Top 10 Worst Sports Contracts of All Time
Sometimes when teams give players a five or six-year contract with $40 million guaranteed it doesn't mean that everything will go your way. And when you give players a big contract before they play a game, and they suck right out of the gate it's worse.
Here is my list for the top 10 worst sports contracts of all time.
No. 10 Grant Hill
1 of 10
This pick should not be blamed too heavily on the Magic, who signed Grant Hill to a seven-year, $93 million contract. At the time Hill was one of the best players in the league, but big injuries plagued his career in Orlando, and he only played in 47 games in his first four seasons. He was traded to the Phoenix Suns in 2007 and has been playing a little bit better, but he still is not worth the BIG money.
No. 9 Rick Pitino
2 of 10
In 1997, the Celtics signed Rick Pitino to a seven-year, $70 million contract, but Pitino wasn't a player—he was the coach. The legendary University of Kentucky coach was brought in to bring the Celtics back to glory.
The exact opposite happened, as the Celtics failed to make the playoffs in his four-year tenure. He was fired in 2001.
No. 8 Larry Hughes
3 of 10
Larry got $70 million for five years from the Cleveland Cavaliers to make him the right-hand man for their franchise player Lebron James. Well, Larry really didn’t help Lebron, and Lebron didn’t help Larry...and now look at Cleveland. They’ve lost Lebron to the Heat.
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No. 7 Ryan Leaf
4 of 10
Ryan Leaf may be the biggest bust in NFL history. The Indianapolis Colts almost picked Leaf over current superstar Peyton Manning with the first overall pick in the 1998 Draft. Instead the Chargers chose him with the second pick and signed him to a four-year, $32.5 million contract. Leaf lasted only four unproductive seasons, while Manning became the best player in the game.
No. 6 Rick DiPietro
5 of 10
In 2006 the Islanders signed Rick to a 15-year, $67.5 million contract. The team continues to lose every year, and Rick always seems to be injured.
No. 5 Michael Vick
6 of 10
Michael was given a $137 million contract for 10 years with the Atlanta Falcons, and he did not disappoint anyone on the football field. However, he did end up disappointing everyone on the streets.
Michael ended up going to prison for two years for running a dog-fighting ring. Fortunately for the Falcons they didn’t have to pay him his salary anymore.
No. 4 Alex Rodriguez
7 of 10
A 10-year, $252 million contract from the Texas Rangers had to be really disappointing when A-Rod was unable to lead the team to the World Series. It was just bad news for Texas, as they ended up trading Alex to the Yankees where Alex won the MVP twice and went on to win the 2009 World Series. Texas even had to pay $67 million of A-Rod’s contract with New York… Oops!
No. 3 Ben Wallace
8 of 10
In 2006, the Bulls thought they needed a big man to fill a gap so they made Ben a $60 million contract over four years. After a few injuries and only a six-point average per game, the Bulls soon realized that this was a huge mistake. They traded him to the Cavaliers in 2008, eating $30 million.
No. 2 David Beckham
9 of 10
The five-year, $250 million dollar contract to bring soccer star to the States worked just as much as Posh bringing back the spice in her girl band career. The LA Galaxy fans are angry with David, and they don’t even want him back after David seemed to be only a part-time player who was injured most of the time.
No. 1 JaMarcus Russell
10 of 10
In 2007 the Raiders handed Jamarcus a $68 million contract over sx years. He was picked No.1 overall at the 2007 draft and was expected to bring life back to the Raiders as a franchise quarterback. One problem… he doesn’t care about football anymore. He gained weight immediately after the draft and now weighs 300 pounds. He’s been cut, and the Raiders will have to eat millions.
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