The 1st annual Jimmy Awards: 10 worst contracts in the NBA
10. Evan Turner – three-years, $54 million remaining
Unlike many of the names on this list, Evan Turner isn’t bad at basketball. Just 16 months ago, he was arguably the fourth best player on peppy, 48-win Celtics squad. He has shown the ability to run an offense for stretches of a game. That’s useful!
Not only was he the secondary ball-handler after Isaiah Thomas, but he shot a respectable 48% on two’s during his last year with the Celtics, made more impressive by the fact that only 30% of those makes were assisted – a lower number than even Thomas.
So what the hell happened last year? It’s a bit of a mystery. The team had a negative net rating when Turner shared the court with Lillard and when Turner shared the court with McCollum. Yet in the 382 minutes all three were on the court together, they were plus 1.5.
The problem starts with the fact that Turner is a wing who is neither a shooter – he has just over 200 career threes made in 7 seasons – nor a stopper. There’s a place for those types of players in the league, but not at this cost for this many years.
Still, of any of the players on this list, the former Buckeye has the best chance of anyone at rehabbing his value. A creative coach and a roster in need of playmaking would theoretically pose a natural fit.