12 Superstars Who Are Actually Bargains Right Now
NBA free agency is setting the whole financial balance of sports completely out of whack. Case in point: Timofey Mozgov will make more than Stephen Curry in 2016-17.
Basically, any NBA player who didn't hit free agency in 2016 is a bargain, but for the sake of brevity, let's focus on a sampling of superstars from across sports whose current deals make the new world order particularly startling.
Of course, "bargain" is a relative term with a bunch of athletes making millions, but relatively speaking, these 12 stars are making less than their probable market value. In some cases, it's a result of the rapidly changing market (cough, NBA salary-cap jump), and in others, it's due to players signing team-friendly deals or taking a hometown discount.
This exercise is not meant so much to disparage the current financial landscape, but instead to point out how rapidly things can change, how many factors are involved in contract negotiations and how easily it can all be thrown off balance.
Note: This list could include easily include LeBron James, but the hasn't signed yet, so, TBD.
Dirk Nowitzki
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Looks like a bargain compared to: Los Angeles Lakers center Timofey Mozgov
Mozgov signed a four-year, $64 million free-agent deal with the Lakers. He averaged 17.4 minutes per game in 2015-16 and 5.8 in the Cleveland Cavaliers' championship run through the playoffs.
Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki has been playing on team-friendly deals for years. His new two-year, $40 million contract seems more up-to-par with his worth, given his age, but it's still well short of his max.
Sure, he's aging, and yes, he's making more than Mozgov. But it should go without saying Nowitzki is far more valuable to Dallas than Mozgov was to the Cavs, for both the tangibles and intangibles. The longtime Mavs leader averaged 31.5 minutes per game in 2015-16 along with 18.3 points and 6.5 rebounds.
The fact that Mozgov is even close to Nowitzki, financially, is extremely telling of the new NBA financial landscape.
Rob Gronkowski
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Looks like a bargain compared to: Seattle Seahawks tight end Jimmy Graham
Quick—who is the best tight end in the NFL? No offense to Graham, but it's not him.
The Seahawks traded for Graham in 2015, taking on the rest of the four-year, $40 million deal he signed with the New Orleans Saints in 2014. In 2014, Graham caught 85 balls for 889 yards and 10 touchdowns. In 11 games with Seattle in 2015, those numbers dropped to 48 catches, 605 yards and two TDs.
Over in Foxboro, Massachusetts, New England Patriots superhuman Rob Gronkowski signed a six-year, $53 million extension in 2012 that was, at the time, the largest deal for a tight end in league history. (Graham's deal eventually took over that title.)
And though Graham has sputtered in recent years, Gronk just continues to be Gronk. He led tight ends with 1,176 receiving yards in 2015, recorded 16.3 yards per reception and brought in 11 TDs.
Chris Sale
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Looks like a bargain compared to: Washington Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg
Nothing against Strasburg—he is crushing 2016 so far. The Nats righty has won all 11 of his decisions and is posting a 2.71 ERA through July 5. His team locked him in with a seven-year, $175 million extension in May.
Still, there are other uber-talented pitchers making far less than Strasburg, and his megadeal sheds light on those even more brightly.
Take Chris Sale, for instance. The Chicago White Sox ace signed a five-year, $32.5 million extension in 2013 that Strasburg's deal absolutely dwarfs.
Sale has been perennially underrated for the Sox, and—big surprise—he's having another stellar 2016. Sale has won 14 games as of mid-July and posted a 2.93 ERA along the way. He's already up to an American League-leading 120 innings before the All-Star break.
Shout out to a few other monster arms—Jake Arrieta of the Chicago Cubs and Dallas Keuchel of the Houston Astros come to mind—who are also deserving of big, Strasburg-esque deals.
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Aaron Rodgers
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Looks like a bargain compared to: Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck
Luck just signed the NFL's richest contract (ever) at six years and $140 million. He'll make over $23 million in 2016.
The young Colts gunslinger certainly seems worthy, given his age (26), potential and performance thus far, but now he's making more than proven, champion QBs like Aaron Rodgers of the Green Bay Packers and Tom Brady of the New England Patriots.
Luck had a down year in 2015, missing significant time with injury, but he tossed for 4,761 yards and a league-leading 40 touchdowns in 2014.
Meanwhile, it's not as if Rodgers is getting paltry money—he signed a five-year, $110 million extension in 2013 and will make $22 million in 2016—but he, unlike Luck, is a Super Bowl champion. He threw for 3,821 yards and 31 touchdowns in 2015—a down season. His numbers were 4,381 passing yards and 38 TDs in 2014.
Let's face it—everyone looks like a bargain compared to the richest deal in league history.
Kawhi Leonard
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Looks like a bargain compared to: Charlotte Hornets small forward Nicolas Batum
The Hornets signed Batum to a five-year, $120 million deal during the great NBA free-agency money toss of 2016. Batum is a valuable piece for the Hornets, averaging 14.9 points, 6.1 rebounds and 5.8 assists per game in 2015-16.
And yet.
The San Antonio Spurs gave Kawhi Leonard a five-year deal in 2015 worth $90 million. No slight against Batum, but Leonard is an NBA Finals MVP. To boot, his 2015-16 offensive contribution was significantly better at 21.2 points per game. He added 6.8 rebounds and 2.6 assists per as well.
Steven Stamkos
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Looks like a bargain compared to: What he could have made on the free-agent market
Steven Stamkos was a bit like the Kevin Durant of the NHL in 2015-16. Folks knew free agency was looming and they wondered whether he'd stay with the Tampa Bay Lightning, a contender he's been with his entire eight-year career? Or would he move on?
Stamkos is one of the league's most prolific scorers. He's won the Maurice Richard Trophy as the NHL's top goal scorer twice (2009-10 and 2011-12) and helped the Lightning reach the Stanley Cup Final in 2015.
In the end, Stamkos chose to stay put, but he gave the team a hometown discount to do it. Sure, his eight-year, $68 million deal is mega, but it's almost surely less than he could have made. According to Zack Cox of NESN, rumor had it Stamkos might have commanded $10 million per year on the open market.
Antonio Brown
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Looks like a bargain compared to: Indianapolis Colts wide receiver T.Y. Hilton
The Colts signed Hilton to a lucrative five-year, $65 million deal in 2015, and he went on to bring in 69 balls for 1,124 yards and five touchdown catches.
Meanwhile, Pittsburgh Steelers standout Antonio Brown is playing on a five-year, $42.5 million extension he signed in 2012.
Brown caught a league-leading 136 balls for 1,834 yards and 13 TDs in 2015.
Brown's production certainly warrants a new deal and makes his current one look like a bargain. Bob Labriola of Steelers.com said in April (via Curt Popejoy of Steelers Wire), "The best thing for Brown and the Steelers is to work things out on a long-term deal, and that's what I expect is going to happen."
Zlatan Ibrahimovic
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Looks like a bargain compared to: Hebei China Fortune forward Ezequiel Lavezzi
Zlatan Ibrahimovic just signed a one-year deal to play with Manchester United in 2016-17. According to Jack Rathborn of ESPNFC, the Swedish forward will make £200,000 per week.
Ibrahimovic is one of the best footballers in the world. In 2015-16, he scored 50 goals in 51 appearances with Paris Saint-Germain, according to Adam Bate of Sky Sports.
Meanwhile, some of the deals being handed out by the Chinese Super League make Ibrahimovic's look like a bargain.
For instance, in February, Hebei China Fortune signed Lavezzi, Ibrahimovic's former PSG teammate, to a two-year deal that would reportedly pay £400,000 per week.
Lavezzi notched 31 goals for PSG since joining the club in 2012, according to BBC Sport.
Mike Trout
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Looks like a bargain compared to: MLB's albatross contracts (and what Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper stands to get in 2018)
Los Angeles Angels outfielder Mike Trout signed a significant six-year, $144.5 million extension in 2014. And yet, he's not even on Forbes' list of baseball's highest-paid players of 2016, which seems odd given the fact that he's easily one of the (if not the) best players in the baseball.
Trout has won the American League Rookie of the Year Award (2012), the MVP (2014) and he's nearing 900 hits at just 24 years of age. Oh, he's also batting .324/.426/.569 as of July 5 in 2016.
Compared to a few of baseball's famously ill-advised contracts, doled out to players older and less talented than Trout, the man is a steal.
Take his own teammate, Albert Pujols, for instance. The Angels signed Pujols to a 10-year, $240 million deal in December 2011, when he was 31 years old.
Since then, Pujols has been nowhere near as valuable as Trout. Not even close. The now-36-year-old has hit .264/.325/.472 (as of July 5) with the Angels and managed more than 28 home runs just twice.
Tom Brady
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Looks like a bargain compared to: Houston Texans quarterback Brock Osweiler
Speaking of QBs, let's talk about Osweiler. The newly minted Texan has started just seven NFL games in four years yet somehow got a four-year, $72 million deal in free agency.
Meanwhile, Tom effin' Brady is set to make less than that.
Brady signed a two-year contract extension in the offseason with extremely team-friendly terms. He'll reportedly make $60 million over the next four years.
Brady is not just a great QB, but an all-time great. He's a four-time Super Bowl champion who threw for 4,770 yards and a league-leading 36 touchdowns in 2015 alone. He is fifth on the list of all-time NFL passing leaders with 58,028 (and counting).
According to Doug Kyed of NESN, Brady's cap hit will rank 18th among NFL QBs in 2016, behind the usual suspects but also guys like Jay Cutler and Colin Kaepernick.
Madison Bumgarner
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Looks like a bargain compared to: Detroit Tigers pitcher Jordan Zimmermann
Zimmerman signed a five-year, $110 million contract with the Tigers in the MLB offseason. In 2015, he pitched 201.2 innings, made 33 starts and posted a 3.66 ERA for the Washington Nationals.
Not bad—but he's no Madison Bumgarner.
The San Francisco Giants signed the star pitcher to a five-year, $35 million contract extension in 2012 that now looks like it might be—according to Andrew Baggarly of the Mercury News—"the club-friendliest contract in either league."
In addition to being a World Series hero, Bumgarner started 32 games in 2015 (and won 18), hurled 218.1 innings and compiled a 2.93 ERA.
Stephen Curry
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Looks like a bargain compared to: (Um, everyone, but also) Memphis Grizzlies point guard Mike Conley
Conley just signed a five-year, $153 million deal with the Griz. In 2015-16, Conley averaged 15.3 points, 6.1 assists and 1.2 steals per game.
Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry, meanwhile, is a two-time league MVP playing on a four-year, $44 million contract extension he signed in 2012. Curry led the NBA in points (30.1) and steals (2.1) per game in 2015-16 and added 6.7 assists per as well.
All signs point to Curry getting a big-time payday in 2017, but for now, he's the ultimate steal.
It's also worth a reminder—pretty much any NBA superstar who didn't sign a deal in the last two weeks could be viewed this way. For instance, in terms of point guards, Chris Paul of the Los Angeles Clippers is playing on a five-year, $107 million extension.
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