The Grizzlies won’t pay out the final year of Brandon Clarke’s contract to his estate, and the remaining money on the deal won’t count against the NBA’s salary cap.
Clarke died in May at 29 after authorities found him unresponsive at a Los Angeles home in the San Fernando Valley. Active NBA player deaths are rare: Before Clarke, the last one was Pelicans forward Bryce Dejean-Jones in 2016.
At the time of his death, Clarke had one year remaining on his contract for the 2026–27 NBA season, worth $12.5 million after signing a four-year deal worth $50 million in October 2022.
Clarke’s contract was terminated on July 3, about seven weeks after his death.
Multiple sources told Front Office Sports that Clarke earned his full $12.5 million from the 2025–26 season, but the final year of his salary won’t be paid out to his estate because it wasn’t protected for death. However, Clarke did have a life insurance policy, sources say. It’s unknown if the factors surrounding his death could impact its payout.
On Aug. 7, the Los Angeles County medical examiner’s office announced that Clarke died from “the effects of heroin and cocaine” and ruled his death was an accident.
Additionally, the office listed “combined effects of multiple prescription medications” as another “significant condition” that factored into his death, but did not provide specific drugs in the release. The full report will be released at a later date.
The semi-monthly payments of Clarke’s salary from the previous season will continue through Oct. 16 and be paid out to his estate, following the payment schedule agreed to in his contract.
But the payments will end in October. Other prominent athletes—including Royals pitcher Yordano Ventura and Liverpool forward Diogo Jota—have had their contracts paid out to their families after death, but there is no universal standard or NBA rule.
The Grizzlies did not respond to a request for comment. Priority Sports, which represented Clarke, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A 2019 first-round pick out of Gonzaga, Clarke played all seven of his NBA seasons for the Grizzlies, but appeared in just two games in 2025–26 due to leg injuries. For his career, Clarke averaged 10.2 points and 5.5 rebounds in 309 games.
Every team has a different philosophy when it comes to insuring player contracts for death. It’s not a topic front offices and agents tend to haggle over in negotiations, sources said. According to the league’s collective bargaining agreement, when a team insures a contract, the insurance payout reimburses the team for the remaining guaranteed money, which then gets paid out to the player’s estate. If a team doesn’t insure a contract for death, agents tend to seek the life insurance route to make sure their client’s family is covered.
