NBA 2019-20: 5 biggest expiring contracts this season

The NBA off-season has seemingly come to a standstill with most free agents having come to a decision as to which teams they will be playing for in the near future.

Still, there are a lot of players in teams that are in the final year of their contracts which makes them very good trade pieces. Teams in such scenarios take on a worse player and a young player who has a better ceiling, while the expiring contract can help in a title push.

Here are 5 of the biggest expiring contracts this season which teams will want to trade for.

#5 Chandler Parsons (Atlanta Hawks): $25,102,511 for the 2018-19 season

Chandler Parsons finally got away from Memphis

Chandler Parsons is probably the definition of a maximum contract gone wrong. After having 4 stellar seasons with the Houston Rockets and the Dallas Mavericks, he landed a maximum deal with the Memphis Grizzlies.

Parsons showed none of the promise and skill at Memphis, playing just 95 games in 3 whole seasons, with injuries and horrid form making his contract almost untradeable.

Last season, Parsons averaged just 7.5 points and 2.8 rebounds in 25 games played, averaging under 20 minutes a match. His fall from grace has mostly been attributed to a bunch of knee injuries, which took away a lot of his athleticism.

Parsons was one of the first versatile forwards in the NBA and had his game modelled for the modern NBA. His 6'10" size and elite shooting ability had vaulted him into rare company. He was averaging 15.7 points, 5 rebounds and 1 steal per game before signing the maximum deal with the Memphis Grizzlies.

No championship contender will be looking to trade for Parsons from the Atlanta Hawks right now as he has no upside for any team in his current state. If he can prove that his knee can hold up and that he can become a handy scoring option off the bench, it might pique the interest of a few squads.

#4 Marc Gasol (Toronto Raptors): $25,595,700 for the 2019-20 season

Marc Gasol was a key part of the Raptors' squad

Marc Gasol was a player out of place in what turned out to be his final season with the Memphis Grizzlies, a place where he and Mike Conley made their name. Gasol was about to be traded to the Charlotte Hornets but instead, he was shipped out to the Toronto Raptors.

He became one of the key players in the Raptors' squad as they marched their way to the 2019 NBA title, which was one of the biggest surprises of the season, and Gasol won his first ever title as well.

Gasol, though his offensive numbers have declined with every passing year, has still been the same reliable defender. He averaged 13.6 points and 7.9 rebounds a game. Gasol is one of the best passers of the ball from the post and continued that this season too, averaging 4.4 assists a game.

His numbers on defense were crucial for the Raptors, as he averaged 1.1 steals and blocks for the 2018-19 season. With the Raptors probably moving towards a full rebuild, Gasol becomes a really good proposition for championship caliber teams.

His contract of $25 million a year can be a big deterrent to most rosters, but those who need a passing big man with some of the best defensive game in the NBA, look no further than Marc Gasol.

#3 Hassan Whiteside (Portland Trail Blazers) $27,093,019 for the 2019-20 year

Whiteside is no longer a Miami Heat player

Hassan Whiteside received a maximum contract from the Miami Heat in the 2016-17 season, after breaking through the ranks in the 2015-16 and the Heat gave him a 4 year, $98 million deal.

Whiteside showed his skills with the Heat as a traditional big man, with solid scoring in the paint, along with his ability to crash the boards really well.

Whiteside is also a really good rim protector and has typically been one of the best players in the league when it comes to blocking shots. He had a career year in 2016-17, averaging 17 points, 14.1 rebounds and 2.1 blocks in 77 regular season games.

But the coming years haven't been as good to Hassan, as injuries and bad form led to a lot of people questioning his fit in the modern NBA and with Bam Adebayo being a younger and more athletic player than Whiteside, he was getting more court time than Whiteside.

In the end, Heat traded Whiteside to a dark horse contender in the Portland Trail Blazers, that needed reinforcements at the Center spot. Whiteside is capable of producing at the highest level and needs to keep his fitness in check so that the Blazers get their worth and Whiteside gets another chance at a big contract next year.

#2 Paul Millsap (Denver Nuggets): $30,350,000 for 2019-20

Denver Nuggets picked up their team option for Millsap

Paul Millsap has been one of the most consistent and somewhat underrated players in the NBA for the last 5-6 years. He has been the rock for both the Atlanta Hawks and now the Denver Nuggets, coming up with the goods right when it was needed.

He played 70 games last season but as age catches up with the 34-year-old Millsap, his minutes have reduced. He played just 27 minutes per game last season and yet was putting up some great numbers, averaging 12.6 points and 7.2 rebounds.

What Millsap lacks in flashiness, he makes up for it with his constant grind, both offensively and defensively. He is a floor stretching big man that can defend the rim as well as multiple positions, putting his versatility on display.

Millsap could be a useful player, come playoffs for a strong contender that needs a solid big man on the court, for example the Los Angeles Clippers.

He can shoot the 3 really well, creating space in the paint or he can clog up the paint and create space for elite shooters on the perimeter. Demand for Millsap will be high, but with Denver making a push for the title themselves, he will be a great complimentary player to their already solid lineup.

#1 Kyle Lowry (Toronto Raptors): $34,996,296 for 2019-20

Kyle Lowry has consistently been one of the top point guards in the league for the past decade and was most recently part of the Toronto Raptors team that won their first ever NBA championship and Lowry was a big contributor in their run.

Yet, with Kawhi Leonard gone, the Raptors might pivot towards a complete rebuild and Lowry then becomes one of the most wanted players in the regular season. But, Lowry has one of the biggest contracts in the NBA.

He is owed just under $35 million in his final year, making him a really expensive acquisition for any team trying to make a push for winning the NBA title. Yet, he is one of those players who has the ability to give a championship caliber team the final push, like the Los Angeles Lakers.

Lowry averaged 14.2 points, 8.7 assists and 4.8 rebounds, playing 34 minutes for 65 regular season games. While his points per game went down, he was elite with his ball distribution and any team will become better with Lowry on their team, though affording his massive salary will be a task for most teams.