Ranking 10 worst NBA free agency signings ever, including Ben Simmons

After losing Paul George this offseason, it is not clear what direction the Los Angeles Clippers are headed. There was not going to be much of a market for James Harden this summer, so this was definitely an overpay. Harden is on his fourth team in four years, and throughout his career, he has never been the same player in the postseason. The 10-time All-Star averaged 16.6 points per game in 2023-24, his lowest since 2010-11, and his defensive inconsistency limits his value on the court at this stage in his career. With Harden under contract for the next two seasons, it looks like the rebuild will have to wait in Los Angeles.

• James Harden stats: 24.1 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 7.1 APG, 44.1% FG, and 36.4% 3FG

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When the Brooklyn Nets signed Kyrie Irving to play alongside Kevin Durant, the franchise gave up on its promising young core of D’Angelo Russell, Jarrett Allen, Caris LeVert, and Spencer Dinwiddie. In hindsight, it was not worth the gamble, considering that the duo played just 74 games together and, following the addition of James Harden, the trio only won a single playoff series. Irving was limited to just 20 games during his first season with the team, and with all of the turmoil with the front office, it is safe to say this experiment was a failure.

• Kyrie Irving stats: 23.6 PPG, 4 RPG, 5.7 APG, 47.4 % FG, and 39.3% 3FG

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There is no denying that Rashard Lewis was one of the best three-point shooters of his era, but at the time, $118 million was a lot of money to pay a player who averaged just 16.3 points per game. At one point during his stint with the Orlando Magic, he was the second-highest-paid player in the NBA. Even though he was listed as a 6-foot-10 power forward, he was a below-average defender, with a defensive rating of 105.3. He played just four seasons with the Magic before being traded to the Washington Wizards, and while the two-time All-Star was a very solid player, he never lived up to that contract.

• Rashard Lewis stats: 14.9 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 1.7 APG, 45.2% FG, and 38.6% 3FG

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When the Philadelphia 76ers signed Ben Simmons to a five-year, $177 million rookie extension, the franchise was paying him based on the potential he never lived up to. He struggled to stay on the court and never developed a consistent jumper. Simmons was expected to become a franchise cornerstone in Philadelphia, but he never played out that contract, as he was traded to the Brooklyn Nets. Coming out of LSU, his potential was through the roof, considering he was compared to Magic Johnson and LeBron James on draft night. He has not improved since his rookie season and has been limited to just 57 games through two seasons in Brooklyn, averaging just 6.1 points per game.

• Ben Simmons stats: 14.4 PPG, 7.8 RPG, 7.4 APG, 56% FG, and 13.9% 3FG

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After being rewarded with a four-year, $70 million contract with the Trail Blazers, Evan Turner averaged just eight points and three assists throughout 217 games in Portland. As a 6-foot-6 undersized small forward, Turner struggled from three-point range (29.4%) and did not play well off the ball. Following this contract, he did not have any seasons where he averaged double-digits and was traded to the Atlanta Hawks shortly after.

• Evan Turner stats: 9.7 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 3.5 APG, 43.4% FG, and 29.4% 3FG

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Considering he started in only 22 games during the 2015-16 season with the Toronto Raptors, Bismack Biyombo received this massive four-year, $72 million because of his contributions in the playoffs. However, this was a terrible deal for the Orlando Magic since Nikola Vucevic was the franchise center. The organization brought in Biyombo to come off the bench, but he played just 163 games with the team, averaging 20.2 minutes per night. While he was a solid rim protector, he could not score outside of the paint and was unplayable at the end of games because of his poor free-throw shooting (55.3%).

• Bismack Biyombo stats: 5.1 PPG, 5.9 RPG, 0.7 APG, 53.5% FG, and 0% 3FG

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Allen Crabbe was a solid role player with the Portland Trail Blazers, so a strong season in 2015-16 earned him a four-year, $75 million. Once that contract was signed, the 6-foot-6 small forward played just one more season in Portland before being traded to the Brooklyn Nets. Other than being a threat from three-point land, Crabbe’s contributions on the court were limited. That is a ton of money for a one-dimensional player who averaged double-digits just once before receiving this lucrative contract.

• Allen Crabbe stats: 9.1 PPG, 2.8 RPG, 1.1 APG, 42.5% FG, and 38.7% 3FG

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Not only was this an insane amount of money for the Washington Wizards to give Bradley Beal, but the contract included a no-trade clause, meaning the team could not trade Beal without his permission. This was a lot of money for a player who never reached the conference finals, although he played alongside some NBA greats, John Wall, Russell Westbrook, and Paul Pierce, who was in the later years of his career. The signing limited the flexibility of Washington’s future, and as talented as Beal was on the offensive end of the floor, he was a defensive liability. It was evident that the franchise was not going to go far in the playoffs building a team around Beal, but towards the end of his time in D.C., teams knew he wanted out. That made it more difficult for the organization to get a massive haul in return for the three-time All-Star.

• Bradley Beal stats: 21.9 PPG, 4.1 RPG, 4.3 APG, 46.3% FG, and 37.5% 3FG

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After solidifying himself as a key bench piece for the Cleveland Cavaliers squad that made back-to-back NBA Finals in 2015 and 2016, Timofey Mozgov signed a four-year, $64 million deal with the Los Angeles Lakers. It did not take long to realize this was a bad deal for the franchise since Mozgov played just 54 games and saw just 20.4 minutes per game. Mozgov made a name for himself playing alongside LeBron James in Cleveland, where a ton of his production came in the pick-and-roll action, but he played just two more seasons, averaging only 5.8 points.

• Timofey Mozgov stats: 6.8 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 0.6 APG, 53.5% FG, and 19% 3FG

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The worst contract in NBA history came when Chandler Parsons signed a four-year, $94 million deal with the Memphis Grizzlies in the summer of 2016. Parsons, who was never an All-Star, was injury-prone, as he played over 70 games just twice during his nine-year NBA career. As good as a shooter as he was, Parsons was streaky at times and was not a great on-ball defender. Limited to just 95 games in Memphis, Parsons put up just 7.8 points and 2.3 rebounds per game before being traded to the Atlanta Hawks to finish out his NBA career. With that being said, he was brought to the Grizzlies to play alongside Mike Conley and Marc Gasol to help them compete for a championship, but his inability to stay on the court made this a terrible financial decision for the organization.

• Chandler Parsons stats: 12.7 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 2.7 APG, 46.2% FG, and 37.3% 3FG

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