All teams want to get a glimpse at the future, but the most they can do is to make educated guesses. Sometimes, the analysis is accurate and the long-term contracts tie the promising player to a team, benefiting both.
Other times, the money is spent on players whose performance drops or who get severely injured. Let’s take a look at some of the most expensive long-term deals that did not go very well for the teams.
John Wall
Just before 2017, John Wall reached an agreement with the Washington Wizards that would kick in when the 2019-2020 season started. The team would pay John $170 million over the course of four years.
When the contract was signed, Wall had a great season with an average of 23.1 points per game. The next season wasn’t too bad either, where his PPG was at 19.4.
Things looked promising for John Wall until he injured his Achilles in his own house, which lead him to miss the entirety of the current season.
The Wizards are currently paying $38 million to a player who isn’t able to play, but that’s part of the risk of such betting. The most disappointing aspect of all this is that the injury of such severity might compromise John’s game in the years to come.
Chandler Parsons
Parsons was never a true star, but he was good enough and averaged 13.7 points per game when the Grizzlies offered him a four-year deal that would pay him $94.5 million. The team believed that he would continue to grow and become a valuable addition to their roster.
But just like with John Wall, injuries might make the contract a waste of money. A number of knee surgeries led to him playing in just 95 matches in the three years he’s been with the team.
The stats aren’t as promising, either. The 7.2 PPG average is nothing to be excited about, so the Grizzlies gave the player to the Atlanta Hawks. Will Parsons ever get a similar chance is yet to be determined – by luck and by his determination.
Nicolas Batum
The Hornets offered Batum a five-year contract in 2018, with the total payout of $120 million. Batum was definitely a good player, but it’s questionable whether or not he was worth such a high price.
The first season for the Hornets was not the most fruitful one. Only 9.3 points per game led him to lose the spot in the main lineup. This season, Nicolas Batum played in 22 games and only in three of those he was in the starting roster.
With a devastating average of 3.6 points, Batum is definitely being overpaid for his performance.
Conclusion
It seems like some teams are just too quick to make decisions about certain players. It’s difficult to know about what might be going on behind the scenes, but we see what goes wrong on the surface.
Injuries, performance drops, bad luck – there are so many things that can negate the value of the high-dollar contract that signing someone for $100+ million, especially these days, is an extremely risky endeavor.
Which of these NBA contracts do you consider the worst? Tell us in the comments.
Also, you can read about LeBron James Feels like a Prisoner.
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