This year’s NBA free-agent class features plenty of potential difference-makers, including a handful of big names who’ve been at or near the top of the league for over a decade.
As a rising group of stars begins to assert its control over the league, these standard-bearers of the last several years have a shot at one last big deal.
Much of that old guard can be found below, but first, a word on what qualifies these inclusions.
These are players who actually have a chance at at least one more big payday. So, someone like Russell Westbrook, who’s already had a smaller salary for a few years, won’t be here.
There’s also a bit of projection at work. We’re expecting the contracts these stars get this summer to be their last big one. So, while there’s a chance this is 30-year-old Pascal Siakam’s final big contract, he could have one more when he’s 33 or 34.
Now that the stage is set, let’s get to the actual names from this year’s class.
DeMar DeRozan’s last contract came as a bit of a surprise. Three years and $81.9 million felt like a lot for a 31-year-old who’d long struggled with defense and scoring efficiency, but he had one of the better three-year stretches of his career on that contract.
As a member of the Chicago Bulls, DeRozan averaged 25.5 points, 5.1 assists and 4.7 rebounds with an above-average true shooting percentage.
And after DeRozan had had a distinctly negative impact on his teams’ point differential over the first 12 years of his career, the Bulls were plus-0.4 points per 100 possessions with DeRozan on the floor and minus-1.4 when he was off.
So, even though DeRozan turns 35 in August, there’s a chance someone gives him one more hefty salary for a year or two.
In the right role (ideally surrounded by plenty of defense and shooting), DeRozan’s ability to draw fouls and score from the mid-range could be helpful.
Even if it doesn’t come from the Los Angeles Clippers, there’s still a pretty good chance 34-year-old Paul George signs a max contract this summer.
The Philadelphia 76ers are one team that’d reportedly give him such a deal. And even at his age, it’s not hard to see why.
George doesn’t move quite like he did 10 (or even five) years ago, but he’s still one of the league’s more rangy and switchable defenders. And he has one of the more portable offensive games of any big-name free agent.
George looks comfortable playing on or off the ball, and his high-volume three-point shooting would make him a good fit alongside any ball-dominant star.
During his five seasons with the Clippers, George averaged 23.0 points, 4.5 assists and 3.1 threes, while shooting 39.7 percent from deep.
James Harden turns 35 in August. And in recent years, we’ve seen plenty of stretches in which he looked slow on defense and used more of a battering ram than a first step on his drives.
But even at his advanced age and with his declining athleticism, Harden is still one of the game’s best creators and distributors. He sees the floor as well as anyone. And his manipulation of defenses as a pick-and-roll ball-handler has more to do with craft than explosiveness.
Whether it’s the Clippers or someone else, at least one team is going to give Harden a significant deal to run its offense.
This season, as the clear third option behind Kawhi Leonard and George, Harden put up 16.6 points, 8.5 assists and 2.6 threes, while shooting 38.1 percent from deep.
LeBron James will turn 40 in December. And though he played at an All-NBA level this season, his career has to come to an end eventually. Maybe. Right?
We’ve seen LeBron do one-plus-one contracts in the past (a two-year deal with the second year being an option), but a more straightforward two- or three-year deal could potentially be his last.
And even at his age, he’s done more than enough to ensure his last few years could be played for a max salary.
This season, he put up 25.7 points, 8.3 assists and 7.3 rebounds with a 6.5 box plus/minus, the highest mark in NBA history for an age-39 (or older) season.
On top of age, Klay Thompson is dealing with another factor that could make his next contract his last big one.
He’s 34, but he also has a ruptured Achilles and torn ACL in his basketball past. All of the above has impacted his on-ball defense. He’s no longer the lockdown option on the perimeter he once was, but there are still plenty of reasons for teams to pursue him.
He has good size for a wing defender, and he’s still one of the game’s most dynamic floor spacers and catch-and-shoot threats.
Over the last three years, Thompson has averaged 9.7 three-point attempts per game and hit 39.7 percent of those attempts. Stephen Curry is the only player in the league who matches or exceeds both of those marks over the same span.