Deron Williams’ 5-Year Deal Viewed as Nets Worst Contract Ever

Every team has handed out huge contracts that immediately backfired, leading to an ugly parting; the Brooklyn Nets did that with Deron Williams in 2012.

Brooklyn -- New Jersey -- signed Williams to a five-year, $98 million contract ($19.6 million annually). Fastbreak Hoops (@FastbreakHoops5) believes that was the worst contract ever for the Nets.

Williams' 19.6 million annual salary was 33.77% of the 2012 salary cap ($58.044 million). That's what maximum contracts looked like over a decade ago.

The Nets believed they had a rising star in his prime. Williams averaged 21.3 points and 9.7 assists with the Utah Jazz in the 2010-11 season, and made the All-Star team.

Utah received an offer it couldn't refuse for the 25-year-old. Brooklyn's general manager Billy King sent Devin Harris, rookie Derrick Favors, a 2011 and 2012 first-round pick and $3 million in cash considerations to the Jazz for Williams.

That's an immense haul, and King made the same blockbuster move in 2013 for Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce.

King quickly paid Williams his maximum contract, and it paid off initially. The newly acquired star averaged 18.9 points and 7.7 assists in his first full season in New Jersey.

He made his third straight All-Star appearance, but from there on, everything started falling apart.

Williams regressed as a scorer and playmaker, going from 18.9 points to 13 and 7.7 assists to 6.6 over two seasons. Those are still respectable numbers for a starting point guard, but not for a star, which Brooklyn paid the premium rate for.

His regression led both parties to part ways, and Brooklyn bought out the remaining two years and $43 million of his contract.

Maximum contracts are always hit-or-miss investments for franchises. It can work out in their favor, and the general manager tries to build a contending team, or it doesn't, and they cut their losses early.

Brooklyn didn't sign another player to a max contract for the next several seasons. The team entered a rebuild after the Garnett-Pierce duo failed.

The Nets' next max investments: Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. They formed a lethal scoring duo in 2019 and added James Harden in 2021, elevating the team into contenders.

Sean Marks, Billy Kings' successor as general manager, offered Harden $161 million over three years, but he declined.

Marks traded all three in back-to-back seasons: sending Harden to the Philadelphia 76ers, Durant to the Phoenix Suns and Irving to the Dallas Mavericks.

The Nets likely won't have another opportunity to hand out a bad contract like Williams in the next several seasons, as they are in the midst of a rebuild.