Power Ranking the 10 Worst Contracts in the NBA
It's incredibly difficult to fathom that there may be no follow up to one of the most exciting seasons ever in the NBA due to the ongoing lockout. Keep in mind that this lockout stems from NBA owners pining for a reprieve on an era of players being grossly overpaid. Amazingly, all of this was greenlit by the very same owners who are jeopardizing the upcoming season.
While there are quite a few deals, that if given the chance owners would insist on receiving a mulligan for, here are ten that standout from the rest. There will be some shockers...
10) Kobe Bryant - Before you hit that "X" in the corner, take these numbers into account. 34, 1,311, and 84. Those numbers in order are Kobe's age, the number of regular and postseason games he's played in his career, and the millions owed to him over the next three years. It may be taboo to doubt Kobe, but it's good business sense to question if present day Kobe Bryant is worth $84 million dollars. Because it is Kobe, we'll only raise an eyebrow...for now at least.
9) Carlos Boozer - Sure he's only a year into his deal with the Bulls, but if given the opportunity to shred one contract, I guarantee the Chicago Bulls brass would unanimously agree it be Boozer's. Chicago is set to pay Boozer approximately $60 million over the next 4 years. That's absurd considering Boozer just spent a season missing in action when crunch time came because of injuries or poor performance. On second thought, I may be being a little generous ranking him nine.
8) David Lee - Take any phrase regarding suspect defense and it will apply to David Lee. Lee cashed in on the free agent frenzy in the summer of 2010 to the tune of $80 million dollars. With approximately $69 million owed to him over the following five years, Lee went from underrated and underpaid to overrated and overpaid in his cross country escape from New York to Golden State.
7) Brendan Haywood - The only thing keeping Haywood in the NBA is the dearth of size. Haywood looked and sometimes played the part of a legitimate big man for a month after being traded to Dallas in 2010 before Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle began to question his effort. After years of watching Erick Dampier give half effort receive full check, Dallas baffingly gave a younger version in Haywood, $55 million dollars for six more half/whole years. Making the contract all the more terrible, Tyson Chandler was acquired by trade a month afterwards, relegating Haywood to a rich reserve role.
6) Travis Outlaw - New Jersey entered the 2010 summer with plans to bring a small forward drafted in 2003 to their fold. Fortunately for Travis Outlaw, both Lebron James and Carmelo Anthony spurned all attempts by the Nets. Outlaw received $35 million from the Nets for what looks like it will be five years of mediocrity and being mentioned in trade rumors.
5) Ben Gordon - Gordon's 2009 playoff performance as a Chicago Bull catapulted him into a rich contract with the Detroit Pistons. Two seasons since with approximately $37 million left on his contract and the Pistons are still awaiting that Ben Gordon to show up. As of now, Gordon is the only one reaping the rewards of his being in Motown.
4) Joe Johnson - Expect Joe to ascend up this list yearly and to even repeat once he commandeers the top spot. No one benefit from the owners "intend to spend" ways more than Johnson last year. Of all the marquee names available through free agency last year, Joe Johnson of all people ended up the most compensated. The Hawks are on the hook to Johnson for $108 million over the next five years. Future Atlanta Hawk owner Alex Meruelo is definitely in favor of any revisions to the collective bargaining agreement that will allow Johnson's contract to be declared null and void.
3) Gilbert Arenas - Arenas contract has reached a bigger than life status. For the last three years Agent Zero's contract has been the NBA's resident albatross of a deal that no one wants. $63 million dollars for three years are all that's left from a six year $111 million dollar deal originally and that's still too much. Arenas descension to overpaid role player left him to where he was virtually un-tradeable, unless...
2) Rashard Lewis - Look no further than Lewis's bolt to Orlando if you're searching for a beginning reason for the ongoing lockout. Lewis will be the second highest paid player in the league behind Kobe Bryant for the upcoming season in question. Lewis hurriedly signed an $118 million dollar contract in 2007 for six years. Three years into the deal, the Magic had tired of Lewis and of course paying Lewis. He was traded to Washington for Arenas this past season where he was virtually irrelevant and eventually landed on the IR list. The remaining $21 million and $22 million Lewis is owed over the next two years is approximately $2 million and $4 million than the rest of the Wizards team for those seasons. Wow, would be an understatement after hearing that...
1) Brandon Roy - Roy doesn't deserve to be atop this list, but at the end of the day...it's a business. Doctors have gone on record to saying Roy has one or two years left in his knees. While Portland surely has an insurance clause on Roy, it's rendered useless if the player doesn't agree to bow out of the game, provided his career is in fact soon to be over. $69 million for four years is a large sum to owe a player with creaky knees. I'm sure everyone is rooting for Roy not to be on this list next year. Besides he's just keeping this spot warm for...
