Per this AP report, Washington State's new basketball coach will be making $650,000 his first year, $750,000 in the second, and $850,000 in the third year.
Jim Sterk said he was going to keep pay competitive, and he kept his word. This is undoubtedly a huge raise from what Bone was earning at Portland State. That coupled with the chance to coach in the Pac 10 made this a no-brainer move for him.
So what happens if Klay Thompson and the Cougs make a run to the Sweet Sixteen next year and Bone is mentioned for every open coaching vacancy on the planet? The school trying to steal him away will be out $500,000. That may seem like chump change to many major athletic departments, but for WSU, that is two home football games' worth of cash.
Tony was set to make atleast a cool million a year at Wazzu. That savings, coupled with that check from Virginia, minus the $74,000 paid to Portland State, means WSU is saving more money on Ken Bone this year than they are actually paying him! What a deal!
Notes: If Bone leads the Cougs to the promised land (a national title), Bone earns an extra $100,000. Apparently the contract states that raises can be negotiated after the first three years. As we experienced with Tony Bennett, raises are always negotiable if your team is winning basketball games.