A tens of millions of annual salary was wasted! Who is the most regrettable for these four stars who bet on the wrong value of their own?

This summer, some NBA stars have to face a situation where their value plummeted. For example, Lillard, who was reimbursed for a torn Achilles tendon in the playoffs, and after being cut by the Bucks, he still had to rest for a season. Even if he could guide the Bucks in the next few years, he would still get the high salary he paid by the Bucks, but the contract he signed with the next new team will definitely not be too high. He stood on the court again after returning from injury. Lillard was already 36 years old at that time. Like Bill, after being bought out by the Suns, Bill will also seek a new next company. His original contract is too premium. He has been very frustrated with the Suns in the past two years. The data has declined severely. In addition, he is older, Bill's next contract will also be greatly reduced. In order to join other stars and join a championship team, even a basic salary is not bad for Bill.

Before this, Westbrook also experienced such a situation. He completely lost his value during the Lakers' time, with an annual salary of 47 million yuan, which directly reduced to a basic salary of less than 800,000 US dollars (In 23 years, Westbrook was traded to the Jazz by the Lakers, and then cut off by the Jazz to become a free agent. The Clippers provided him with a basic salary contract of 785,000 US dollars in one year). Of course, the decline in value of Coach Li, Bill and Westbrook was also forced to suffer. Due to injuries, their age and ability declined, they did not have the opportunity to get a high salary again. There are still some stars in the league. Their value plummeted is not passive, but by themselves. They give up their high salary, which leads to their lower and lower values. They bet on their wrong value. Who is the most regrettable for the following four stars who bet on their wrong value?

Cousins ​​refused to 40 million for two years and signed 5.3 million for one year at the end of January 18, Cousins ​​suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon in the Pelicans' game against the Rockets and was reimbursed for the season. At that time, he was at the peak of his career and was also a contract year. In the 48 games before his injury, Cousins ​​averaged 25.2 points, 12.9 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 1.7 steals, 1.6 blocks and all-around data. After Cousins ​​was injured, the Pelicans offered him a two-year, $40 million contract extension, but Cousins ​​decisively refused. He believed that as the best center in the league, this offer was a humiliation to him. After refusing the Pelicans' contract renewal offer, Cousins ​​originally expected to find a maximum salary in the free market. His ideal contract is 175 million in five years, but the reality is cruel. Due to the serious Achilles tendon injury, no team is willing to provide him with a big contract.

There was no team even and was willing to give him the offer offered by the Pelicans. In anger, Cousins ​​made a decision that shocked the entire league and joined the Warriors with a one-year, 5.3 million middle-class special case. According to his later recollections, the decision was out of the "revenge of the whole alliance". Ironically, Cousins, who joined the Warriors, was attacked by more and more injuries, and his ability took a sharp turn for the worse. His goal was to retaliate against the entire league, and the Warriors also ended that year and lost to the Raptors in the finals. In the following years, the former league's No. 1 center forward continued to lose himself on the downhill, and eventually fell to the point where he had no ball to play. In a later interview, Cousins ​​expressed his regret for his decision. If he was given a chance to make a new choice, he would not refuse the 2-year 40 million US dollars offered by the Pelicans.

Oladipo refused to sign 112 million for four years and signed 18 million for two years, like Cousins, Oladipo was also a star whose ability dropped sharply due to injuries. After Paul George left the Pacers, Oladipo had the opportunity to take over the banner of George and become the new generation of master in Inn City. In the peak season of 17-18, he averaged 23.1 points, 5.2 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 2.3 steals per game, winning the honors of the All-Star + Best Lineup + Best Defensive Team + Fastest Progressive Player + Stealing King. The turning point occurred in January 2019, when Oladipo suffered a serious injury from a tendon torn, and his condition declined significantly after returning one year. Considering his potential injuries, the Pacers did not provide Oladipo with a maximum salary renewal, but also offered a four-year contract of over 110 million yuan, but Kumaba still refused.

In this way, Oladipo went to the Rockets with Harden's trade. Before the Rockets' efficiency was not as good as before, his old injuries frequently recurred, and later he was traded to the Heat. During the Heat, Oladipo tore his right quadriceps in a dunk and was reimbursed again for the season. He then signed a contract renewal with the Heat for only 2 years and 18 million yuan in a basic salary. After moving to many teams, he was cut by the Grizzlies in February 2024. He was facing unemployment at the age of 33. Until now, no team has given him an olive branch.

Schroeder refused to sign 84 million for four years and signed 5.9 million for one year, and the former two are different. Schroeder's plunge in value was not due to injuries. After joining the Lakers in the summer of 2020, Schroder's data was not particularly outstanding, and he averaged 15.4 points, 3.5 rebounds and 5.8 assists per game. However, considering his scarcity of attributes, the Lakers really need a defender who can hold the ball to help James share the pressure, so he wanted to use a long-term appointment to lock this guard with a pro-star strength, providing him with a four-year contract of 84 million. Judging from his perspective at that time, the contract was already a bit premium, which was simply worth it to Schroder. Unexpectedly, he finally rejected it. According to Schroeder later, he believed that he could get a more important role in the team. He thought the Lakers could defend their title successfully that year, thereby enhancing their value. His agent also suggested that he refuse to renew his contract.

The result is that Schroeder started high and closed low that season, playing worse and worse, and the Lakers were also eliminated in the first round of the playoffs. Schroeder rejected a 84 million contract, which has become a laughing stock in the entire league. Other teams are basically unwilling to accept him, and the Lakers' idea is naturally: if you don't want toast, you will not be fined for him, and you will not be willing to offer him a big contract again.. In the end, only the Celtics gave Schroder a 1-year basic salary of 5.9 million yuan with a try attitude. Schroder only woke up at this time. If he didn't sign this basic salary, he might not have played any balls, and finally chose to join the Celtics with a basic salary. From the current perspective, Schroeder's rejection of 84 million was a loss, and his value plummeted. The Lakers later traded Westbrook, and his role was not as good as Schroeder. Of course, Xiao Hei is also inspiring enough. In recent years, he has also regained his value.

Noel

Refused to sign 40 million for 4 years and signed 4.1 million for 1 year

Noel's story took place in 2017. At that time, Mavericks boss Cuban provided Noel with a four-year, $70 million contract renewal, which was a pretty generous offer, especially considering Noel's data performance at the time - averaging 8.7 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game in the 16-17 season, and was already quite good as a substitute center. But Noel rejected the contract at the advice of his agent Ritchie Paul. Paul Fu told him that if he first accepts the Mavericks' qualification offer of $4.18 million in one year and then tests the free market again in the summer of 2018, he can seek a large contract of $100 million.

The result was contrary to expectations. Noel's performance declined in the 17-18 season, averaging only 4.4 points, 5.6 rebounds and 0.7 blocks per game. In the summer of 2018, only Thunder offered him a basic salary contract of 4.1 million yuan. Since then, Noel's career has taken a sharp turn. From 2017 to the present, Noel's total salary in eight years is about $31.35 million, less than half of the $70 million. It is worth mentioning that Noel later sued his agent Paul, believing that he caused his losses of $58 million. But the court dismissed Noel's lawsuit. Since then, his career has also declined. When he was cut by the King in 2023, his guaranteed amount was only $300,000. In fact, a star like Noel who is a defensive leader is indeed easily affected by Waterloo. It was precisely because of injuries in 2018 that Noel's defensive advantage was greatly weakened and his offensive effect was even smaller, so his value plummeted.

Which of these four stars who bet on the wrong value is the most regrettable?