With rumors of the Knicks willing to shell out an absurd $38 million to sign guard Arron Afflalo—who averaged just 10.6 points per game in his partial season with Portland last year—it could only mean one thing: The NBA free agency spending extravaganza is upon us.
Outside of the draft, the free agency period is the one time of year when struggling teams can be instantly turned into contenders with a few good signings—and average players can land superstar contracts that cripple the franchises they play for.
More often than not, once the players are available to sign with anyone, multiple owners jump into the bidding (thinking they can quickly upgrade their teams), the bidding reaches an absurd level, and the initial excitement over signing players soon turns to regret when they hit the court and reality sets in.
This is how a 32-year-old Ben Wallace got a four-year, $60 million deal in 2006 with Chicago or how Rashard Lewis landed a six-year, $118 million contract in 2007 with Orlando. Or how a couple of botched Knicks free agent signings like Jerome James (five years, $30 million in 2005) and Jared Jeffries (five years, $30 million in 2006) happened.
