OT: Wow! Deng got OVERPAID!

[bruno sundov]

They're paying him for what he will be, not what he's just been. Woulda thought this was obvious.

Not really. You are what you are after four years in the L. I mean he doesn't do anything great but he is getting paid like it. This is when the garunteed contracts of these players looks so silly. WHat has he done to deserve this money for the next 6 years!!! Or as Sham would say, what is going to do, to prove he is owed this money. My guess is not much more then what you have seen.


Ben Gordon should just be happy to have a job in the L. He shouldn't get half what Deng just got.

[Three34]

That's pretty backwards logic, to say the least.

Hardly. It's the case with most players first contract after the rookie contract expires. They wind up getting paid on projected incremental improvment. Given that Deng went backwards last year to a combination of injury and apathy, there's no reason why he won't go forwards again.

[JMillott]

Why are people calling him overpaid? He will be 23 next year and has been a 18/7/3 guy for two years, beyond that he plays excellent defense both man to man and team.

I don't think you guys understand the value in locking this guy up through the better part of his prime, this is the time to pay up to have a high quality player. Its the next contract after the this one where teams have to be more careful as many players breakdown between 29-33 and only a handful are truely able to maintain at that point.

[Truthiracy]

Pretty horrible deal, I'm afraid of what an actual good NBA player like Rondo is going to make when he's eligible for an extension. 85 mill?

[ChilliWilly15]

They're paying him for what he will be, not what he's just been. Woulda thought this was obvious.

That's pretty backwards logic, to say the least. All that does is give the players a false sense of entitlement based on their perceived upside. I actually think Deng's a good player, but his limitations have a tendency to be obscured by the terms "length", "upside", and "potential".

This is a pretty good post.

Deng is overpaid in the sense that everyone in the league is overpaid. In the middle of his contract it'll be quite likely that relative to the league average he's being paid fairly, and hopefully at the end of the contract it'll seem as if he's underpaid.

[ChilliWilly15]

Pretty horrible deal, I'm afraid of what an actual good NBA player like Rondo is going to make when he's eligible for an extension. 85 mill?

It appears as if I've underrated Rondo. I looked at some advanced stats, and it appears he's on track to be at deng's level as soon as next year.

[DelMonte West]

That's pretty backwards logic, to say the least.

Hardly. It's the case with most players first contract after the rookie contract expires. They wind up getting paid on projected incremental improvment. Given that Deng went backwards last year to a combination of injury and apathy, there's no reason why he won't go forwards again.

You're using those two factors as rationale for his new contract? The fact that you referred to his mental state as "apathy" is as big a red flag as you can find. Maybe it's residual carryover from the locker room (Gordon, Wallace, etc), but that's still a drastic change from the Deng I watched the previous years. You can set timetables for injuries, but apathy...I'd go into it more, but I just don't have the energy.

[DelMonte West]

Pretty horrible deal, I'm afraid of what an actual good NBA player like Rondo is going to make when he's eligible for an extension. 85 mill?

It appears as if I've underrated Rondo. I looked at some advanced stats, and it appears he's on track to be at deng's level as soon as next year.

He was probably talking about the difficulty in obtaining a young, efficient "true" PG compared to a wing position (not to downplay either player's talents).

[Three34]

That's pretty backwards logic, to say the least.

Hardly. It's the case with most players first contract after the rookie contract expires. They wind up getting paid on projected incremental improvment. Given that Deng went backwards last year to a combination of injury and apathy, there's no reason why he won't go forwards again.

You're using those two factors as rationale for his new contract? The fact that you referred to his mental state as "apathy" is as big a red flag as you can find.

Well obviously. But everybody went backwards, and everybody turned all apathetic. Can't get rid of everybody.

[Mahoney_jr]

Typical NBA career for good players of not-contending teams. That's just too much money to earn without the potential to be a No1 guy. But I like it as a Celtics Fan. Iggy will ask for the same type of money.

[Gomes3PC]

Iguodala > Deng anyways though. If Philly gets him at Deng money I think they'll be okay. Not sure why they signed him for so much, since it's not like Luol had a whole lot of other options. However, I'm sure the Bulls would've rather saved a million a year or so, but that's not going to make or break their salary cap. He's 23, with good upside as a do-it-all player.

The real problem with the Bulls is that they have a bunch of solid players and no stars. Especially no impact bigs. That's why I still don't get the Rose fascination. All of a sudden Kirk Hinrich is chopped liver? He had a bad year last year, but just a year ago he put 17-3.5-6, more than adequate. Meanwhile, they haven't had a legit post player during the entire Baby Bulls tenure, unless you like Eddie Curry's game.

Re-signing Deng won't solve the Bulls' problems, but letting him go would've hurt them more.

[Celtsfan1980]

I am probably the only one who feels this way, but I'd say he's being underpaid when you consider his potential. It'll be interesting to see how Chicago does next season. I expect Deng to play well again. Hopefully the Celtics will start signing longer contracts like these in the future.

[JMillott]

I think Luol Deng still has a very good chance at being a 22-7-3 SF who plays pretty good defense, this contract has just as much of a chance to be a bargin as it does to be an over-payment.

[GonzoLays]

Deng is the next Donyell Marshall/Lamar Odom. He can't create his own shot, he shrunk like a screaming violet last season when asked to carry the load, and has no consistent range on his jumpshot.

At best, Deng should have received a 7 mill a year deal. Too soft, too unskilled to deserve anything more. The only thing he has going for him is his height and athleticism. Plus, he is a mentally soft player.

Nix that, that guy is only an MLE player.

[ParticleMan]

If Posey deserves an MLE, surely Deng deserves his contract. He's way better than Pose. He's not a #1 guy, which was the problem last year. But #1 guys get the max. #2 guys, which is what Deng is, get the kind of contract Deng got. It's not out of line.