[SmooveKRYPTParticipant]

Can we just talk about how bad that contract is for a moment.

Last offseason, coming off a torn achilles (worst injury in basketball IMO) Wes had multiple suitors willing to throw big money and starting roles his way. Toronto wanted him badly, but he wanted to be part of a package deal with DJ going to Dallas. When Jordan changed his mind and decided to stay with the Clippers, Cuban upped the initial offer Wes had agreed to in order to reflect the full max. Wes went on to put up his worst statistical season of his career (lowest fg & 3pt%, lowest PER, lowest true shooting%, lowest ft rate, and a negative net rating).

To start this year his percentages are even worse, PER is even lower, and his win shares and VORP are in the negatives. It’s not even just the numbers, the simple eye test will show you that Wes is a shell of his former self. He goes through prolonged shooting droughts where he can’t make a thing, has no burst off the dribble to get anywhere near the paint (hence his average shot distance getting farther and farther away from the basket), and he only had 2 dunks in 78 games last year.

I loved him on those Portland teams and there was no doubting his impact as a vocal and emotional leader, he’s as tough as it gets, and played hard on both ends of the floor. But the achilles seems to have taken away from his effectiveness (as it has to almost every other victim) and with 53+ million owed to him over the next 3 years I have to say he has one of the worst contracts in the league. As great as Carlisle is, Dallas is going to struggle to be anything over the next few years with their cap situation and the marginal offensive production they get from some of those high paid guys.

 

 

 

[JordoParticipant]

 I understand that since this new TV deal has made the cap rise dramatically but these owners shot themselves in the foot with some of these contracts. It’s like all the cap space they had was blown on contracts that hinder their franchise from making moves. And Cuban seemed to make an impulsive decision with Mathews since Jordan backed off.

[llperez]

I made a thread calling out the worst offseason deals after that summer. And I awarded Wes Mathews the title of worst even before he put on a mags jersey. Lots of people disagreed and said need kanter was worse but I still stuck with wes. An average player in every sense of the word coming off a injury. If he was worth a max then half the league is max.

[mavsatxParticipant]

 I cringe watching him take the worst 3 point shots at nauseum then make one finally and shoot an arrow at his bench. Come on Wes. Meanwhile, Carlisle plays him the most minutes in the league. Hate to put all the blame on Wes for the start of this season but 3/17 ain’t cutting it. I would just stop trying to shoot all the damn time if I keep on missing, idk. Just a very frustrating  player to watch. Liked him a lot in Portland… still like his hard nosed defense but these performances are taking us out of the game fast and early. Harrison is looking better tho…

[BiggysmallsParticipant]

 I’d happily take him over Nikola Pekovic at this point. That’s dead money that the Wolves are never getting something good for. 

 

 

[TRC1991Participant]

 I’d argue the worst is Solomon Hill’s. A "3 & D" player who can neither shoot from 3 or play defense yet he’s owed 50+ million over the next 4 years 

[MatosParticipant]

 Never understood the hype with Matthews. Even when he was hitting his shots, thats about all he did. Nowhere near a max level type player.

[BiggysmallsParticipant]

 Nobody ever said he’s a max level player. He’s a really solid player and in a market where less than solid players are getting paid bigger money, his value is boosted. 

Was giving him 15 mil after a torn achilles probably smart? Maybe not. But frankly I’d rather have 80% of what Matthews was in his prime over a majority of the guys that signed big fat contracts this past summer. 

 

[MatosParticipant]

 Wes Matthews signed that contract summer 2015. This summer, the cap went up which is why you saw Mozgov type signings. No excuse for Matthews to get that much money in summer 2015. 

[BeastMode716Participant]

 my bad

[BiggysmallsParticipant]

 What difference does it make when he signed the deal? Right now, Wes Matthews – assuming he comes back to what he’s always been – is a better bargain at 15 mil per year than most of the guys that signed contracts over the summer. 

At the time, 15 mil was too much. If the cap was still set at 58 mil, it would be too much. When the cap is between 90 and 110 mil, Matthews is on a really solid deal because he brings more to the table than a lot of backup crappy big men. 

 

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