3) Chicago Bulls with most on the line in 20-21
This season will go a long way to figuring out what the value of the veteran 27-year-old 6-foot-8 and 200 pound small forward Otto Porter Jr. will be entering the final bit of the prime years of his career. OPJ is not likely to get a similar contract next offseason to the one he’s on now, that was originally signed back in July 2017. That deal that the Washington Wizards signed OPJ to back during the 2017 offseason was for four years, worth around $106 million in total.
During the offseason, OPJ opted in to the final year of his current contract. He had a player option, that since he picked up, is worth around $29 million this season. He is by far the highest paid player on the Bulls current cap sheet. Even if he doesn’t come back with the Bulls next offseason, he’ll need to perform well this season to not at least cut his next salary in half compared to where it is at now.
While the three-and-D wing skill set that OPJ brings to the table is very valuable in the modern NBA, he’s definitely not living up to the hype of the money he’s getting on his current contract. A borderline max deal is not the type of money that OPJ’s production in the last few years should be garnering. That’s why this season is so crucial to the future of his contracts and overall role in the NBA.
If OPJ remains healthy throughout the 2020-21 season, and returns to the level of production and efficiency he showed at least two or three years ago, then his value will go up once again. But since landing in Chicago at the 2019 trade deadline, OPJ was only able to play in 29 games. Last season, he played in just 14 games with the Bulls (nine of which he started in).