For all of the underpaid NBA players, there is a list of guys who may be underperforming based on how much money they’re making.
Some years, max contracts are given out and players are not ready to make it to the required level that the money demands they play at.
Here’s our crack at 10 players who aren’t up to snuff in 2024-25:
10. Bruce Brown, $23 Million
GettyBruce Brown.
2023-24 stats:
- 67 games
- 27.9 minutes
- 10.8 points
- 4.2 rebounds
- 2.9 assists
- 0.9 steals
- 47.8% FG
When you help lead a team to a championship, you’re going to get offered some big bucks by other teams to come join. That was the case with Bruce Brown, who helped Denver win a title in his lone season there, then got the bag from the Indiana Pacers.
They were looking for leadership and found it in a guy who was a key cog on a winning bunch. But the problem is, $23 million for a guy who puts up 12-5-3 is a lot of moola. He wound up being flipped to Toronto in the Pascal Siakam trade.
Brown’s contract will expire at the end of the season. For now, he’s a veteran leader with the Raptors.
9. Tobias Harris, $25.3 Million
GettyTobias Harris.
2023-24 stats:
- 70 games
- 33.8 minutes
- 17.2 points
- 6.5 rebounds
- 3.1 assists
- 1.0 steals
- 48.7% FG
- 35.3% FG
On paper, Tobias Harris put up some pretty decent stats during his time with the 76ers. The team gave him $180 million after bringing him in from the Clippers, choosing to pay him long term. His numbers stayed pretty much the same during his five-and-a-half seasons in Philly.
He averaged just 9 points per game in the first-round series with the Knicks on 8.5 shots/game, though.
Fans were a bit underwhelmed with Harris, who landed in Detroit on a two-year deal valued at $52 million. With a $25 million price tag in 2024-25, Harris has work to do in order to prove he’s worthy of that payday.
8. John Collins, $26.5 Million
GettyJohn Collins.
2023-24 stats:
- 68 games
- 28.0 minutes
- 15.1 points
- 8.5 rebounds
- 1.1 assists
- 0.9 blocks
- 53.2% FG
- 37.1% 3PT
Utah Jazz power forward John Collins has not quite been the same player that the Atlanta Hawks had for six years. He has continued to be a solid floor spacer, rim protector, and shot maker inside, but has not had the same effect with his new team.
He played 28 minutes a game last year and put up solid numbers. But they weren’t doing much to contribute to wins. He’s in a weird spot battling for time with rising star Walker Kessler and playing on a team valuing a youth movement (Collins is a ripe old 27).
The nearly $27 million tag is a lot for a guy who won’t see as many minutes as he’s used to.
7. Isaiah Hartenstein, $30 Million
GettyIsaiah Hartenstein.
2023-24 stats:
- 75 games
- 25.3 minutes
- 7.8 points
- 8.3 rebounds
- 2.5 assists
- 1.2 steals
- 1.1 blocks
- 64.4% FG
Health will be the big question for Isaiah Hartenstein in OKC. Coming off a career-year with the Knicks, he signed a 3-year, $87 million deal to join the Thunder on their quest to win a championship.
The team started Chet Holmgren at center last year but were pretty small around him. The goal was to install a big frontcourt, moving Holmgren to the power-forward spot to pair 7-footers, similarly to how the Cleveland Cavaliers do things.
The reason this would be an overpay is that Hartenstein is missing the first six weeks. This one can be re-evaluated later on.
6. Malcolm Brogdon, $22.5 Million
GettyMalcolm Brogdon.
2023-24 stats:
- 39 games
- 28.7 minutes
- 15.7 points
- 3.8 rebounds
- 5.5 assists
- 44% FG
- 41.2% 3PT
After winning 6th Man of the Year in Boston during the 2022-23 season, Malcolm Brogdon could not stay on the floor in Portland. He got hurt during his time there, and it affected him in the playoffs.
He was serviceable across 39 games for the Trail Blazers, but the best ability is availability, and it marked the second time in three years he played fewer than 40 games.
After having thumb surgery, he’s likely to miss at least the first month in Washington. Paying a lot of money to oft-injured guys carries a lot of risk.
5. Bradley Beal, $50.2 Million
GettyBradley Beal.
2023-24 stats:
- 53 games
- 33.3 minutes
- 18.2 points
- 4.4 rebounds
- 5.0 assists
- 1.0 steals
- 51.3% FG
- 43% 3PT
Bradley Beal has proven himself as a walking bucket. His final years with the Wizards showed just how good he can be as a scorer and playmaker. The problem though, is the amount of money he’s making.
Set to make $50 million this year and over $53.5 million next year, Beal is the third option on the Phoenix Suns. Kevin Durant and Devin Booker also have max contracts but have been available when needed.
To pay your third option, who also missed 29 games last year, that much money is, well, different. Phoenix also got swept in round one.
Around the league, Beal’s big price tag is seen as one of the league’s worst.
4. Joel Embiid, $51.4 Million
GettyJoel Embiid.
2023-24 stats:
- 39 games
- 33.6 minutes
- 33.1 points
- 10.2 rebounds
- 4.2 assists
- 1.0 steals
- 1.7 blocks
- 54.8% FG
- 33% 3PT
Calling a guy who won MVP two years ago “overpaid” could be seen as absurd in some circles. But considering how often Joel Embiid gets injured, he does unfortunately have a spot on this list.
Embiid missed 43 games last year. He missed the entirety of his first two years in the league. And he was operating at less than 100% in the first round of the playoffs.
The team brought in Paul George to help ease the burden so Embiid can have even more rest. Unfortunately, though, the Cameroonian is slated to miss at least the first week of Philly’s 2024-25 season.
Embiid always performs when he is on the court. But $51 million is a lot for a guy who has a hard time staying game-ready.
3. Zach LaVine, $43 Million
GettyZach LaVine.
2023-24 stats:
- 25 games
- 34.9 minutes
- 19.5 points
- 5.2 rebounds
- 3.9 assists
- 45.2% FG
- 34.9% 3PT
Zach LaVine has been nothing short of excellent during his time with the Bulls. Unfortunately, they have only one playoff performance to show for it. He and Lauri Markkanen were the centerpieces the team got when they initially shipped Jimmy Butler to Minnesota.
He appeared in just 25 games last year before knee troubles shut his season down. In the games he played, he performed worse than in any other year during his Bulls tenure, averaging under 20 points per game.
The two-time All-Star is back on the court, but with his game being seen sometimes as one-dimensional, they haven’t been able to find a trade partner.
LaVine can fill it up. But on a re-building team, they’re looking for assets. Should he get traded elsewhere, perhaps LaVine can still perform.
But his rep has fallen a bit. The team has slipped. And with a $43 million contract this year, he’s seen as overpaid.
2. Ben Simmons, $40.3 Million
GettyBen Simmons.
2023-24 stats:
- 15 games
- 23.9 minutes
- 6.1 points
- 7.9 rebounds
- 5.7 assists
- 0.8 steals
- 58.1% FG
There is a whole saga to justify why Ben Simmons was guaranteed a top-three spot on this list. Ever since Game 7 against Atlanta back in 2021, things have completely changed for him, for the worse.
He passed up a wide-open dunk in the late stages of the loss that ended the season. And he never suited up for the team again. Back problems and holding out kept him out of the lineup in 2021-22.
And in the two years that followed, he logged just 57 games in Brooklyn — with the team paying $40 million this year for a guy who can barely stay on the court.
Simmons doesn’t look like the All-NBA, All-Defense player he once was. Not being able to produce on the rare occasions he’s out there gives him one of the worst contracts.
1. Kawhi Leonard, $49.2 Million
GettyKawhi Leonard.
2023-24 stats:
- 68 games
- 34.3 minutes
- 23.3 points
- 6.1 rebounds
- 3.6 assists
- 1.6 steals
- 0.9 blocks
- 52.5% FG
- 41.7% 3PT
Kawhi Leonard is a sensational player when he’s on the court. He’s been a Finals MVP twice, and DPOY on two occasions. There’s little he can’t do on either end of the floor.
But since coming to the Clippers, he’s missed a whole lot of games, and an entire season. He comes into this year nowhere near ready to suit up, and was also taken off Team USA’s roster before the Olympics began.
There is even a lawsuit involving his recovery period from the team’s former trainer. It’s getting a bit messy, and may continue to.
If Leonard comes back healthy, he could be lowered on the list. But paying $49 million for a player hardly available is difficult to justify. If LA wants to have any success in their new arena, it will hinge on Leonard being able to play.
Think other players deserve a spot on the list? Weigh in in the comments section.
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10 Most Overpaid Players in the NBA