Now that the NBA Draft is over, it’s time for executives to turn their attention to free agency. Here are free agents that are massively overrated.
There isn’t a ton of money available in the free agency market this year, but that won’t stop teams from overpaying certain stars. General managers who do have cap space available can practically feel it burning a hole in their pockets. It’s time to dive in and identify the players on the market who are significantly overrated.
Most of the players on this list will fall into one of two categories. First, they may be aging stars who will be demanding big contracts. This sort of player will provide solid value in the first year or two of their deals, but their contracts’ may become albatrosses later.
The second category is full of young players who ooze potential, but haven’t lived up to their hype due to injury. GMs looking to add stars to their teams will often convince themselves their medical staffs can change a player’s fate. It’s an understandable temptation, but it’s still not a wise choice.
We start this list by examining a point guard who’s going to be looking for big money, but shouldn’t get it.
5. Rajon Rondo
Any GM that pays Rondo big money at 32 years of age deserves to be fired. He had a decent season for the Pelicans last year, but his effectiveness was drastically overrated.
Rondo is the antithesis of what teams need in a modern point guard. His propensity to pound the ball into the floor can bring his offense to a grinding halt. The fact that he’s a complete non-shooter also ruins his team’s spacing. Don’t let his assist totals fool you, he’s not the sort of guard you want to build your team around.
Despite all that, his name recognition is going to get him a decent deal this season. It’s pretty likely he’s going to return to another tour of duty in New Orleans. He’ll be looking for a deal north of $10 million per season but he’s not worth half that number.