worst contracts in the NBA currently

[NKY fan]

here is my ranking currently:
(sorry spacing comes off a little and it doesn't look like a nice table)

Rk   Player              Tm   2020-21           2021-22            2022-23       2023-24        remaining = current/2 + sum of rest 1   Kevin Love               CLE   $31,300,000    $31,300,000    $28,900,000               $75,850,000 2   Russell Westbrook  WAS   $41,358,814    $44,211,146    $47,063,478               $111,954,031 3   Kemba Walker       BOS   $34,379,100    $36,016,200    $37,653,300               $90,859,050 4   John Wall               HOU   $41,254,920    $44,310,840    $47,366,760               $112,305,060 5   Blake Griffin       DET   $36,595,996    $38,957,028                                  $57,255,026 6   D'Angelo Russell    MIN   $28,649,250    $30,013,500    $31,377,750                $75,715,875 7   Andrew Wiggins      GSW   $29,542,010    $31,579,390    $33,616,770                $79,967,165 8   Tobias Harris      PHI    $33,517,241    $36,000,000    $38,482,759  $40,965,517  $132,206,897 9   Al Horford              OKC   $27,500,000    $27,000,000    $14,000,000                $54,750,000 10   Klay Thompson      GSW   $35,361,360    $37,980,720    $40,600,080  $43,219,440  $139,480,920

Blake might not be the worst contract but is most untradeable right now. Contracts below griffin are still tradeable but not easy to move. These are the type of contracts we are looking to take back if we are to trade Kemba now. To me the only one that make sense is Horford but can be talked into any of the other 8 (besides Kemba & Horford) if we are not giving away picks.

Conclusion Horford or Bust ...bust means keep Kemba for this year at least..

[footey]

Not bad, but John Wall's contract is worse than Kemba's. It just is.

[NKY fan]

Not bad, but John Wall's contract is worse than Kemba's. It just is.

Could be. It’s also possible that wall might fit better with the Js. I can be talked into any of the contracts as long as we are not giving away first rounders

[Birdman]

Wow! Great post TP... Love gotta be at Cleveland for awhile

[Wretch]

Not to be a homer but Kemba's contract isn't even in the top 10 worst contracts.  He was an all star last year and even injured he had good counting stats in the playoffs last year.  Do not mistake recovery from injury as "lost a step."  He is also trying to figure out how to transition from being the primary scorer/star to being a complimentary player to 2 rising stars. Ask Wade and Bosch how easy that was their first year with LBJ.

This C's team is maddeningly inconsistent and the team needed a full offseason and more practice time during the season than the COVID schedule allowed.  That combined with injuries and quarantines that have prevented the starting 5 from last years Conf. Finals team to play practically no time together (Zack Lowe reported in his Podcast last week 21 minutes) has made Kemba's situation look worse than it actually is.

Kemba may never be an All NBA player or even an all star (top 4-6 PG) but he's still very capable of being a very high level player (in the conversation for top 6-12 PG).  Most of the contracts you list are players that will never get close to All Star form again.

Edit: Steve Adams contract extension is very bad.

[NKY fan]

Not to be a homer but Kemba's contract isn't even in the top 10 worst contracts.  He was an all star last year and even injured he had good counting stats in the playoffs last year.  Do not mistake recovery from injury as "lost a step."  He is also trying to figure out how to transition from being the primary scorer/star to being a complimentary player to 2 rising stars. Ask Wade and Bosch how easy that was their first year with LBJ.

This C's team is maddeningly inconsistent and the team needed a full offseason and more practice time during the season than the COVID schedule allowed.  That combined with injuries and quarantines that have prevented the starting 5 from last years Conf. Finals team to play practically no time together (Zack Lowe reported in his Podcast last week 21 minutes) has made Kemba's situation look worse than it actually is.

Kemba may never be an All NBA player or even an all star (top 4-6 PG) but he's still very capable of being a very high level player (in the conversation for top 6-12 PG).  Most of the contracts you list are players that will never get close to All Star form again.

Edit: Steve Adams contract extension is very bad.

Griffin was playing at a superstar level after he got traded to Detroit and still most were saying he is one of the worst deals. Its just the way it looks right now. It is sad but Kemba reminds me of IT post Wizards' series.

[Jiri Welsch]

My big takeaway from this post (besides current anger toward Kemba which I think is too harsh) is that GMs mess up by paying guys for past performance rather than realistic future expectations.

[johnnygreen]

I would say Klay Thompson's is hands down the worst contract. If I remember correctly, this extension didn't kick in until after his injury, when they played Toronto in the Finals. He has not played a single second during this extension, and this season is year two of that contract. He has suffered two significant injuries to his legs, so he may never be the same player again.

The second worst contract is Tobias Harris. That thing is ridiculous. In no way shape or form is he a max player. He plays closer to a $15M player.

Sadly, Kemba does deserve to be on that list, as he is a shell of himself now. I'm still not convinced his issue is solely because of his knee. To me, he has been a completely different player since that Toronto playoff series. My biggest fear is it's a mental issue, almost like he lost his confidence.

[Moranis]

If, and I know it is a big if, Love is actually healthy when he comes back soon, I think he will no longer even be on the list.  He isn't that old and the last time he had consistent health - last year, he was still performing at a pretty high rate (17.5/10/3 on strong shooting splits).  with him being injured and the unknown associated with it, I get why he is at the top, but let's see what he actually looks like on the court in a few weeks. 

[Jiri Welsch]

I would say Klay Thompson's is hands down the worst contract. If I remember correctly, this extension didn't kick in until after his injury, when they played Toronto in the Finals. He has not played a single second during this extension, and this season is year two of that contract. He has suffered two significant injuries to his legs, so he may never be the same player again.

The second worst contract is Tobias Harris. That thing is ridiculous. In no way shape or form is he a max player. He plays closer to a $15M player.

Sadly, Kemba does deserve to be on that list, as he is a shell of himself now. I'm still not convinced his issue is solely because of his knee. To me, he has been a completely different player since that Toronto playoff series. My biggest fear is it's a mental issue, almost like he lost his confidence.

Yeah I thought the same. But he's such an insane shooter, I can see him being a serviceable player if he ever gets healthy. Definitely not worth that money, though.

He gives off Grant Hill vibes sadly.

[Wretch]

Griffin was playing at a superstar level after he got traded to Detroit and still most were saying he is one of the worst deals. Its just the way it looks right now. It is sad but Kemba reminds me of IT post Wizards' series.

Griffin had a long injury history before the signing and he was coming off of a an injury when he signed his contract. This is Kemba's first significant injury. No one thought Griffin was going to make it to the end of the contract without another injury. Well not everyone, Stan VanGundy obviously hoped Griffin would be OK.

[NKY fan]

If, and I know it is a big if, Love is actually healthy when he comes back soon, I think he will no longer even be on the list.  He isn't that old and the last time he had consistent health - last year, he was still performing at a pretty high rate (17.5/10/3 on strong shooting splits).  with him being injured and the unknown associated with it, I get why he is at the top, but let's see what he actually looks like on the court in a few weeks.

Not sure about that. He never contributed to winning with the exception of when Lebron was there. See how good Tristan has been in a winning situation without Lebron. Also there is no way he can stay healthy. We have enough evidence of that.

All these rankings can change during a season and as time remaining on their deals dwindles. At one point Chris Paul would have made the top of the list but he turned it around and his contracted years remaining went down. It is quite possible that Kemba turns it around and he drops off the list next year...

[Phantom255x]

Man Westbrook's is just SO BAD. They'll be paying him close to 50M in 2022-2023 

Same with John Wall.

[Moranis]

If, and I know it is a big if, Love is actually healthy when he comes back soon, I think he will no longer even be on the list.  He isn't that old and the last time he had consistent health - last year, he was still performing at a pretty high rate (17.5/10/3 on strong shooting splits).  with him being injured and the unknown associated with it, I get why he is at the top, but let's see what he actually looks like on the court in a few weeks.

Not sure about that. He never contributed to winning with the exception of when Lebron was there. See how good Tristan has been in a winning situation without Lebron. Also there is no way he can stay healthy. We have enough evidence of that.

Love is a great 3rd option and always has been.  He scores at an efficient rate, is one of the best rebounding PF's in the game, and is an excellent passer.  He played in 56 of the 65 games last year for the Cavs and had a TS% of 59.9 scoring 17.6 ppg, grabbing 9.8 rpg, and dishing out 3.2 apg.  He would be a very strong 3rd option for a contender if he is healthy.  That is of course the big if, but if you are getting that kind of production than 30 million isn't a terrible contract.  It isn't a great one, of course, but it just isn't terrible.  He would be really hard to acquire for a contender, but it absolutely could be done for some teams.   

Like Love in Philly could be deadly with him playing next to Embiid and Simmons in the front court (you just swap Harris for Love).  Or in Portland, where the Blazers could use Love given all their injuries (again if he is healthy).  Love for Nurkic, Jones, and Collins works financially.  Maybe the Cavs throw in a protected 1st or a young guy (it still works if Windler, Dotson or Wade is included).  Miami Love for Olynyk, Leonard, Harkless works financially and I think Love would be a great fit in between Bam and Butler. 

All of that is contingent on Love being healthy, but I think those are moves that at least make some level of sense for the acquiring team and the Cavs.  And Love is due back soon.  It isn't like he is going to miss the year. 

[gouki88]

Westbrook, Klay, Tobias Harris, Kevin Love and Al Horford spring to mind immediately.

Having a closer look and Porzingis, Steven Adams, Draymond Green, Gallo, Bogdan Bogdanovic and Rubio are others who are massively overpaid. So is Marcus Morris, Eric Gordon, Davis Bertans and Justise Winslow