1. What is the only PBSL team that has NEVER paid luxury tax?
2. How many of the top five total tax-paying teams (total of all payments) can you name?
3. What PBSL team holds the record for longest consecutive streak of years paying the tax?
4. Which PBSL team has the current longest active tax-paying streak?
So, having asked those questions, let's take a look at the history of the luxury tax. The Luxury Tax was introduced to the PBSL in the 1994-1995 season.4. Can you name the amount (and team) of the top 5 single-season tax bills of all time?
In 1994-95 the total sum paid by all teams, leaguewide, was 68 points. Note that in this first year, we had no repeaters (because we had never had the tax before). The Rockets ran up the highest tax bill at 21 points. In all, 8 teams paid taxes.
In 1995-96 the Rockets again led the league in tax bill owed, but this year they were at just 16 points. League-wide, the total tax owed was just 51 points. Just 6 teams paid taxes this season, which still stands as the low mark since the introduction of the tax.
In 1996-97 the leaguewide total jumped to 157 points. You guessed it, the Rockets led the league in payments, racking up 58 points, but the Celtics posted a 31-point bill, which, if not for the Rockets that year, would have been the highest tax bill the league had seen. A new high of 10 teams paid taxes.
In 1997-98, the Celtics were the big spenders, with a 58-point bill (the Rockets got under the cap this season). The Warriors posted a 35-point bill, and the league total was 151 points, so those two teams alone accounted for over 60% of the taxes. Just 8 teams had tax bills.
In 1998-99, the league saw a move toward austerity. League-wide, taxes only totaled 107 points, and the Nuggets' 34-point bill was the highest mark by a single team. Again, only 8 teams had tax bills.
In 1999-00, the trend downward continued. The Warriors posted a 42-point bill, but the league as a whole only paid in 72 points. This marks the only year to date that a single team accounted for more than 50% of the total tax bill. The number of tax-paying teams nudged downward to 7.
In 2000-01, tax bills exploded. The Hawks set a new single-season record for tax bills with a 69-point bill to support their new "superteam" and leaguewide, the total tax collected was 303 points - almost double what had every been recorded previously. The 76ers (42) and Warriors (47) posted bills high enough to rank in the top 10 tax payments ever to that point. A whopping 15 teams - more than half the league - paid taxes this season.
In 2001-02, taxes stayed high. The Warriors reclaimed their "big spending" crown by ringing up a 92-point bill. The Raptors posted a 78-point bill (which would have been the record but for the Warriors) and the Hawks topped their previous record as well with a 73 point tax bill. These three teams made up the bulk of the reason why, league-wide, 319 points in taxes were due... but from only 8 total teams.
In 2002-03, we saw another big jump in tax payments. The Jazz became the first team to owe a triple-digit tax bill (103) as they led a total of 13 teams paying at total 516 points in taxes (a new aggregate high). The Sonics (87), Raptors (73), and Hawks (55) all posted tax bills north of 50 points.
In 2003-04, the trend upward continued. Once again, a new high for tax bills was set, this time by the championship-winning Raptors at 112 points. The Hawks chipped in 92, the Grizzlies 73, the Warriors 55, and the Lakers 54, to mark the first time five teams went over the 50-point mark. This season marked the highest number of tax-paying teams ever at 17, and brought in 574 points of taxation.
In 2004-05, we saw a dip in the tax market. There was no new record set this season as the Rockets spent 103 points on their tax bill and only the Hawks (92) went over 50 points. Just 11 teams paid taxes and the total tax dropped to 418 points. This also marked a watershed season as it was the first time the Warriors had NOT paid tax (granted, their team had been bankrupted by tax bills and forced to keep salaries low).
So here we are in 2005-06, and it looks like the 2004-05 dip was just a blip on the radar rather than the start of a trend back down. Across the league, 13 teams rang up tax bills this season, we have seen a new, ridiculous high-water mark set by the Magic with their 226-point bill, and with the Rockets also reaching triple digits (102), it's the first time we have two bills of over 100 points in a single season. League-wide, the tax total this year is 631 points (assuming no more salary added due to injury signings). Whew!
You have to wonder how long the league can keep reaching new taxation heights. Already, rumor has it that lots of personal trainers are seeking other lines of work as it appears the once-popular "train your player" practice is being pushed out by taxes.
Oh, you're probably wondering what the answers to the opening questions are. Here you go.
1. The Miami Heat have never paid a single point in tax money.
2. The Top 5 aggregate taxpayers are:
1st place: Hawks (381 points)
2nd place: Warriors (366 points)
3rd place: Rockets (334 points)
4th place: Raptors (329 points)
5th place: Magic (278 points, new to the list this season).
3. The Golden State Warriors, who went 10 seasons (94-95 through 03-04) without resetting their taxpayer status
4. At 7 seasons and counting, the Raptors have been taxpayers since the 99-00 season.
5. The top five single-season bills are:
1st place: 226 points (05-06 Magic)
2nd place: 112 points (03-04 Raptors)
3rd place (tie): 103 points (02-03 Jazz)
3rd place (tie): 103 points (04-05 Rockets)
5th place: 102 points (05-06 Rockets)
