Marion jokes he would've made $300M in today's NBA
During his 16-year career, Shawn Marion was widely considered one of the NBA's more resourceful talents, capable of putting up big numbers across the board on both offense and defense.
Had "The Matrix" been in peak form during today's skyrocketing salary cap, the four-time All-Star believes he would have cashed in due to his level of production.
"I probably would have $300 million," Marion jokingly told HoopsHype.com's Jorge Sierra. "I would be better rated. I was great when I was playing and I had a great career. But now?! Sky is the limit."
Marion was at his most dominant with the Phoenix Suns, where he averaged a double-double of 18.4 points and 10 rebounds while shooting 48.1 percent from the field, along with two assists, 1.9 steals, and 1.4 blocks in 37.8 minutes. Had he posted those statistics last season as an unrestricted free agent, he surely would've had massive offers coming his way left, right, and center.
He made a total of approximately $135 million, with his highest annual salary coming in 2008-09 at $17.81 million north of the border as a Toronto Raptor. Finances aside, with the growing emphasis on analytics, Marion's legacy would arguably be much greater had he competed now instead of 10 years ago.
Nonetheless, Marion isn't bitter about what could've been, and is appreciative of the career he had.
"Not at all. Somebody told me jokingly I was born 10 years too soon (laughs). But that’s OK. Everything happens for a reason and I take nothing for granted," he added. "I was able to play against great, great players. It was fun. There’s great guys I was able to go against night in and night out. It was awesome. Especially in the Western Conference."