As we near the NBA trade deadline, we have already seen the impact agents can wield as it is widely believed that the underwhelming return in the DeMarcus Cousins trade was driven by his agents telling teams Cousins would not re-sign with any team that traded for him.
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The 10 super-agents in the NBA who represent more than $1.5 billion in player salaries
As salaries in the NBA continue to skyrocket and player movement has become more difficult, agents are more powerful than ever.
Rich Paul (center) with John Wall and LeBron James
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Not surprisingly, most of the NBA's biggest stars are represented by a select few agents. In fact, of the nearly $3 billion in team payrolls, more than $1.5 billion in salaries are represented by the ten most powerful agents, according to data collected by Hoops Hype and Spotrac.
Here is a closer look at those agents and the players they represent.
Jeff Austin
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Agency: Octagon Basketball
Players: 11
All-Stars: 4
Players with max contracts: 1
Total value of 2016-17 salaries:
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Notable recentdeal: Giannis Antetokounmpo signed a four-year, $100 million contract extension with the Milwaukee Bucks in September. The Greek Freak will have salaries that will eventually reach $27.5 million during this contract. However, it is a deal that will almost certainly look like a bargain in a couple of years as some of the NBA's other biggest stars will soon have salaries north of $45 million under the new collective bargaining agreement. Austin's other top clients include Marc Gasol and Luol Deng.
Aaron Mintz
Agency: Creative Artists Agency
Players: 17
All-Stars: 1
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Players with max contracts: 2
Total value of 2016-17 salaries:
Dan Fegan
Agency: Independent Sports & Entertainment
Players: 12
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All-Stars: 1
Players with max contracts: 2
Total value of 2016-17 salaries:
Rob Pelinka
Agency: Landmark Sports Agency
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Players: 12
All-Stars: 1
Players with max contracts: 2
Total value of 2016-17 salaries:
Rich Paul
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Agency: Klutch Sports
Players: 13
All-Stars: 2
Players with max contracts: 2
Total value of 2016-17 salaries:
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Andy Miller
Agency: ASM Sports
Players: 25
All-Stars: 3
Players with max contracts: 0
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Total value of 2016-17 salaries:
Leon Rose
Agency: Creative Artists Agency
Players: 17
All-Stars: 3
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Players with max contracts: 2
Total value of 2016-17 salaries:
Bill Duffy
Agency: BDA Sports Management
Players: 30
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All-Stars: 2
Players with max contracts: 0
Total value of 2016-17 salaries:
Mark Bartelstein
Agency: Priority Sports & Entertainment
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Players: 36
All-Stars: 1
Players with max contracts: 1
Total value of 2016-17 salaries:
Jeff Schwartz
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Agency: Excel Sports Management
Players: 40
All-Stars: 11
Players with max contracts: 7
Total value of 2016-17 salaries:
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Now check out who will be in the next wave of NBA stars.
The top 30 prospects in the 2017 NBA Draft
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