Recently, Oklahoma City Thunder big man Chet Holmgren signed a five-year rookie maximum extension that could reach up to $250 million. Before incentives, Chet’s deal is $239.9 million. Conversely, Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards is under contract on a five-year deal that could reach $260 million, but is worth $244 million before incentives. Edwards signed the rookie max back in 2023. After this deal, Chet makes just $1 million less than Edwards per year.
Breaking: Oklahoma City Thunder star and NBA champion Chet Holmgren has agreed to a fully guaranteed five-year maximum rookie contract extension that could reach $250 million, agent Bill Duffy of WME Basketball told ESPN. pic.twitter.com/PsdxZq275C
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 9, 2025
While their contracts are now similar, Ant is a far superior player to Chet. That’s not a knock on Holmgren; he was a vital piece of the Thunder’s championship, but he was the third option on that team and still has plenty of room for growth on offense. Additionally, his injury history doesn’t make this contract look much better.
Edwards, on the other hand, is a top-five level player who has led his team to back-to-back Western Conference Finals appearances. Even the biggest Thunder fans would agree there's no comparing the two players right now or from an upside perspective. After Chet’s extension, Edwards’ current contract looks like a massive steal.
Edwards is a superstar while Chet is a complementary star
Extending Chet to this number isn’t necessarily a bad decision for the Thunder. Retaining a key piece of your title core with the hope of sustaining success is a logical choice for OKC. Furthermore, at 23, Chet can still improve, especially on offense. However, this move highlights the different types of players who receive the rookie max. For reference, the rookie max means that a player receives 25 percent of the team's cap space, a number that can increase to 30 percent with incentives.
Even if Chet continues to improve, he still projects to be more of an elite complementary player than a true superstar. Whereas, Edwards is a superstar capable of being the best player on a title team. When teams sign young superstars to the rookie max extension, it’s viewed as a no-brainer and even a steal when compared to other players who get the same extension. However, when players like Chet, Evan Mobley, and Scottie Barnes sign the same deal, it’s naturally viewed in a different light.
Again, that’s not to say that extending any of these players is a bad decision for their respective teams. Regardless, getting a legit superstar on the same contract as complementary stars is inherently incredible value. Edwards will be the 24th highest-paid player this upcoming season, but the value of his contract couldn’t look better.