Fansided

Tony Parker and Hornets both lose with his new deal

By Rucker Haringey

LOS ANGELES, CA - APRIL 4: Tony Parker #9 of the San Antonio Spurs handles the ball against the Los Angeles Lakers on April 4, 2018 at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - APRIL 4: Tony Parker #9 of the San Antonio Spurs handles the ball against the Los Angeles Lakers on April 4, 2018 at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Tony Parker was a member of the Spurs organization for 17 years. Signing a two-year deal with the Hornets will significantly damage his legacy in San Antonio

Generally speaking, free agency deals in the NBA either benefit the player, the team, or ideally all parties involved. Tony Parker’s decision to sign a two-year contract with the Hornets is a serious rarity.

This is a deal where there are no winners.

Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN and Shams Charania of Yahoo reported the two-year deal will pay Parker $10 million. That’s a significant overpay by Charlotte’s front office. They certainly need a backup point guard to cover for Kemba Walker, but they should have moved for a player with more potential upside.

At best, the Hornets can hope \Parker will replicate his level of play from last season. That was hardly a display of exceptional basketball. He averaged 7.7 points per game to go along with 3.5 assists but he only posted a PER of 12.7. There’s a reason Spurs coach Gregg Popovich was giving more and more minutes to Dejounte Murray. Parker’s inability to make threes or guard opposing point guards make it almost impossible for him to be an adequate NBA backup. The Hornets overpaid Parker in terms of dollars and years.

Ordinarily, in situations like this, you can feel good about the player’s ability to garner a contract north of his market value. While Parker certainly did this, the move is still a net negative for his career. Spending 17 years with one organization is a rare thing. He had a legitimate chance to retire after playing his entire career in one place. Parker could have joined Tim Duncan and David Robinson as legends who only wore the Spurs uniform.

The Frenchman will still be listed as a Spurs legend for life, but moonlighting with the Hornets is going to add an ugly chapter onto the end of his career. Parker isn’t the first player to make this mistake, but it doesn’t make his choice to play somewhere else any smarter.

The right solution to this whole mess would have been for Parker to either accept a minimum deal from the Spurs or retire gracefully. Parker’s chosen to do neither of those things. Instead, he’ll play out two seasons for the Hornets where he’ll make some decent money but will struggle to perform as even an average NBA backup. That will be a sad end for a player who is almost certainly destined to be a Hall of Famer.

Next: How much does Dwight Howard help the Wizards?

Neither the Hornets nor Parker are going to benefit from this contract. It’s a significant failure on behalf of both parties. Parker should have retired after only playing for the Spurs and the Hornets should have signed a younger point guard who might be a part of their future plans. Instead, this might go down as one of the worst transactions of the summer.

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