year extension projected to exceed $70 million per season.
Gilgeous-Alexander is the lone recipient of a Designated Veteran deal in the current off-season. With the 2025-26 campaign on the horizon, attention now shifts to the next wave of potential super-max candidates who could satisfy the criteria and become eligible for similar megadeals in 2026.
Source: Hoops Rumors
