In today’s NBA, the formula for winning in recent years was simple: Accumulate as many maximum-salary stars as you can without breaking the bank.
But when you start piling up eight-figure salaries against the luxury tax, the bank breaks pretty quickly. So teams fill out their rosters with minimum-salary veterans.
And if you look at the top of the NBA standings right now, many teams are getting very productive seasons from veterans signed to minimum-salary deals.
The Chicago Bulls added Pau Gasol to Jimmy Butler’s emergence as an All-Star to contend for the top spot in the Eastern Conference. But where would they be without Aaron Brooks? The Washington Wizards tried to fill their hole at small forward by signing Paul Pierce to the mid-level exception. But helping Pierce fill that hole is Rasual Butler. And the Dallas Mavericks were able to trade three rotation players for Rajon Rondo because they have a quartet of reliable veterans on minimum contracts.
Other teams such as the Houston Rockets (Patrick Beverley) and Milwaukee Bucks (Khris Middleton) are receiving excellent play from younger players on rookie minimum contracts.
But which teams are getting the maximum out of their minimum salary veterans? Here’s a look at the top five.
CHICAGO BULLS: Aaron Brooks, the 2010 Most Improved Player, has been plugged into the “energy guard” spot previously held by D.J. Augustin and Nate Robinson. His skills as a pick-and-roll player and 3-point shooter are a perfect fit for Chicago’s collection of bigs. The seven-year veteran is averaging 11.1 points in 20.0 minutes. The only player scoring more in less playing time is Marreese 
Speights. And the Bulls are 7-2 when Brooks scores at least 15 points. Not bad for $1.15 million. Much deeper in the rotation, the Bulls also have center Nazr Mohammed and guard E’Twaun Moore on minimum deals.
WASHINGTON WIZARDS: When the Wizards signed Rasual Butler, most figured he wouldn’t average double figures in minutes as an insurance policy behind Paul Pierce and Otto Porter. Not only is he averaging 22.8 minutes, he also is at 10.1 points, more than teammate Nene and about a bucket behind Pierce. Making $1.45 million in his 12th season, Butler is fourth in the NBA in 3-point shooting at 49 percent and sixth in adjusted shooting at nearly 60 percent. Martell Webster has returned from back surgery, but Butler is still getting his minutes. The Wizards also re-signed forward Drew Gooden on a minimum deal after he filled in admirably for the injured Nene last season.
DALLAS MAVERICKS: They don’t have a single standout like the Bulls or Wizards do, but their fleet of minimum veterans – and coach Rick Carlisle’s belief in their ability – is what made the trade for Rajon Rondo possible. Al-Farouq Aminu ($980,000), Richard Jefferson ($1.45 million) and Charlie Villanueva ($1.32 million) have combined for 16 games of at least 10 points. Since the trade, they have more than covered for the loss of Jae Crowder and Brandan Wright, at least for now. And guard J.J. Barea ($1.31 million), signed after being waived by Minnesota, is a better 3-point shooter and pick-and-roll player than Jameer Nelson, who also left in the trade. Together, they contribute nearly 22 points and nine rebounds per game, and their combined 50 minutes buys valuable regular season rest for Dirk Nowitzki, Monta Ellis and Chandler Parsons that will come in handy at playoff time.
GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS: The league’s best team this season has a lot of star power and superb depth, with former All-Stars David Lee and Andre Iguodala coming off the bench. But the rest of the roster has some quality veterans on minimum deals in guards Leandro Barbosa ($1.45 million, 5.7 ppg) and defensive specialist Brandon Rush ($1.15 million). They also may have stumbled onto a growing talent in guard Justin Holiday ($820,000, 4.0 ppg), who has scored the ball in limited action. And we haven’t even 
mentioned do-it-all forward Draymond Green, who is still on his rookie deal at a minimum $920,000 and is Golden State’s most indispensable player behind Stephen Curry.
NEW ORLEANS PELICANS: Another team with an armada of veteran minimum players as GM Dell Demps constantly searches to improve the questionable depth of his team and secure a desperately desired playoff berth. Forward Luke Babbitt ($980,000, .514 on threes) and big man Alex Ajinca ($980,000, 3.6 rpg) are holdovers after being signed during last season. After Darius Miller and Patric Young were waived, a roster spot went to once-blacklisted forward Dante Cunningham ($830,000, 5.5 ppg, 3.0 rpg), who has been a growing part of the rotation since being signed a month ago and allows the Pelicans to go small with Anthony Davis at center. Guard Jimmer Fredette ($920,000) is also here.
TRIVIA: Which team had the best regular season record in the 2014 calendar year? Answer below.
THE END OF CIVILIZATION AS WE KNOW IT: A handful of people whose job it is to know better had a retired NFL quarterback leading the Phoenix Suns past the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK: Brooklyn Nets veteran forward Kevin Garnett, after a rare dunk vs. Sacramento: “I know I’m like 150 years in dog years, but I can actually dunk the ball. My daughter was like, ‘Daddy, you dunked.'”
TANKS A LOT!: The tank could be rolling soon in New York, where the Knicks have lost 11 straight games overall, a franchise-record 10 in a row at home and have a league-leading 31 losses. Now comes news that leading scorer Carmelo Anthony could shut it down for the rest of the season with a sore left knee that may need surgery. “I think everybody is smart enough to realize, calendar wise, timing wise, that there may come a point that that’s the decision that needs to be made,” coach Derek Fisher said.
LINE OF THE WEEK: Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City vs. Phoenix, Dec. 31: 40 minutes, 13-23 FGs, 6-11 3-pointers, 12-12 FTs, 10 rebounds, seven assists, one block, five turnovers, 44 points in a 137-134 win. In his return after missing six games with a sprained 
ankle, Durant carried the Thunder after Russell Westbrook was ejected for arguing, scoring 17 points in the fourth quarter and overtime in what could wind up being a crucial win in the Western Conference playoff race.
LINE OF THE WEAK: Trey Burke, Utah vs. Atlanta, Jan. 2: 39 minutes, 2-19 FGs, 0-11 3-pointers, 4-4 FTs, three rebounds, five assists, one block, two steals, four fouls, one turnover in a 98-92 loss. We know Burke is shooting 35 percent this season, but at what point does his conscience kick in and say, “Hey, I’m just not feeling it tonight”?
TRILLION WATCH: Both Heat forward Shawne Williams (Wednesday at Indiana) and Mavs center Greg Smith (Sunday at Cleveland) had chances at the first double-digit effort of the season, spoiling 10 trillions by committing multiple fouls. The week’s top non-performances were 3 trillions Tuesday by Nets rookie Bojan Bogdanovic at Chicago and Wizards guard Garrett Temple at Dallas. Lakers guard Xavier Henry still leads the pack with a 9 trillion on Nov. 1.
GAME OF THE WEEK: Oklahoma City at Golden State, Jan. 5. The last time the Thunder were in the Bay Area was Dec. 18, when Kevin Durant scored 30 points in the first half but sprained an ankle. That is one of just two games Oklahoma City has lost among the 11 where Durant and Russell Westbrook have both played. The Warriors are 26-5 overall and haven’t lost at Oracle Arena since Nov. 11.
GAME OF THE WEAK: Charlotte at New York, Jan. 10. No Lance Stephenson, no Al Jefferson, no Carmelo Anthony. Just two underachieving teams going nowhere. On the bright side, it’s a matinee and should be over by the time the NFL playoffs start.
TWO MINUTES: It’s time to start seriously wondering whether Josh Smith and his ball-stopping, poor playmaking and insistence 
on perimeter shooting with the Pistons was as big a problem as the numbers make him out to be. Detroit was 5-23 with Smith and is 5-0 without him, its first five-game winning streak since Dec. 4-12, 2009. And the offensive numbers are even more startling. With Smith, the Pistons averaged 94.4 points, 20.4 assists and 7.7 3-pointers while shooting 41 percent overall and 33 percent from the arc. Without him, they are at 108.4 points, 22.6 assists and 13.2 3-pointers while shooting 49 percent overall and 43 percent from the arc. Keep in mind that Smith’s departure made Greg Monroe a starter, giving Detroit a starting lineup that averages 23.4 years old and less than three years of NBA experience. Starters Andre Drummond and Brandon Jennings and reserve Jodie Meeks have been considerably better since Smith was waived, and subs D.J. Augustin and Jonas Jerebko have had small upticks in productivity. “Is it sustainable?” coach Stan Van Gundy said. “I doubt we’ll go undefeated the rest of the way. But it is sustainable for us to play good basketball.” The next five games over seven days likely will tell us a bit more. Starting Tuesday, the Pistons visit San Antonio and Dallas, host Atlanta and Brooklyn, then visit Toronto. Keep in mind that Van Gundy has never finished below .500 or missed the playoffs in a full season as a coach. The Pistons are 10-23 but just three losses out of the East’s final playoff spot. … One of the most stunning stats this season is Russell Westbrook’s nine technical fouls in just 20 games. The Thunder have 48 games remaining, and it will be extremely difficult for him to avoid a suspension, given the fact that going back to last season, Westbrook has 19 techs in his last 66 games. … On Friday night, the Atlanta Hawks overtook the Toronto Raptors for the best record in the East. On Saturday morning, ESPN removed the Hawks from their first nationally televised game this season, replacing the Atlanta-Boston game on Jan. 14 with Washington-Chicago. The Hawks are not scheduled to appear on national TV until hosting Detroit at 2:30 p.m. on ESPN on Jan. 19. Their first – and only – prime time appearance is on Jan. 28 vs. Brooklyn on ESPN, which was added Saturday. … Nuggets coach Brian Shaw has done away with the morning shootaround, a staple of game day preparation since it was conceived in the late 1960s by coach Bill Sharman. The decision was made after the Nuggets met with a sleep study group. “I’m not going to lie, I’m loving it,” point guard Ty Lawson said. “I don’t understand getting up at 7:45 a.m. to do shootaround when you’re not going to remember it, and you’re still tired.” … In five games out west, the Sixers lost by 21, 17, 40, 18 and 26 points. “It was a great experience for us, to come out here and play some of the perennial 
All-Stars in this league,” rookie Nerlens Noel said. “To be able to hold our own in some of these games, and just the experience itself, it’s a good teacher.” Hunh? … Lakers guard Nick Young’s 3-point streak ended at 37 games with an 0-of-2 from the arc Tuesday in Denver. He came up just 90 games short of the record set last season by Kyle Korver, whose current streak is 21 games. … It’s remarkable how quickly things change in this league. Last season, every Miami-Indiana game was a must-watch. Did you even notice that the teams played on New Year’s Eve? “A couple of guys actually said something about that while we were out there,” Pacers forward David West said. “I guess these three or four games in the regular season throughout the last three years have sort of been big games. But obviously, this doesn’t have the one-seed implications we were fighting for the last few years.”
Trivia Answer: The Memphis Grizzlies were 58-23 in 2014. … Happy 67th Birthday, Rick Mount. … If your goal is to determine the number of morons on the planet, the 114,286 who gave Jeremy Lin an All-Star vote is a good place to start.
Chris Bernucca is the managing editor of SheridanHoops.com. His columns appear Monday during the season. You can follow him on Twitter.