NBA Dates, Deadlines To Watch In February

In a normal NBA season, the 2021 trade deadline would be right around the corner, but due to the league’s new-look calendar for the 2020/21 campaign, it won’t arrive until March 25 this year. However, that doesn’t mean there aren’t still a number of dates and deadlines in February worth keeping an eye out for. Here’s a roundup of some of the most notable ones:

Ninety players will become eligible to be traded

Typically, December 15 marks the date that most offseason free agent signees become eligible to be traded. This season, that date is February 6. A total of 89 players will have their trade restrictions lifted on Saturday, with Raptors wing Paul Watson joining that group later in the month, on February 25.

All 90 of those players just signed new contracts with their respective clubs in November or December, so not many will become immediate candidates to be dealt. Still, not having to deal with those trade restrictions should make it easier for teams to negotiate and complete deals in the coming weeks.

The NBA G League season tips off

It took a while to come together and it certainly won’t look like a normal G League season, with only 18 of 29 teams in action at a bubble location in Walt Disney World. But there’s an extra incentive to keep an eye on the NBAGL in this abridged 2020/21 season, with the G League Ignite entering the fold.

The new select team is made up of several G League veterans and a handful of NBA prospects who chose to play in the NBAGL for a year instead of attending college. Jalen Green and Jonathan Kuminga are the biggest names on the squad — both are projected top-five picks in the 2021 draft. They’re on track to make their professional debuts on February 10 against the Santa Cruz Warriors on the G League’s opening night.

Teams can begin signing players to 10-day contracts

Tim Frazier, Yogi Ferrell, and Jordan Bell have technically signed 10-day contracts already this season, but those transactions were only permitted because their teams – the Grizzlies, Cavaliers, and Wizards, respectively – were approved for a hardship exception, allowing them to temporarily add a 16th man. If a team doesn’t qualify for the hardship provision, it can’t sign a player to a 10-day contract until February 23.

Once that date arrives, we should expect to see a handful of teams begin completing 10-day deals, whether to meet minimum roster requirements, to add a short-term injury replacement, or to take a flier on a young player with upside.

We extensively outlined the details of 10-day contracts and explained how they work in our glossary entry on the subject.

Non-guaranteed salaries become guaranteed

Instead of the usual January 10 date, February 27 is the day that all non-guaranteed NBA contracts for 2020/21 will officially become guaranteed. However, February 24 will really be the day to watch.

If a team wants to avoid having a salary become guaranteed, the player must clear waivers before February 27, which means he needs to be cut on February 24 at the latest.

Many players without fully guaranteed salaries are in no danger of being waived by that deadline, but some teams will take the opportunity to save a little money and open up a roster spot. Currently, there are 29 players with non-guaranteed salaries, for an average of about one per team.