Already exceeded the salary cap, but KCC also reinforced its strength through the Asia Quarter in the Philippines. KCC paid attention to the potential of Calvin Epistola (26, 180cm).
Jeonju KCC completed the player registration process for Epistola on the 10th. According to the regulations, Epistola was able to participate from the 2022-2023 SKT Adot Professional Basketball regular league away match against Suwon KT, which was held on the same day, but was vacated as it was just after joining. The team needs time to adapt.
Epistola arrived last month. Accordingly, the contract took effect on the 27th of last month, and the contract period is until May 31, 2024. Since it is not a resource that has been verified in the professional league or national team like Ronjay Avarientos (Hyundai Mobis), Lens Abando (KGC), and Lee Seon Albano (DB), he signed a contract for the minimum annual salary of 35 million won this season.
KBL begins salary negotiations for the next season on June 1 each year. In other words, the minimum salary period for Epistola is until May 31st. Estola’s contract date for this season, calculated from the 27th of last month, is 156 days. If you calculate this on a pro-rata basis, Epistola’s annual salary this season is about 14.9 million won for 5 months. In terms of monthly salary, it is about 300,000 won.
KCC, Seoul SK (2,859,958,000 won), and Anyang KGC (2,643,556,000 won) are three teams that exceeded the salary cap (2.6 billion won) this season. In SK, Kim Seon-hyeong obtained free agency qualification after winning the combined championship last season, and Choi Jun-yong’s ransom price rose significantly, so it was inevitable to exceed the salary cap. KGC also has solid power, and even recruited Abando before the start of the season, exceeding the salary cap.
Unlike the two teams that advanced to the championship match, KCC stayed in 9th place last season. KCC, which started to reinforce its strength with enthusiasm, recruited free agents Lee Seung-hyun and Heo Woong at the same time, recording a total remuneration of 2.825 billion won, recording a salary cap exhaustion rate of 108.65%. 메이저사이트
According to KBL regulations, teams that exceed the salary cap must pay 30% of the excess amount as a youth basketball development fund. KCC, which has already paid for the youth basketball development fund, will pay an additional 30% of the annual salary of Epistola.
As much as that, KCC was in a situation where it needed another reinforcement. Lee Seung-hyun and Heo Woong formed the backbone of the team, but the absence of a point guard became more prominent after the season began. He pinned his hopes on rookie Song Dong-hoon, but he is experiencing growing pains after his brilliant performance. This is the background of KCC recruiting Epistola.
Epistola was born to Filipino parents living in Toronto, Canada, and has been playing basketball in Canada. He graduated from the University of Ottawa in 2020, and averaged 3.8 points, 1.6 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 11 Canadian Elite League games in 2022. As the record shows, it is a resource that needs to be verified.
A KCC official said, “I recruited him because number 1 was not enough, but after graduating from college, the league schedule was digested for about 4 months. Since I haven’t had any real experience for about a year, I think the remaining season can be seen as a test period. So I accepted the minimum salary,” he said.
Since his arrival, Epistola has been working on his personal training, with an emphasis on building stamina. During the All-Star break, he joins team training in earnest. KCC will play a practice game against Yonsei University on the 17th and 18th. Epistola plans to start a test to adapt to the team through practice games.