Adam Silver Speaks On Hard Cap, Other Topics
A salary cap system that has contributed to the same NBA Finals matchup in four straight seasons was among the topics commissioner Adam Silver addressed Thursday in his annual pre-Finals news conference, relays Steve Aschburner of NBA.com.
The Warriors and Cavaliers have the league’s two highest payrolls, with both topping $137MM. This season’s biggest salaries belong to Golden State’s Stephen Curry at $34.7MM and Cleveland’s LeBron James at $33.3MM.
Amid complaints that having the same two teams meet for the championship every season is harmful to the league, Silver addressed questions on whether a hard salary cap is needed, similar to the NFL’s. The current system allows teams to go over the cap to re-sign their free agents and provides yearly exceptions for teams that elect to use them.
“Now [the hard cap is] something that we’ll continue to look at,” Silver said. “There are pros and cons to doing it. Historically, one of the issues in our league was we didn’t necessarily want to break up teams. There is a different sense in the NBA than the NFL, and the chemistry and dynamic that comes together with a group of players.”
Any changes to the salary cap would have to be negotiated with the players’ union through collective bargaining, Aschburner notes. The year’s cap is set at $99MM, with the luxury tax threshold at $119.2MM.
Silver touched on several other topics during his session with the press:
- He declined to comment on the specifics of the accusations surrounding Sixers executive Bryan Colangelo, noting that the team is conducting an investigation, but acknowledged the charges tarnish the league’s reputation. “Here we are, Game 1 of the Finals,” Silver said. “It’s not necessarily something we want to be talking about.”
- Some gambling enterprises are objecting to a 1% “integrity fee” that Silver hopes to collect through legalized sports betting, but he believes it’s a fair price to compensate the league for intellectual property and its role in preventing fixing scandals.
- Changes could be coming soon to the one-and-done system, with more players opting to enter the G League rather than going to college for one season. “If you have, in essence, college saying, ‘We don’t want these players,’ it would be hard for us not to respond,” Silver said.
- After another year filled with significant player injuries, the NBA will continue to study the benefits of a shorter season, but Silver said action is unlikely without data showing that a 72- or 75-game slate would resolve the problem.
- Despite interest from Seattle and other cities in acquiring an NBA franchise, Silver indicated expansion won’t be coming soon, tweets Ben Golliver of Sport Illustrated. “Expansion is not on our agenda right now,” the commissioner said. “… I’m very focused on creating a competitive 30-team league right now… [Our focus is]: What is it we can do system-wise, training-wise to create more competition within this league?”
Draft Notes: M. Bridges, Pinson, Farrell, Rowsey
With the deadline passing for underclassmen to withdraw from the NBA draft, pre-draft workouts are taking on a new level of importance. Here are a few notes to pass on as the draft looms 20 days from now:
- Villanova’s Mikal Bridges and North Carolina’s Theo Pinson will work out for the Hornets on Saturday, tweets Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer.
- Notre Dame guard Matt Farrell has sessions scheduled Monday with the Lakers and Wednesday with the Nuggets, according to Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog (Twitter link).
- Marquette’s Andrew Rowsey has workouts upcoming with the Raptors, Mavericks, Lakers and Kings, tweets Gery Woelfel of WoelfelsPressBox.
- The Kings are welcoming six players for a session today, relays Sean Cunningham of ABC10 in Sacramento (Twitter link). On hand will be Creighton’s Marcus Foster, West Virginia’s Daxter Miles, SMU’s Ben Emelogu and Seton Hall’s Desi Rodriguez, along with Missouri’s Alize Johnson and Jordan Barnett.
- The Jazz have a workout set for today with Oregon’s Troy Brown, West Virginia’s Jevon Carter, Georgia’s Yante Maten, Michigan’s Moritz Wagner and Kansas’ Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk and Malik Newman, the team announced on Twitter.
- Newman was in Phoenix for a workout on Thursday, the Suns tweeted. He was joined by Ohio State’s Keita Bates-Diop, Virginia’s Devon Hall, Colorado’s George King, Xavier’s J.P. Macura and USC’s Chimezie Metu.
Patrick Beverley Cleared For Basketball Activities
Clippers guard Patrick Beverley is well ahead of schedule in his recovery from microfracture and meniscus surgery on his right knee, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
Beverley has received medical clearance to resume full basketball activities, about three months earlier than originally projected when the operation was performed November 22. Beverley was expected to need nine months before receiving clearance, and Dr. Walter Lowe, professor and chair of the Department of Orthopedic Surgery at the University of Texas Medical Center, called his recovery “remarkable.”
“I saw Pat [Thursday] and ordered a new MRI approximately six months out from his microfracture biocartilage repair and lateral meniscus repair,” Lowe said in a statement to ESPN. “His recovery has been remarkable and I have cleared him to return to all basketball activities. This speedy recovery is a testament to Pat’s diligence to the comprehensive rehabilitation program between Houston and LA.”
The Clippers acquired Beverley last June in the trade that sent Chris Paul to Houston. He was expected to take over Paul’s role in the L.A. backcourt, but the injury shut down his season after just 11 games.
The team holds a $5MM option on Beverly for next season and could opt to negotiate an extension this summer, Wojnarowski notes. The contract won’t become fully guaranteed until January 10.
Suspensions May Result From Game 1 Fracas
A scuffle in the waning seconds of Thursday night’s contest may leave some key players suspended for Game 2, writes Chris Haynes of ESPN.
Cavaliers center Tristan Thompson is expected to receive some form of penalty for shoving the ball in Draymond Green‘s face after being tossed out of Game 1 for committing a Flagrant 2 foul. Kevin Love may also face a suspension for leaving the bench during the incident. Love, who was quickly pulled off the court by an assistant coach, said he doesn’t believe any disciplinary action is warranted.
“I was already on the court trying to get the refs’ attention before the scuffle,” he explained.
The altercation started when Golden State’s Shaun Livingston attempted a jumper with the shot clock expiring in the final seconds of overtime. Thompson hit Livingston in the chest with his elbow as he tried to block the shot and later expressed anger that the Warriors didn’t accept the clock violation.
“I contested a shot that shouldn’t have been taken,” Thompson said. “I mean, it’s like the unspoken rule in the NBA: If you’re up 10 or 11 with about 20 seconds left, you don’t take that shot. I make the contest, and next thing I know, I was being kicked out for making a contest that we learn in training camp. I don’t know why I got thrown out.”
“I say that we don’t take the turnover. I don’t take the turnover,” he said. “Kevin [Durant] threw me the ball, and he threw it to me like we were still playing. J.R. [Smith] was still guarding him, you know. No disrespect. We just play the game. So, that’s what it was. … It’s the Finals. It’s all love. … It was like a YMCA pickup game in the last 30 seconds.”