Is this a beginners mistake or a good deal?

[tryingtoflower]

Like the rest of you I'm hopelessly addicted to orchids. I usually buy inexpensive, no ID plants to learn how to grow a particular genus before dropping the big bucks on a plant from a well known grower. Today I bought a plant that had been marked down after blooming at a nursery nearby. It is a very large zygo and so root bound I had to cut it out of the plastic pot that was filled with roots. It had to be repotted in the largest pot I could find in order to contain its roots. Took me the entire day to untangle those roots. Was buying this plant a beginners mistake or a deal at $10? Do you think it will survive the trauma ? I bought two militonias last time I was there for the same price and dread repotting them now. They too are large plants. Should I walk away from root bound plants?