How Did Fans React to Juwan Howard Getting the 1st $100M NBA Contract at 23?

[lib123]

This. They were wealthy at a time where inflation wasn't out of control like it is now, so shyt was largely "affordable". The average home price in 1995 was less than 200K, which is 500K less than it is currently.

Average US home price was $158K in '95 vs $500K now. And that doesn't capture brownstones in DC and NYC that have gone from $200-300K back then to $3-5M now. To be fair, real estate is flooded with scammers and con artists who prey on athletes. Maybe they tried but fell for frauds.

 

[GOATpernick]

 

[<<TheStandard>>]

Times were different. There were people in Orlando who thought Shaq wasn't worth 100 million and more often than not people just thought athletes were being greedy. That was also coming off the too much too soon era where you literally had athletes like Jim Jackson holding out before they ever stepped on the court. You didn't hear people truly happy for athletes getting it like they would be today.

The CBA was the wild wild west back then and there were not set contracts for rookies or vets.....it was whatever the hell you negotiated. Just an insane time period.

 

[MikelArteta]

Played a part in the lockout a few years later

 

[who_better_than_me]

He got boo’d at the mci center. I was there a free throw was being shot and they zoomed in on his face and the crowd automatically boo’d like he was the opp. First time as a youth I really realized DC was truly the city that love to hate

 

[Damnshow]

So Washington been making bad moves way before Bradley Beal deal?

 

[Scientific Playa]

I think my circle of peeps were happy and exuberant at the time.
I remember seeing him play against the Heat in their old Miami Heat Arena in Overtown when he was with the Bullets/Wizards. Breh had fierce energy!
Glad he got his ring with the Heat years later.

Now speaking of rings two of my old school homies both won them in the NBA. I saw Wes's ring in person one night when he came in the club.

 

[badboys11]

We had lives back then. And the league had no salary cap. It was a complete non issue unless you was a bullets/heat fan

 

[Bboystyle]

People are so hell bent on people reactions that they think the world went nuts over stuff like how todays stupid tiktok lifestyle is ran. The only reactions we had was within our own circle. We didnt care about reactions to shyt. Probably most said, damn thats a ton of money, and kept it moving.

 

[En Sabah Nur]

So Washington been making bad moves way before Bradley Beal deal?

These fools drafted Rasheed Wallace when they already had Webber & Howard, then traded him the next year for Rod Strickland and a one year run for the 8 seed and sweep by the Bulls

Then let Ben Wallace go a couple years later
Traded CWebb for Mitch Richmond

Let MJ draft Kwame instead of Pau Gasol


So yeah...the Beal move ain't nothing new

 

[get these nets]

Juwan Howard was an under the radar player for an under the radar franchise. League loved and promoted him because he made good on his promise to his Grandmother to finish his degree at Michigan, soon after he entered the league.

Solid NBA player, but never the difference maker that the big contract indicated he would be. Fans knew that early on.

 

[desjardins]

Social media didn’t exist back then and I don’t remember the contract amount being some huge on going story on the news
People were shocked at the number on some ‘oh wow’ tip and pretty much went on with life, also I don’t think anyone was sitting at home worrying about salary caps and shyt like that like we do now. Maybe I was just around unsophisticated bammas back then tho

 

[lurker emeritus]

the contract amount wasn't that big of a deal, knowing the chips that were about to fall.

the story was:
oh shyt, the heat got juwan howard
they finna be nice, then
oh shyt, the heat DONT got juwan howard

 

[Ku$h Parker]

Was was before or after McIlvane and Koncak got them Contracts cause that was the Worst

 

[CROM]

I remember being in pure disbelief. That was star level money back then, and Howard was slightly above mediocre. Nobody thought he was worth that deal. But…if somebody is willing to pay it…