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Lakers’ Kobe Bryant No. 2 on list of most overpaid NBA players; Amare Stoudemire, Dirk Nowitzki also named

The L.A. Lakers’ Kobe Bryant is the second most overpaid player in the NBA, Southern Utah University economics professor David Berri concluded, according to a CNBC report published on Yahoo!

While Washington Wizards forward Rashard Lewis’ spot at the top of the list won’t surprise anyone, the New York Knicks’ Amare Stoudemire, Dallas Mavericks’ Dirk Nowitzki and Brooklyn Nets’ Deron Williams are also on it.

Berri co-authored a book in 2006 called “The Wages of Wins,” which details a statistical method called “Wins Produced” that determines if a player is overpaid and by how much. NBA players, Berri says, are paid based largely on points. But that’s far too simplistic a metric to gauge a player’s true value, according to the economist, who believes that other stats such as shooting percentage, turnovers, rebounds and fouls should be bigger factors in a player’s salary.

"Wins in basketball are primarily about a team's ability to get and keep possession of the ball and then turning those possessions into points," Berri told in an e-mail. "In 2011-12, NBA teams paid $1.9 billion for 990 regular season wins. This means that the cost per win was $1.946 million. Given the cost of each win and knowing both how many victories each player produced and his salary allows us to see which players were overpaid."

Berri’s method, however, seems to be a strictly on-court analysis and does not necessarily take into account a player’s economic impact for his franchise. During the lockout, Dwyane Wade implied the truly marquee players—those fans pay specifically to see—are actually underpaid. He said if there were no salary restrictions, guys like Bryant and LeBron James could make upwards of $50 million per season.

Before you jump all over Wade for his opinion that millionaires should be paid more for playing a game, consider that a GM told Yahoo! back in October that Wade was right.

“There’s absolutely no doubt that the top NBA stars are the most underpaid in sports,” the GM said.

And while Bryant is No. 2 on Berri’s list, Lakers owner Jerry Buss has reportedly told people privately that Bryant may be worth $70 million a year to his franchise. Bryant’s contract is worth $25 million this season, $28 million next season and over $30 million in 2013-14.

Here’s Berry’s list of most overpaid NBA players.

10. Tyrus Thomas, Charlotte Bobcats (overpaid by $12,459,225)

9. Deron Williams, Brooklyn Nets (overpaid by $12,784,867)

8. Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas Mavericks (overpaid by $12,851,295)

7. Corey Maggette, Charlotte Bobcats (overpaid by $12,862,248)

6. Mehmet Okur, Brooklyn Nets (overpaid by $12,988,657)

5. Chris Kaman, New Orleans Hornets (overpaid by $14,613,480)

4. Amar'e Stoudemire, New York Knicks (overpaid by $14,918,309 )

3. Antawn Jamison, Cleveland Cavaliers (overpaid by $17,402,350)

2. Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers (overpaid by $19,693,258)

1. Rashard Lewis, Washington Wizards (overpaid by $21,167,231)

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