Piggybacking off of my last article, where I dove into the top five best contracts in the NBA, today I decided to look into the five worst contracts in the NBA. We all know how much the aprons have restricted teams, and how team building has changed so much. Each and every move a team makes nowadays matters more than ever before. Front offices have to be selective with how they give out money to players, in order to keep a good cap sheet in place. Nevertheless, we see teams give out questionable contracts all the time (cough cough Gary Trent Jr). Some of these guys are getting paid some big money in comparison to their production and value.  Which leads me to my point today, of diving into the worst contracts in the league for this upcoming season. Go ahead and give it a read and let me know what you guys think. Also, I am a Bulls fan, so you know damn well that Patrick Williams is on this list.

 

#1 – Paul George

Contract: 4 Year – $211,584,940

26-27 Salary: $54,126,380

Unc PG comes in at the top of my list today. I don’t feel great doing this, because I love Paul George and remember those old Pacer days where he was going toe to toe with the big three in Miami. The problem is we are in 2026 now, and Paul George will be going into his age 36 season where he will be worth 32% of the Boston Celtics Salary Cap. That percentage of the cap is given to the stars who can carry a team, and Paul George is nowhere close to that at this point of his career. I’ll give him some credit for the last playoff run, where he was unguardable vs the Celtics, which is maybe why they were okay doing the JB trade for him lol. Regardless, the Sixers giving PG this money was never the right move, and now the Celtics are taking hit for this contract. 

 

#2 – De’Aaron Fox

Contract: 4 year – $221,707,584

26-27 Salary – $49,488,300

Coming in at #2 on this list, might have a little bit of recency bias. Fox was an all star last year, and was a big part of the Spurs team that went to the finals (more so in the regular season). Fox was also playing hurt in the playoffs last year, but nevertheless we all have eyes. Steph Castle and Dylan Harper are the future for the Spurs backcourt and with that finals run last year, the two are obviously good enough to start together for next season. Problem is now, the Spurs are looking at four years of a pricey ascending contract that will cost them 31% of their cap room. The Spurs luckily have some time before they have to pay Harper and Castle, but I think every basketball fan in the world wants to watch Dylan Harper take that leap next year with Wemby. Unfortunately for us, this Fox contract is under water and will not be movable anytime soon. 

#3 – Patrick Williams

Contract: 5 year, $90,000,000

26-27 Salary – $18,000,000

Oh man this one hurts me to write, because I will admit, I did fall for the baby Kawhi comparisons for P Willy. Let me tell you from watching this man first hand for years now, that this brother can’t play (insert Stephen A Smith’s Kwame Brown gif). One of the many mistakes from the AKE Bulls era was taking Patrick Williams with the fourth overall pick in the 2020 NBA draft. Missing out on guys like Deni Avdija and Tyrese Haliburton is brutal, but the major problem with this, is the doubling down on the pick, and giving Patrick Williams this brutal contract. Though the percentage he makes is much smaller than the guys above, at 11% of the Bulls cap sheet, the man is nearly unplayable. The man averaged 7 Points, 3 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game. Brutal counting stats for his $18 Million contract, but the worst stat of them all is his (-345) Plus/Minus last season… He is just atrocious and will probably be out of the league after his contract is up with the Bulls. Dude was showing us his flower shop when he got drafted, should’ve known what we were in for from there. 

 

#4 – Gary Trent Jr.

Contract: 4 year, $64,000,000

26-27 Salary – $15,200,000

Coming in at number four is the contract that is probably the most talked about in the league right now. Gary Trent just signed a 4 year $64 Million dollar contract with the Bucks, after coming off of his worst season since his rookie year all the way back in 2018. Gary Trent Jr. averaged 8 points per game, 1 rebound and 1 assist while shooting 36% from three. Pretty ugly numbers for a guy getting the full mid level exception for four years. Going into his age 28 season, Trent’s game is no doubt on a decline, and the rebuilding bucks decided to give him this contract hmm… The contact is real fishy, and is currently under investigation by the NBA. Many believe a handshake deal was in place, in which the Bucks would give him money as part of him signing for cheap last year when the Bucks were in a salary cap pinch. This contract is just very strange and nowhere near what Gary Trent’s value is. I’ll be interested to see what the league finds, because this contract makes absolutely no sense to give to Gary Trent Jr. 

 

#5 – Trae Young

Contract: 4 year, $212,799,690

26-27 Salary – $49,488,300

My last bad contract for this upcoming season is one that I think will have some shades of De’Aaron Fox real soon for Wizards fans. Trae Young opted out of his final year of his contract, to reup an extension in Washington and will now be one of the veteran leaders for this young Wizards core, alongside Anthony Davis. I understand what the Wizards wanted to do by bringing in Trae, which was to get a star to a place that none of them ever wanted to come to. My problem with the deal and why I compared it to Fox is, Washington has so many young guys that will need the ball in their hand to develop. Guys like Dybantsa, Tre Johnson, Will Riley, KyShawn George and Alex Sarr. Though Trae should be able to generate good looks for these guys, he will dribble the air out of the basketball and limit the opportunities for others. Coming in at nearly 30% of the Wizards cap for the next four years, is just brutal for a guy you know won’t give you anything on the defensive side of the ball, and will be brought up every single possession of a playoff game to come guard the ball. This contract is way too much for liking, and will be one that the Wizards will probably regret in a couple years.

 

I appreciate you guys giving this read, let me know what you guys think and if you think any other contracts in the NBA should have made this list. The league has gotten much smarter with money over the years, but there will forever be guys who are undoubtedly overpaid and not worth the value that they are being paid. Good think the Bulls don’t make any of these bad decisions anymore…. I hope, in Bryson we trust.