Brandin Podziemski's $110M Extension: From $5.7M to $22M a Year

Brandin Podziemski was the 19th pick in the 2023 draft and, until this weekend, a $5.7 million player. On October 10, 2026, he became a $110 million one.

ESPN’s Shams Charania reported that the Golden State Warriors guard agreed to a five-year, fully guaranteed rookie-scale extension, with the terms confirmed by his agent, Bill Duffy of WME Basketball. NBA.com’s write-up adds a mutual option in the final year (2031-32) and a trade kicker. At $110 million over five years, the deal averages $22 million a year.

The Number, Year by Year

Hoops Rumors, crediting Keith Smith for the figures, lays out the salary ladder that starts in 2027-28: $18.9 million, $20.5 million, $22.0 million, $23.5 million, and $25.0 million in the option year. The raises are capped at 8%. The trade kicker, per Jake Fischer of The Stein Line, is the lesser of $1 million and 15% of his unearned base compensation.

This season the new money doesn’t apply yet. Podziemski is under contract for 2026-27 at $5.7 million, a team option, according to NBC Sports Bay Area. The extension takes over the following summer.

What the Deadline Forced

The clock mattered. The San Francisco Standard’s Danny Emerman reported that without an extension by October 19, Podziemski would become a restricted free agent next summer. Hoops Rumors points out that his first extension salary ($18.9 million) is less than $2 million above the $17 million cap hold he would have carried in that scenario, and quotes Bobby Marks saying the Warriors could still have $55–60 million in cap space next summer.

The sides had been apart on the price. ClutchPoints’ Brett Siegel reported that the Warriors preferred roughly $16–18 million a year, while Podziemski’s camp sought $20–24 million. The final $22 million average sits inside his side’s range and well above the Warriors’ reported preference. Siegel had projected four years and $70 million; The San Francisco Standard’s own contract tool, which it calls KRISTAPS, projected four years and $74 million back in April. Both undershot.

The Market Around Him

The Standard’s September column pointed to comparable deals: Christian Braun at five years and $125 million, Ayo Dosunmu at five years and $112 million, Peyton Watson at four years and $88 million as a restricted free agent, and Shaedon Sharpe at four years and $90 million. On that board, $110 million over five years is in the middle. It is also a long way from the $39 million over three years the Warriors gave Moses Moody, the No. 14 pick in 2021, in October 2024, according to NBC Sports Bay Area.

What He Did to Earn It

In 2025-26 Podziemski played all 82 games, with 43 starts, averaging 13.8 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists in 28.5 minutes, per Hoops Rumors, a career high in scoring and an increase in each of his first three seasons, per NBA.com. He shot 45.2% from the field and 37.5% from three over his first three seasons.

The case got stronger when the roster thinned. NBC Sports Bay Area reported that in March, without Stephen Curry and Jimmy Butler, he averaged 17.7 points, 6.3 rebounds and 4.1 assists, and scored 23 points with 10 rebounds in the second play-in game. The Standard also noted that running the offense exposed some limits before he settled back into a secondary role.

In April he said what he wanted, in words reported by both outlets: “I want to be here for the long term.” He added that “it’s always special having the team that drafted you, so hopefully we can get something done.”

The Warriors’ Math

NBA.com places the deal after Golden State’s September extension for Stephen Curry, which ClutchPoints describes as two years and $116 million, and after the earlier re-signings of Draymond Green, Al Horford, Kristaps Porziņģis, De’Anthony Melton and Gary Payton II. Podziemski is the first of the younger core to be locked in for the long term. The team, per ClutchPoints, finished 37-45 last season and missed the playoffs, so $22 million a year is a bet on a 23-year-old rotation piece rather than a reward for a winning one.

What We Don’t Know

There’s no reliable net-worth figure for Podziemski, and we won’t invent one. Nor could we open a Warriors announcement of the deal itself; the terms are as reported by Charania and the agent. For the league-wide view of who is getting paid what, see the 2026 Sports Contracts Tracker.

The Bottom Line

Podziemski’s raise is the cleanest example of the rookie-scale economy: a player who made $5.7 million on a draft-slot contract bets on himself to the deadline’s edge, and walks out with a $22 million average and a trade kicker. The Warriors paid more than the Siegel-reported figure they wanted, but kept their summer cap room. Both sides got something. Only one of them has a guarantee.

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