NBA executive slams Duncan Robinson’s futile contract with Miami Heat: “With Robinson, he has a big deal, a long deal, and a bad deal”
Duncan Robinson caught criticism from a league executive on December 6, who essentially stated that the Miami forward is getting paid too much for too long.
Robinson agreed to a 5-year, $90 million contract in 2021, which was the largest deal for an undrafted player. At the time, Duncan had proved himself to be an essential supplementary unit of the squad, primarily due to his reliability.
Now, an Eastern Conference executive believes that Robinson’s reliability is wavering, and he is not deploying an effective enough level of play to match the value of his contract.
The Miami Heat are currently 10th in the East with 11 wins to 14 losses. The record is not entirely Robinson’s fault, but he is not helping the case with his performances.
The executive told Heavy.com’s Sean Deveny:
“With Robinson, he has a big deal, a long deal, and a bad deal … He has been really bad as a shooter, and we know he can’t defend, so what is he bringing to the table?”
Robinson is currently deploying averages well below his career standards.
This season, he averages 6.1 points per game compared to his career average of 11.5. Duncan Robinson’s field goal average is down from 43.1% to 35.6%, and his three-point average has gone from 40.2% to 31.6%.
Robinson was known for his reliable shooting at the time of his contract extension, and many fans feel he has simply not been meeting the standards for which he was signed.
The league executive explained that the Miami Heat are not the only team stuck with a poor contract. But did still throw some shade in Duncan’s direction:
“There are other big ones that are bad, like what the Knicks are paying Julius Randle or the Bens Simmons contract, but those are guys who have value because they can still produce.”
Eastern Conference executive blasts Duncan Robinson
“He has the worst contract in the league.”
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Duncan Robinson’s contract is ‘worst in the league’
Regardless of his current form, Duncan Robinson stands to be paid $16-$19 million a year until the 2026/27 season. With that, he is the 87th best-paid player this year and was the 84th best last year.
Most could argue that Robinson is not playing like a top 100 player at the moment.
If not, we break it down among the forwards: Robinson was the 34th best-paid forward this year and the 33rd last year.
Just for Miami: Duncan Robinson is currently the 4th best-paid player on the Miami Heat roster this year, well ahead of Jimmy Butler, Tyler Herro, Nikola Jovic, Bam Adebayo, Kyle Lowry, Victor Oladipo, Gabe Vincent, and Max Strus.
To think that Robinson stands before any of these players in salary at the moment seems crazy, especially when you realize that every player listed is averaging more points per game than Duncan Robinson this season.
The league executive finalized the point by saying:
“You can argue that, for its length, he has the worst contract in the league.”