Ranking the best bargain contracts in the NBA this season

NBA Bargains: Nicolas Claxton

Prorated salary: $2.3M

Win Shares: 2.2 (equivalent to $8.1M, assuming $3.7M as a baseline)

Excess value added: $5.8M

Haliburton is #1 in my “excess value over salary” chart by a mile. Behind him at #2, however, is a perhaps surprising name: Nicolas Claxton.

Claxton has been a rare bright spot for the tumultuous Nets. His tenacious defense works perfectly in the Nets’ switch-heavy scheme, and he’s just as comfortable hounding ballhandlers on the perimeter as he is banging with the bigs down low.

Advanced stats like Estimated Plus/Minus and RAPTOR absolutely love him, and even his traditional box score stats are starting to look more impressive: He’s averaging 12 points, 8.6 rebounds, and nearly three steals and blocks combined while shooting a league-leading 73.4% from the field!

One note: it remains to be seen how Claxton and Ben Simmons can coexist. Per Cleaning The Glass, lineups with the two together have been outscored by opponents abusing the lack of spacing, but lineups with just one are outscoring opponents by between five and six points per 100 possessions, a strong number. As Simmons improves, it’s possible Claxton’s minutes could take a hit. Poor free throw shooting has contributed to several late-game benchings, as well.

But the Nets desperately need gritty role players who can defend a spectrum of positions and rebound the ball, and Claxton is one of the very few players on the roster who fits the bill. Nic has been a major driver of the small successes the Nets have found thus far, and perhaps it shouldn’t be a surprise that he is the best bargain in the league.