In the modern NBA, teams are no longer built through the draft, such as in other sporting leagues. In the modern era, players have more power than ever to pick and choose where they want to play. They can do that by forcing trades and refusing to play, or by waiting it out and playing the free agency game.
Teams become automatic contenders by signing a big name in free agency. Recent examples can include Kevin Durant to the Golden State Warriors, or LeBron James to the Los Angeles Lakers. However, not every free agency signing leads to an automatic championship. Here are signings that teams regret.
10 Dwyane Wade (Chicago Bulls)
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The post-Derrick Rose Chicago Bulls era started off with a bang. While they lost the heart and soul of their team, they decided to go out and get another big name to replace the point guard. They got that big star in the form of Dwyane Wade.
The Chicago-native’s time with the team was short-lived. Wade signed a two-year, $47 million deal, but wound up playing only 46 games for the team. He was released following his first year and wound up briefly reuniting with LeBron James, before eventually finishing his career in Miami.
9 Joakim Noah (New York Knicks)
By 2016, seemingly everyone knew that Joakim Noah was past his best days. Well, everyone knew that besides the New York Knicks front office, who offered the former All-Star a four-year, $72 million contract, which was blasted instantly.
Noah, unsurprisingly, didn’t play well for the Knicks. He played just 53 games for the team across two seasons before being released due to poor play.
8 Andre Roberson (Oklahoma City Thunder)
Andre Roberson was one of the best defenders in the league in 2017. The shooting guard had just been named to the All-Defense team and seemed like a core piece of the Oklahoma City Thunder when he signed a three-year, $30 million contract.
The Thunder surely regrets this deal, but not because of poor play. Just 39 games into his first year with the new deal, he ruptured his left patellar tendon, which saw him miss the entire next year. He only played seven games after the injury, not a lot of money was lost, but they still had to pay Roberson for doing nothing.
7 Gordon Hayward (Boston Celtics)
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Gordon Hayward seemed to be on the verge of breaking out into stardom in 2017. He was an All-Star and was given a four-year, $128 million deal by the Boston Celtics to be the star of the team for the foreseeable future.
Just minutes into his first game, he broke his leg. Due to the injury, he never got back to 100% as a member of the Celtics. All in all, the team wound up cutting their losses after Hayward’s third season in Boston. It truly is a shame that an injury ruined what could have been a very fruitful signing for the Celtics.
6 Ryan Anderson (Houston Rockets)
Ryan Anderson was a really good player in 2016. He was a solid scorer and would be a good option on any contending team. However, the Houston Rockets still massively overpaid for his services that year, as they gave him a four-year, $80 million contract.
Anderson’s play declined as he was forced into a starting role in Houston, as he had previously been a backup. His play was rough and was cut after his second season in Texas.
5 Jerome James (New York Knicks)
Jerome James had a solid playoff performance for the Seattle Supersonics in 2005. That deal led him to receive a borderline insane contract from the New York Knicks the following year, as he got a five-year, $30 million dollar deal.
The deal blew up instantly, as James showed up out of shape for year one. His play was mediocre in the first two seasons and missed the last two mostly due to injury. He was eventually shipped out of town in 2009.
4 Bismack Biyombo (Orlando Magic)
Similar to Jerome James, Bismack Biyombo was coming off a great postseason performance for the Toronto Raptors prior to his free agency. That good playoff run led him to get a four-year, $72 million contract from the Orlando Magic.
To his credit, Biyombo did have some moments in his three seasons in Orlando. However, his play was mediocre and was not worthy of the massive deal he got.
3 Chandler Parsons (Memphis Grizzlies)
Another contract given in the wild offseason of 2016 was Chandler Parson. After a solid run in Dallas, the Memphis Grizzlies gave him a four-year deal worth nearly $100 million. Yeah, he wasn’t worth that.
He struggled with injuries in Memphis and wasn’t great when on the court either. In the end, Parsons was cut after three years of meh play and is now regarded as one of the worst contracts ever.
2 Pau Gasol (San Antonio Spurs)
Pau Gasol was coming off a solid year in San Antonio. Just one year into his deal, the former All-Star was given a fresh three-year, $48 million deal, despite the fact that he was approaching his 40s, and was transitioning into a bench player.
Predictably this deal didn’t work out. He was released just one year into his new contract, having gone through multiple injuries, and showing his age on the court when he played.
1 Luol Deng (Los Angeles Lakers)
This contract is almost cheating. Luol Deng was a solid player in his prime but was seen past his best days when his stint in Miami ended in 2016. Despite that, the Los Angeles Lakers thought he was the perfect player for the future.
Deng was given a four-year, $72 million deal. He played just 57 games across two seasons before the Los Angeles Lakers realized just how badly they messed up and shipped him out of town.