In 2015-16 Kobe had the highest salary in the league at $25 million.
He put up 17.5/4/3 with the 4th highest usage rate that year playing around 28 MPG. Shooting splits of 36/28/83 for the 7th lowest TS% in the league. Meanwhile, the lakers finished bottom of the West with a 17-65 record.
Looking at advanced metrics: 2nd worst plus minus per game, 4th worst defensive box plus minus, 7th lowest win shares and 2nd lowest WS/48 (both negative) and all of which are the worst among Lakers players that year.
I understand he was injured and it was a farewell tour but purely from a production relative to salary perspective is this the worst season by a player ever or would it still be better than e.g a star being injured all year or refusing to play but making the max.
Excluding the players who missed the season due to injury, Jon Koncak has to be up there.
The complete player salary records prior to the 1990-91 season aren’t available online (not even on Basketball Reference), but there’s a media outlet who made a top 10 list of the highest paid players for the 1989-90 season and Pervis Ellison, who ranks at 10th, was earning $2.400.000. Koncak’s salary for the season in question was $2.200.000, so he wasn’t far off from being a top 10 highest paid player that season.
He averaged 4/4 that season on 54 games played for a Hawks team that missed the playoffs.
thank you!!! the younger kids here forget about him!
also Benoit Benjamin in the early 1990s: (iirc, his agent was boxing promoter don King; his salary was in the 10-20 highest for thr league for a few years; he signed a big contract after averaging a double double in 90-91. his contract was a hot potato in the 90s (if i remember he had attitude and effort issues as well).
until maybe the late 90s, there wasnt a limit for long a contract could last; so some players (like him, danny ferry, koncak) had >6-7 year contracts that quickly went south, others (magic Johnson, ewing, david Robinson) were well worth the long term contract. (iirc, magic had something like a 10 year contract)
Fun fact, Shaq said his dad took him to a game where Koncak was playing just to point out how even unremarkable players can make life-changing money in the NBA. Basically said “See that dude? He’s not even that good and he signed for $13M”. So in a way Koncak’s contract motivated one of the best players in NBA history lol
Clip: https://youtu.be/Q-8Ob3o3sKE?si=aGBHKPgDYQMFQR1H
Or as Barkley would say, he averaged a single-single.
I’d honestly never heard of him before, looked him up and the man’s nickname was Jon contract 😂. Definitely up there, he even got decent minutes just did nothing
I know what I’m posting next “Best nicknames” thread. What’s worse is that the contract was an offer sheet from the Pistons and the Hawks still decided to match it.