Last summer, NBA teams handed out massive contract offers seemingly without any hesitation as a bloated salary cap made it seem as if there was no such thing as a bad contract. However, just one year later the salary cap number has been curbed substantially and suddenly there are a handful of teams that are in terrible positions based on the ridiculous contracts they have handed out. We looked at the five worst deals given to shooting guards over the past couple of years. Here is a look at the five worst NBA contracts at the shooting guard position.
Tim Hardaway Jr., Atlanta Hawks
Hardaway is still just 25-years-old and he has immense potential. However, there is a good chance he will never come a superstar and justify his massive contract. Hardaway is set to be paid $70.9 million over the next four years, which will represent almost 17-percent of Atlanta’s total cap space. The contract might be made worse by the fact that the Hawks are at the beginning of a major rebuild and it could take years before they are ready to contend again. Atlanta will have a tough time moving Hardaway because of his terrible contract. The deal will hurt the Hawks in more ways than one.
DeMar DeRozan, Toronto Raptors
How does a player that averaged 27.3 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game end up on this list? DeRozan is a three-time All-Star and he helped lead Toronto to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2016, but his massive contract is one of the worst in the NBA among shooting guards. DeRozan is set to make $111 million over the next four years. It’s hard to justify paying him that kind of money.
It’s not that DeRozan is a bad player and deserves much less, but at the same time, it’s hard to pay a player over $25 million a year when he isn’t a superstar and doesn’t elevate the play of his teammates like a LeBron James or James Harden. DeRozan is solid but he can’t really put this team on his back – at least not consistently. We see that in the playoffs where his scoring averages and shooting percentages go down when he has to face good teams every night.
Toronto might very well remain one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference. However, are they good enough to contend for a title with DeRozan as their best player? That’s unlikely, which makes his massive deal look even worse.
Victor Oladipo, Indiana Pacers
Oladipo has been traded twice over the last couple of years, moving from the Orlando Magic to the Oklahoma City Thunder and then to the Pacers. Indiana might be the best fit for Oladipo, but that doesn’t make it any easier to justify his massive contract. Oladipo is set to make $84.4 million over the next four years, which means he will be earning more than Kawhi Leonard and Jimmy Butler in 2017-18. Oladipo is a quality scorer that should be a good fit for the Pacers. That doesn’t mean he is worth the big money he will be paid next season.
Nicolas Batum, Charlotte Hornets
Batum is a reliable veteran that can contribute at both ends of the floor with his defensive play and three-point shooting. However, he is coming off the lowest field-goal percentage of his career and he isn’t getting any younger. That makes the $99.1 million he is set to earn over the next four years stand out even more among the worst contracts in the NBA. Batum can still be a serviceable, veteran role player. However, it’s impossible to justify the amount of money that Charlotte is set to pay him over the next few years.
Evan Fournier, Orlando Magic
Fournier cashed in big time when massive contracts were being handed out without hesitation last summer. The $68 million the Magic owes him over the next four years will create major salary cap concerns. Fournier averaged a respectable 17.2 points, 3.1 rebounds and 3.0 assists last season. There is no doubt that he is a capable contributor. The problem is that Orlando will have so much money tied up in him over the next few seasons. Fournier has the potential to put up solid numbers for the Magic over the next four years. However, even if he plays to his potential it will be difficult for him to justify the money that Orlando will be forced to pay him.
The 2017 NBA futures are out. It’s been a wild offseason already, but keep an eye on the betting lines as they move around at Diamond Sportsbook! Get the latest NBA betting lines right here.
