10 most valuable contracts in the NBA
By Bryce Olin
4. Kevin Durant (5 years, $86.2 million)
While the speculation about Durant returning home to Washington D.C. has already started to swirl, the Oklahoma City Thunder have one of the best players in the league on one of the best contracts in the league. Fresh off his MVP season, Durant should not be the fourth most valuable contract on this list, but there’s no other way to avoid it. Some other teams have better contracts. What can I say?
OKC has Durant for two more seasons, at least, and he’s going to be making $39.1 million over those two seasons. You might be asking, “How is that contract of value then?”
And, the answer is pretty simple: Durant is that good. Durant is so good, and so much better than the other players on the list, that he can overcome more than $15 million in salary to compensate for his larger cap number.
| Season | MP | FG% | 3P% | FT% | TRB | AST | STL | BLK | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013-14 ★ | 38.5 | .503 | .391 | .873 | 7.4 | 5.5 | 1.3 | 0.7 | 32.0 |
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 8/22/2014.
Durant is the best pure scorer in the league. I’ve got another guy in mind that I think it the best overall shooter, but Durant is definitely the best at scoring the ball, and he’s got four NBA scoring titles to prove it.
Last season, Durant averaged 32.0 PPG and took on the bulk of the scoring load after Russell Westbrook missed 36 games due to another knee injury. Durant’s play during that stretch without Westbrook cemented him as one of the most valuable players in the league, regardless of the price tag, and definitely the MVP of last season.