En the NBA it happens that, from time to time, a team assumes a player’s contract thinking that he can be an important piece and ends up becoming a burden on the franchise salary mass that they continue to pay players who have not been part of their team for a long time or who have not been on the pitch for years of the American league.
It is the case of players like Chris Bosh or Kevin Garnett, two NBA champions and with the rank of superstars, who by clauses of their contracts continue to pocket millions of dollars despite having been retired for some time. But they are not the only players who continue to make money in the league even if they no longer play.
Sanders and Ellis, always about to return
Larry Sanders played his last game in the NBA on April 12, 2017 in a last attempt to go back to being that player whom the Bucks signed him a contract for 44 million of dollars and an extension that allows you to continue charging this season over $ 1.8 million despite being out of the NBA for more than four years. A league that was called to dominate, but in which it never became a reference because of its behavior.
Sanders’ case is similar to that of Monta Ellis, who these days has seen his name linked to the Lakers. The guard earned the label of being one of the best scorers of the last decade in both the Warriors and the Pacers, who signed a contract for 44 million dollars and that this season still charge two ‘kilos’ from the Indiana franchise.
Contracts to forget
One of the best known cases, and the one that raises the most blisters among fans, is that of Luol Deng. The player from Sudan is the sixth highest paid player of the Lakers who in 2022 will stop paying one of the worst contracts in the history of the NBA. Deng signed a contract for 72 million of dollars for four years in 2016, of which still five remain to be paid.
Another of the worst aging firms in the NBA and that also bears the Lakers signature is that of Timofey Mozgov, to which he put a contract of 64 million on the table. The Russian pvot never managed to convince the Los Angeles team. Transferred to the Brooklyn Nets, later his contract came to the Orlando Magic with whom he has not played a single game and will still be paid this season. 5.5 million dollars.
Joakim noah he landed in New York with the star volley and as one of the best defenders in the NBA. The Knicks offered him $ 72 million before trading him after two seasons and 53 games. The French player would later sign for the Grizzlies and Clippers, but he did not shine again as expected and after a last dance he retired in 2019, although He has yet to collect over six million dollars from his lucrative contract with the Knicks.
Garnett and Bosh, two unique cases
There are cases in which both the team and the player meet the contractual expectations and in which only an external circumstance forces the relationship to end. It is the case of Chris Bosh, recent Hall of Famer and two-time NBA champion with the Heat. The power forward was forced to leave basketball due to blood clotting problems but He is still charging (8.6 ‘kilos’ this next year) of the 118 million dollars who signed the Florida franchise.
Kevin Garnett He was NBA MVP and helped the Boston Celtics win their last ring in the NBA. Therefore, the Massachusetts franchise had no problem in signing a clause in its last contract for which it would pay $ 35 million in the first seven years after retirement.