In sports, you are paid based on past performance as an indicator of future success.
Earlier, Dalton Sell was able to look at the most “underpaid” Milwaukee Bucks. Now, let’s reverse-engineer that. Another aspect that complicates athlete’s pay is that sometimes, teams have to “overpay” to fill a need or keep a veteran. (See the first two on this list.) This can be really true in the NBA, where teams sometimes can be pressured to spend money because” the devil they do know is better than the devil they don't.”
Plus, at the end of the day, it’s not my money! Of course, I wish it was, but it's not. That's why some of these fan debates can get pretty interesting. I’ll never own an NBA franchise! But just for fun, let’s look at the three most “overpaid” Milwaukee Bucks.
Khris Middleton
No one can argue Khris Middleton hasn’t earned his money. As an NBA champ, he has been an integral part of the Bucks’ recent success. He really has been Giannis Antetokounmpo's “Robin,” especially when you consider that Giannis is probably an even greater superhero than Batman.
But as for future performance, that is anyone’s guess.
Middleton has battled through a ton of injuries of late, so it is fair to say. He has needed ankle surgery, knee surgery and who knows what else. Simply put, he is getting older.
When you look at the numbers, it really can be quite staggering. It's a big number that stands out. Middleton is owed $31.5 million dollars this season And over $34 million next season! Middleton makes more than Olympian Jrue Holiday, Julius Randle, Tyler Herro, and Jalen Brunson. The Bucks would more than likely be a much better team with any of those four guys versus Middleton.
Middleton makes more than Nicola Vucevic, Myles Turner, and Jakob Poeltl. Then again, Brook Lopez makes more than Nicola Vucevic, Myles Turner, and Jakob Poeltl. But without Middleton's contract, this team would look a lot different.
No one can blame Middleton for getting paid. When we start to look at his projected stats for the upcoming 2024-2025 season, it does not seem like he's going to be able to justify that $31 million number. For that reason alone, he should be put as number one on our list of overpaid Bucks.
Sure, fans clamor that Middleton could be traded or moved for a different player or package of players. but at this point, it simply doesn't look like that is going to be the case.
Some NBA stat prognosticators have Middleton playing in 72 games and averaging around 18 points per game in the 2024-2025 season. That certainly is not worth $31 million dollars. However, if the Bucks are able to get that level of production, one would have to think they'd go much further than their new atypical first-round playoff exit.