Over-36 Club: How Much Is Left?
Every season another group of NBA players moves into the Over 36 club. In any given season only a handful of players can claim to be part of this club and to make it this far usually designates a career as a resounding success. It doesn’t necessarily mean the player became a superstar, but it means they were able to adapt as their athletic skills declined.
Let’s take a closer look at the current snapshot of this club and take a stab at just how much each player has left in his NBA tank. From the oldest to the youngest members, here is the Over 36 club.
Kurt Thomas – 39 years, 40 days
Unrestricted Free Agent
Last season with the Chicago Bulls, the sixteenth of his career, Thomas played 22.7 minutes a game in 52 contests and averaged 4.1 points and 5.8 rebounds a game. With Shaquille O’Neal’s retirement Thomas is now the oldest player in the NBA, but he still brings a physically imposing force to the middle of any team. The Bulls would love to re-sign him for another season because he is great insurance behind Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah.
Grant Hill – 39 years, 39 days
Unrestricted Free Agent
Hill may be the second-oldest player in the NBA (by a day!), but he doesn’t play like it. The veteran swingman keeps himself in fantastic shape and averaged 30.1 minutes a game for the run-and-gun Phoenix Suns last season, starting all 80 games he played and posting 13.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and shooting almost 40% from three-point range. In NBA terms he may not actually be as old as his age, a byproduct of the many, many games he missed during his time with the Orlando Magic. A multi-year deal for Hill could easily be justified and a lot of playoff teams will be interested.
Juwan Howard – 38 years, 279 days
Unrestricted Free Agent
Howard averaged only 10.4 minutes in 57 games for the Miami HEAT last season, but he’s not ready to hang them up. And considering what he did the season before for the Portland Trail Blazers when they suffered so many horrific injuries in the middle, there’s no reason to think he should. He no longer is an everyday starter but on a veteran team Howard can come in and spell a starter with hard work, tough defense, and still can hit that jumper.
Jason Kidd – 38 years, 235 days
Dallas Mavericks, 1 year, $8.6 million
Despite his age Kidd is still one of the best floor leaders in the NBA. Sixth in the NBA in total assists last season, he helped the Dallas Mavericks win the NBA title with his court vision and experience. Sure, he isn’t the defender he used to be and he can’t run as fast as he used to, but those passes are still bullets that find their mark. Even after this contract expires he’ll deserve another one.
Theo Ratliff – 38 years, 210 days
Unrestricted Free Agent
There was a time when Ratliff was one of the most feared defenders in the NBA, but that time has passed. After playing just 10 games last year with the Los Angeles Lakers – and making more headlines now as part of the negotiating team for the NBPA – Ratliff may get one more contract, but it’ll be a minimum salary at the end of the bench kind of deal (kind of like last year’s).
Steve Nash – 37 years, 279 days
Phoenix Suns, 1 year, $11.7 million
How much does Nash have left? Despite a much-hyped back issue he led the league in assist per game for the fifth time in the past seven years in 2010-11 with 11.4, the third-highest number of his career. He hasn’t played a full 82 games since 2003, but hasn’t missed more than eight games in a single season either. A case could even be made that Nash is underpaid, and when this deal expires there will be plenty of suitors at his door.
Marcus Camby – 37 years, 236 days
Portland Trail Blazers, 1 year, $12.9 million
Camby’s injury history is legendary – he’s played in 70 or more games just four times in his 15 years in the NBA – but he still produces. Last season Camby posted double-digit rebounds for the tenth time, but also posted only 4.7 points per game, the lowest of his career. He still is a very productive player when healthy, both defensively and from a leadership point of view, but his next contract will be much smaller in value.
Derek Fisher – 37 years, 96 days
Los Angeles Lakers, 2 years, $6.8 million
Anyone know what Fisher is doing these days? He seems to be completely off the map… Jokes aside, Fisher is still a productive NBA player but he’s not a quality starter anymore. For the shooting and leadership he can bring off the bench his contract is fair, but his lack of defense and the fact he never was a truly productive point guard in the classic sense (albeit a great fit with the Lakers) mean Los Angeles really needs to find a replacement.
Antonio McDyess – 37 years, 67 days
San Antonio Spurs, 1 year, $5.2 million
The last word was McDyess was leaning towards retiring at the end of last season, so it seems unlikely he returns after this contract expires at the very latest. He isn’t as explosive as he used to be even in his Detroit days post extensive knee surgeries, but still is good for around 5-6 points and 5-6 rebounds a game. With Tim Duncan also on the downside of his career, the Spurs need to focus on getting younger in the middle.
Ben Wallace – 37 years, 64 days
Detroit Pistons, 1 year, $2.2 million
From undrafted to a very successful 15-year NBA career, Ben Wallace is a poster for what it means to work hard. Last year’s numbers were his worst since his early days with the Washington Wizards and the Pistons are moving towards a much younger roster, so it seems likely this would be his last season in Detroit. However, if he wants to continue playing there will be playoff teams very willing to sign him as frontcourt insurance.
Antonio Daniels – 36 years, 239 days
Unrestricted Free Agent
Daniels had last played in the NBA in 2009 before signing a 10-day contract with the Philadelphia 76ers late last year. In four games he scored six points and grabbed five rebounds in 35 total minutes. He could still play his way onto a team in a training camp as an end of the bench insurance guard, but a return to a regular roster seems unlikely.
Anthony Parker – 36 years, 147 days
Unrestricted Free Agent
After spending seven years overseas, Parker came back and has been a very productive piece of both the Toronto Raptors and Cleveland Cavaliers. Not a star, Parker is a solid three-point shooter who could make a great addition to any team’s backcourt rotation. He may not be a starter, but will be a contributor.
Erick Dampier – 36 years, 122 days
Unrestricted Free Agent
After being waived by the Charlotte Bobcats Dampier signed with the Miami HEAT. He didn’t make much of an impact, posting the worst numbers of his career with 2.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 0.9 blocks per game. He will get another contract as insurance at the end of the bench, but the days when Dampier could be relied upon for even rebounding are over.
Ray Allen – 36 years, 116 days
Boston Celtics, 1 year, $10 million
Allen is the only player on this list to be an All-Star in 2011, so insinuating he’s close to the end of his career would be plain wrong. In fact, while his numbers last season were near career-lows (for 10-time All-Star Allen, not for you average player), they were actually improved over the ones he posted in 2009-10. In fact, his 49% shooting from the field and 44% from three-point range were career-highs! When Allen first came into the NBA he was a high flyer, but over the course of his career he’s adapted and evolved. His next contract won’t be for $10 million per season, but he has at least two good years still in those legs that support the prettiest – and deadliest – jump shot in the league.
Joe Smith – 36 years, 110 days
Unrestricted Free Agent
In 12 games with the Los Angeles Lakers after being traded from the New Jersey Nets for Sasha Vujacic Smith scored six points in 44 minutes. He hasn’t indicated he is ready to retire, but it’s been a couple seasons since he was productive. If he does sign a new deal and it’s with a team he hasn’t played for before, Smith will set the record for playing with the most franchises, a record he shares with Tony Massenburg, Jim Jackson and Chucky Brown (12).
Two other members of this club have already chosen retirement: Shaquille O’Neal (Boston Celtics) and Zydrunas Ilgauskas (Miami HEAT).
The players on this list have seen a lot of things – two lockouts, for one – but they are also, for the most part, still productive NBA players. It’s easy to focus on youth and athleticism, but that isn’t always what a team needs and each of these players could help a team win games.
What do you think they should do? Leave your thoughts in the comments below! Follow Jason Fleming on Twitter and hit up his weekly chat,Mondays at 8pm Eastern.
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