Dion Waiters is set to become a restricted free agent following this season. While the entire basketball world will be talking about Kevin Durant and his impending free agency, Waiters is the name that fans should truly be keeping an eye on.
It’s easy to be frustrated with Waiters, but just take a look at these numbers: 33 points in 36 minutes and 62 percent from three-point range. Those are the stats Waiters put up in his last game with Thunder, and you know the old saying, you’re only as good as your last game.
While the NBA is a guard-driven league, there’s a noticeable lack of talent at the shooting guard position.
It’s over…
James Harden is considered to be the best two-guard, but with the Lil B curse over his head and a Kardashian around his arm, I’m not sure how much longer he can maintain the throne.
Klay Thompson is one of the best shooters, but his generic NBA 2K create-a-player look holds him back from being a star. Not even Lee Daniels could help Jimmy Butler be the best shooting guard. DeMar DeRozan plays in Toronto, and unless you’re a hockey team or Drake, no one cares about Toronto. Bradley Beal and the entire Wizards organization will become defunct once Donald Trump is in office, and Victor Oladipo can never be taken serious as long as his first name is a lie. And yes, I left off Dwyane Wade and Kobe Bryant on purpose because they’re both old and injury prone.
That leaves “Mr. 33 in 36” himself, Dion Waiters, left to reign as shooting guard king.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have to be very careful with how they handle Waiters and his contract situation this upcoming season. If they were smart, they would look to sign him to a deal right now. Anthony Davis, taken just three picks ahead of Waiters in the 2012 draft, signed a max deal worth $145 million over five years this offseason. Davis had comparable numbers to Waiters in his last game, 36 points in 40 minutes, but his team lost. That said, Davis is more polished defensively and a better rebounder than Dion, so even though he’s on the verge of being the best shooting guard in the league, $29 million a season might be a little too much.
Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, taken two picks ahead of Waiters in the draft, also signed a new deal this offseason. His deal is worth $52 million over four years. That’s a lot of money for a guy who didn’t play in the final 11 games of the season and whose best offensive numbers (10.9 PPG, 1.5 APG) aren’t even close to Dion’s worst numbers (11.8 PPG, 2 APG).
So now that we’ve established that “Check Please” should sign an extension between $13 million and $29 million per season, we must pinpoint an exact number.
If Waiters were to sign an extension tomorrow, it would probably be around $15 million per season. While he definitely deserves more than $15 million, it would be tough for OKC management to justify paying him more than Russell Westbrook given the numbers that Westbrook put up last season. However, once the season starts, all bets are off.
Here’s a predicted timeline of how much it’s going to cost OKC to re-sign Waiters throughout the season.
- Before the season starts: $14 million per year
- November 3rd, following a victory over the Rockets where Waiters outscores Harden: $15 million
- November 21st, following a victory over the Knicks where Waiters scored 50: $16 million
- December 18th, following a victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers where Waiters hits the game-winning shot: $17 million
- January 16th, following a five game stretch that sees Waiters average over 25 PPG: $18 million
- January 28th, following a four game road stretch that sees Waiters average over 30 PPG: $19 million
- February 15th, following All-Star weekend where Waiters wins the three point contest, the dunk contest, and All-Star MVP: $21 million
- March 19th, following a game where Waiters breaks the NBA record for most 3’s made in a game: $22 million
- April 13th, following the regular season that sees Waiters top all shooting guards in PPG, APG, and SPG: $25 million
Pay up now, Sam Presti, otherwise it’s going to cost you a lot more when the season is over.