The WORST Contract On Every NBA Team's Payroll Right Now

With us being in the middle of the offseason, we're all familiar with what goes down during this time. Teams are trying to retool their rosters to the best of their abilities, to prepare themselves for the upcoming season, and the ways they can go about doing that oftentimes comes down to the amount of money that they are paying the players on the roster. Roster construction is like a game of Tetris, you have to figure out how to fit all the pieces on the team together to the best of your abilities within the constraints of the salary cap, and more often than not, there are salaries that make life difficult, which brings us to today's video. Today we'll be going through all 30 NBA teams, identifying the worst contract on their payrolls right now based on how much money the player is being paid compared to their actual production. With that being said now, let's dive right in. We'll start with the teams in the east and then move over to the west after, so first up we have Atlanta Hawks, and their worst contract is Corey Kispert's 2 year contract, worth $27 million. Corey Kispert falls under the category of being a supposed sharpshooter, who doesn't actually provide what sharpshooters are supposed to do. Throughout his career, he has had one season where he's made 40 or more percent of his threes, the rest of the time he's hovered closer to league average percentage wise, and is coming off of a season where he just shot 36% from three, which is just not good enough for a guy being paid specifically to shoot the basketball, because of his limitations in other facets of the game. Next is the Boston Celtics, and their worst contract is Paul George being paid $110 million over the next two years. The Celtics shocked the basketball world this summer when they decided to not only offload Jalen Brown in a trade, but to trade him for Paul George in the process. George is in the conversation for having the worst contract in the entire NBA, being paid a super max deal, while giving you role player caliber production at this point in his career, all while being severely injury prone too. He's played less than half of the games in the last two seasons, and while he is still capable of producing some high level moments, they're far too inconsistent and sporadic to justify paying him $55 million annually. Before we get into the video though, recently a judge ordered Meta and YouTube to pay millions for their role in designing and promoting addictive platforms. They knew their apps could contribute to anxiety, depression, and body image issues, but they did not share those risks while prioritizing profits. The recent historic verdict underscores the consequences of those decisions. So if you or your child grew up on social media and experienced serious mental health struggles, this is something you should hear. Now Morgan & Morgan is stepping up to hold these platforms accountable for the harm that they have caused. Go down to the link in my description and take a free quiz, yes free, and you may be entitled to a potential recovery of over $1,000. Now with that being said, let's get into the video. Next is the Brooklyn Nets, and their worst contract is Julius Randle making $69 million over the next two seasons. The Nets don't have many big contracts due to the current state of their rebuild, but they absorbed Randle's contract after the Timberwolves salary dumped him on them because they accepted the fact that it's hard to win with him in a prominent featured role. Randle objectively puts up good numbers in the box score, but his heliocentric style of play is really difficult to build around, so now he'll be on the Nets playing pressure-free basketball, putting up empty stats on a bottom feeder. Next is the Charlotte Hornets, and their worst contract is Dorian Finney-Smith making $40 million over three years. Finney-Smith signed this contract last offseason and then immediately fell off a cliff with his production on the court. He was previously a pretty serviceable 3 and D forward that could space the floor spotting up and defend well, but in Houston last year, he was downright dreadful, putting up three points per game, shooting 33% from the field and 27% from three, so realistically, he should be on a minimum contract with that kind of production. Next is the Chicago Bulls, and their worst contract is Patrick Williams making $54 million over three years. Williams is another player who signed a fairly hefty extension and then immediately, his play fell off a cliff on the court. Williams was actually a fairly efficient score while he was on his rookie contract, but over the last two years since he signed this extension, he has gone ice cold and is coming off of a season shooting 37% from the field and 34% from three, scoring just seven points per game. He was paid a contract reminiscent of someone who could be a strong two-way role player, maybe in the starting lineup or as a useful sixth man, but the reality is that his defense isn't nearly good enough to make up for how much of a negative he is on offense. Next is the Cleveland Cavaliers, and their worst contract is Evan Mobley making $222 million over four years. Mobley's inclusion on this list does not mean that I do not believe Mobley is an incredibly talented player. His contract just sticks out the most to me on the team as someone that may have one that's a bit excessive. Mobley is truly an elite defender, but offensively, his development hasn't quite reached the point where many were hoping that it would, as he's still way too inconsistent as a creator, and his three-point shot is very hot and cold. He's being paid a Supermax contract, which puts him amongst the highest paid players in the NBA, but I don't really think he's a true superstar by nature deserving of that much. Next is the Detroit Pistons, and their worst contract is Kevin Herter being paid $27 million over three years. Herter was re-signed by the team this offseason, but it felt like the Pistons were bidding against themselves for him, paying him more than was necessary. Based on how Herter performed last year, he's realistically someone deserving of a league minimum contract, as another player who is a supposed sharpshooter that couldn't really shoot the ball last year making just 30% of his threes, and he doesn't provide all that much in other areas to make up for that. Next is the Indiana Pacers, and their worst contract is Obi Toppin making $31 million over the next two years. The Pacers really don't have any actual bad contracts on their payroll if we're being honest, so Toppin becomes the choice by default as a player whose talents feel more replaceable than anything else. He's a great energy guy who runs the floor hard and thrives in transition next to Tyrese Halliburton, but he's a decent defender at best and a streaky shooter, and with players like Kelly Oubre now on the team and Jairus Walker developing last year, they have a logjam at the power forward position, also with Pascal Siakam starting and leading the way there. Next is the Miami Heat, and their worst contract is Nikola Jovic making $62 million over four years. Jovic is yet another classic case of a role player working hard in a contract year to secure a lucrative contract extension only to completely fall off immediately after putting pen to paper. Jovic was so bad last season that he was benched and completely taken out of the rotation down the stretch of the season. Again, he's being paid like a high-level quality role player while putting up just seven points per game, shooting an abysmal 36% from the field and 26% from three last year, and with the Heat now back in the mix in the Eastern Conference, there's no guarantee that he even plays regular minutes this upcoming season either. Next is the Milwaukee Bucks, and their worst contract is Gary Trent Jr making $64 million over four years. This is another contract that was given out this current offseason and it was such a bad deal that the NBA felt the need to investigate it for potential salary cap circumvention. Nothing about the season that Trent just had warrants a contract extension this lucrative as another supposed sharpshooter who shoots the ball at a league average rate while being pretty bad at most other aspects of the game. Next is the New York Knicks, and their worst contract is Karl-Anthony Towns making $118 million over the next two years. The Knicks are reigning NBA champions, so they don't care who is being paid what right now, and for good reason. Plus, they're another group without a truly egregious contract on their payroll, so Towns becomes the choice kind of by default. He's an all-star caliber center being paid a supermax contract set to make $61 million next season, making him one of the highest paid players in the entire NBA, but he's not necessarily a true superstar of the highest order with top-tier production, so that's why I picked him for this spot above anyone else on the team. Next is the Orlando Magic, and their worst contract is Paulo Banqueiro making $240 million over five years. Banqueiro's max contract extension just kicked in at the worst time, where he is fresh off of a season where there were real conversations being had about whether or not he's actually good enough to be the face of the franchise capable of being built around. He's on a slippery slope, becoming a player with a ball-dominant playstyle with a tendency to take a lot of bad, low-quality shots, and he's not very efficient at all either. He has clear talent, but it's not a guarantee that he'll reach his ceiling, and $240 million is a lot to commit to someone who may be a fringe all-star at best year after year. Next is the Philadelphia 76ers, and their worst contract is Joel Embiid making $188 million over three years. The story with Embiid is well-known by now. When he's healthy, he's one of the best players in the game and an absolute walking bucket, but every year he suffers a setback of some sort and his health is difficult to rely upon. With an annual salary of over $60 million, he's being paid to be one of the best players in the entire NBA, but he's only able to be that for about half of a season due to these health woes. Next is the Toronto Raptors, and their worst contract is Emmanuel Quigley making $98 million over three years. Quigley was paid this contract extension before having a true breakout season because the Raptors believed that he had the upside to potentially be an all-star one day, and they wanted to get ahead of it. Well, that gamble hasn't really paid off as he hasn't really improved much at all, and in some ways he's even regressed. He's a decent yet incredibly streaky starting point guard who struggles on defense and doesn't necessarily do anything at an elite level, so the deal that he's currently on feels like a slight overpay. Next is the Washington Wizards, and their worst contract is Trey Young being paid $212 million over four years. Trey was given this contract this offseason as a way to lock him into the team's future, but it's very difficult justifying paying Trey this super max contract of this magnitude after the season that he just had. Trey Young has been a polarizing talent even at his peak because of how difficult it has been to win around a player who is objectively one of the worst defenders in the league, and with him also coming off of an injury-riddled season where he played in just 17 games and averaged career lows across the board, the timing makes it even more questionable. Now over to the teams in the West, next up is the Dallas Mavericks, and their worst contract is Caleb Martin making $20 million over the next two years. The Mavs are another team without a truly bad contract on their payroll, so Martin sticks out kind of by default. He's coming off of a season where he put up a meager four points per game, fluctuating in and out of the rotation, so he's another guy who realistically should be on a league minimum instead. Next up is the Denver Nuggets, and their worst contract is Christian Brown making $125 million over five years. You'll notice a trend throughout this video that a lot of people play their way into big paydays only to almost immediately see a noticeable drop off in their play after they put that pen to paper, and Brown is yet another classic example of this. In 2025, he was one of the league's very best role players, averaging 15 points and 5 rebounds per game, shooting 58% from the field and 40% from three as the perfect floor-spacing wing with excellent off-ball cutting instincts and a smooth shooting stroke. Then, after he signed this massive extension, he followed that up by putting up 12 points per game, shooting just 30% from three, seeing his jumper go ice cold, and it's now a lot more difficult to justify shelling out this much money to him, also because he's now dealing with health issues and injuries. Next is the Golden State Warriors, and their worst contract is Jimmy Butler making $57 million this season before it expires. Butler is an unfortunate player to have to include on this list because he's not necessarily here because of his play on the court not warranting the money. He's here because he's currently injured and is about to miss almost the entire season this year, and at his age, even if he does return to the court late in the season, it's doubtful he'll be the same player he was prior to the injury, so paying someone a supermax salary to sit out and do nothing is objectively a lot of money down the drain. Next is the Houston Rockets, and their worst contract is Clint Capella making $14 million over the next two years. Again, it really isn't that bad of a contract in the grand scheme of things, the Rockets just don't have anything terrible on their payroll. Capella is clearly over the hill as a center though, who has lost his burst in athleticism that made him a great rim running and rebounding big for so many years, and at this point in his career should also just be on a minimum contract instead. Next is the Los Angeles Clippers, and their worst contract is Brooke Lopez being paid $9 million this season. The same things we just discussed with the Rockets also apply to the Clippers, their payroll's pretty clean all things considered, so we had to nitpick to find a selection for today's list, and Brooke Lopez came in as the choice for the same reasons that Capella became the choice last segment. Lopez is 38 years old, he's very clearly lost a step, and the things that made him such a high-end defender once upon a time and a two-way talent are fading fast at this point in his career. He's being paid well above the league minimum while providing production that really only warrants the minimum. Next is the Los Angeles Lakers, and their worst contract is Jared Vanderbilt making $25 million over the next two years. Vanderbilt has stretches where he can be a genuinely helpful role player because when he's at full strength he's a very strong defensive talent in the frontcourt with great instincts generating deflections and snagging steals, but for most of his Lakers tenure he just has not been able to stay healthy. Last year he was able to stay on the court most of the season and it just became clear that he's not going to give you much on the offensive end at all, which resulted in him falling out of the team's rotation completely in their playoff series against the Thunder. Next is the Memphis Grizzlies, and their worst contract is Jeremy Grant making $70 million over the next two years. Grant and his bad contract have been the trailblazers problem for the last few years, but they finally successfully moved him this offseason dumping his salary onto Memphis. Memphis are rebuilding now so they can deal with the payout without needing immediate results, but it doesn't change the fact that Grant has been a very hot and cold volume scorer over the last couple years who doesn't really rebound well, playmake, or play with as much effort on defense as he did when he was younger while being paid just shy of a max contract. Next is the Minnesota Timberwolves, and their worst contract is Dante DiVincenzo making $12 million this season. Under normal circumstances this would be a steal of a contract, so I hate to have to include it in today's video, but the reality is that Dante is out injured for a while, which means they're essentially throwing $12 million down the drain as he rehabs and then he's set to hit free agency next summer. Next is the New Orleans Pelicans, and their worst contract is DeJounte Murray making $63 million over the next two years. Murray's time in New Orleans has been pretty disastrous all things considered. His first year with the team he only played 31 games because he was constantly injured, and then when he was on the floor he was one of the least efficient players in the whole league while committing a lot of turnovers. This past year he only played in 14 games, once again hampered by injuries, and when you're paying someone over $30 million annually you're hoping he'll be one of your best players, not a net negative who's never available. Next is the Oklahoma City Thunder, and their worst contract is Isaiah Hartenstein making $75 million over three years. The Thunder are in a unique position where they were able to overpay a bit for a player they felt like they needed, which is what happened here with Hartenstein who they view as a key member of their frontcourt next to Chet Holmgren. There are just a few things that still result in me picking him for today's list. For one, Hartenstein is a strong rebounder and a necessary physical defender, but his production has never really been in the range to demand $25 million per year. Second, the Thunder's payroll has gotten kind of out of hand having to pay max contract extensions to their three best players already, and they've already prepared for the future of their center position by drafting Adai Mara and Thomas Sorber in back-to-back drafts, so paying Hartenstein only makes them face harsher luxury tax issues. Next is the Phoenix Suns, and their worst contract is Jalen Green making $72 million over the next two years. Green is another player who was given a big contract extension by his former team, the Rockets, under the assumption that he was on a star caliber trajectory, but never actually took that leap and is still being paid like he did. Green is an explosive scoring talent, but he's prone to incredibly streaky output, subpar efficiency, bad shot selection, ball hog tendencies, and some pretty bad defense. Next is the Portland Trailblazers, and their worst contract is Ja Morant making $86 million over the next two years. Morant was once on a superstar trajectory, but now he's approaching rock bottom where he was just salary dumped on the Trailblazers, where he hopes to get things back on track. The issue is that he's dealt with quite a few injuries including a hip injury that seems to have negated his elite athleticism a little bit, which is what made him so special in the first place. If he's not the blisteringly quick, explosive athlete in transition he used to be, then his star upside doesn't really exist to the same degree, and with him also fresh off of the worst season of his career, his contract still reflects that of the player he used to be. Next is the Sacramento Kings, and their worst contract is Keegan Murray making $140 million over five years. Murray is a rare example of a player who peaked as a rookie, and people have been desperately trying to convince themselves that he can still be that same player that he was back then, despite getting worse every year. Every season he has shot the ball worse and worse, to the point where he was one of the worst three-point shooters in the whole league last season, and there aren't any other parts of his game that he's really exceptional at, so to be paid like a high-end starter with possible all-star upside is one of the many bad contracts that's on this King's payroll. Next is the San Antonio Spurs, and their worst contract is De'Aaron Fox making $223 million over four years. This is easily one of the worst contracts in the entire NBA, with a real argument for it being the worst. Fox is fresh off of a horrific showing in the playoffs, where mistakes that he made game after game cost the Spurs several wins, his production is nowhere close to what it once was at his peak, and most notably of all, he's currently the one standing in the way of Dylan Harper, being more heavily featured at point guard when it's starting to become clear that Harper is already one of the team's best players after one season, so to pay a supermax for all of that baggage is a flat-out disaster. And finally, last up is the Utah Jazz, and their worst contract is Jaron Jackson Jr. making $205 million over four years. We're ending on a bit of a nitpick because the Jazz don't have any horrible deals on their payroll, but Jaron is still someone probably being overpaid because of his defensive player of the year season from a few years ago. He has not been as dominant of a defender over the last few seasons since that point, he's one of the worst rebounding big men in the entire NBA, and as someone who averages about 19 points per game on subpar efficiency, $50 million annually is probably too much for what he actually gives you. And with that being said, that's all I have for you today. Make sure to like the video, subscribe to the channel, and comment down below what you think the worst contract in the league is right now. Thanks for watching, and I'll see you all next time.