Early NBA Salary Guarantee Dates For 2022/23
A player who has a non-guaranteed salary for a given season will, by default, receive his full guarantee if he remains under contract through January 7 of that league year. Because the league-wide salary guarantee date is January 10, a player must clear waivers before that date if a team wants to avoid being on the hook for his full salary.
However, a handful of players who have non-guaranteed or partially guaranteed contracts for 2022/23 have earlier trigger dates. Those players will receive either their full guarantees or an increased partial guarantee on certain dates before January 7, assuming they’re not waived.
These dates are fairly malleable — if a player and team reach an agreement, a salary guarantee deadline can be pushed back.
For example, if a player’s contract calls for him to receive his full guarantee on June 28, his team could ask him to move that date to the first or second week of July to get a better sense of what will happen in free agency before making a final decision. The player doesn’t have to agree, but it could be in his best interest to push back his guarantee date rather than simply being waived.
Those agreements between a player and team aren’t always reported right away, so our list of early salary guarantee dates is a tentative one. When a player’s salary guarantee date passes, our assumption is that he received his guarantee, but it’s possible he and his team negotiated a new guarantee date that simply hasn’t been made public yet. We’ll update the info below as necessary in the coming weeks and months.
Here are the early salary guarantee dates for 2022/23:
June 21:
- Mason Plumlee (Hornets): Partial guarantee ($4,262,500) increases to full guarantee ($9,080,417). (✅)
June 24:
- Zach Collins (Spurs): Partial guarantee ($3,675,000) increases to full guarantee ($7,350,000). (✅)
June 25:
- Josh Hart (Trail Blazers): Non-guaranteed salary ($12,960,000) becomes fully guaranteed. (✅)
June 28:
- Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (Wizards): Partial guarantee ($4,888,118) increases to full guarantee ($14,004,703). (✅)
- Note: Caldwell-Pope was subsequently traded to the Nuggets.
June 29:
- Chimezie Metu (Kings): Non-guaranteed salary ($1,910,860) becomes fully guaranteed. (✅)
- Max Strus (Heat): Non-guaranteed salary ($1,815,677) becomes fully guaranteed. (✅)
- Gabe Vincent (Heat): Non-guaranteed salary ($1,815,677) becomes fully guaranteed. (✅)
- Omer Yurtseven (Heat): Non-guaranteed salary ($1,752,638) becomes fully guaranteed. (✅)
June 30:
- Juan Hernangomez (Jazz): Non-guaranteed salary ($7,307,130) becomes fully guaranteed. (❌)
- Theo Maledon (Thunder): Non-guaranteed salary ($1,900,000) becomes fully guaranteed. (✅)
- Kelly Oubre (Hornets): Partial guarantee ($5,000,000) increases to full guarantee ($12,600,000). (✅)
- Moritz Wagner (Magic): Non-guaranteed salary ($1,878,720) becomes fully guaranteed. (✅)
July 1:
- Haywood Highsmith (Heat): Non-guaranteed salary ($1,752,638) becomes partially guaranteed ($50,000). (✅)
- Ish Smith (Wizards): Non-guaranteed salary ($4,725,000) becomes fully guaranteed. (✅)
- Note: Caldwell-Pope was subsequently traded to the Nuggets.
July 3:
- Maxi Kleber (Mavericks): Non-guaranteed salary ($9,000,000) becomes fully guaranteed. (✅)
- John Konchar (Grizzlies): Partial guarantee ($840,000) increases to full guarantee ($2,300,000). (✅)
- Isaiah Roby (Thunder): Non-guaranteed salary ($1,930,681) becomes fully guaranteed. (✅)
July 4:
- Dalano Banton (Raptors): Partial guarantee ($150,000) increases to $300,000. (✅)
- Frank Ntilikina (Mavericks): Non-guaranteed salary ($2,036,318) becomes fully guaranteed. (✅)
July 7:
- Nick Richards (Hornets): Non-guaranteed salary ($1,782,621) becomes fully guaranteed. (✅)
July 8:
- Danilo Gallinari (Hawks): Partial guarantee ($13,000,000) increases to full guarantee ($21,450,000). (❌)
July 10:
- Eric Bledsoe (Trail Blazers): Partial guarantee ($3,900,000) increases to full guarantee ($19,375,000). (❌)
- Terry Taylor (Pacers): Partial guarantee ($625,000) increases to full guarantee ($1,563,518). (✅)
July 15:
- Duane Washington (Pacers): Non-guaranteed salary ($1,563,518) becomes fully guaranteed. (❌)
July 20:
- Naz Reid (Timberwolves): Non-guaranteed salary ($1,930,681) becomes fully guaranteed. (✅)
August 1:
- Armoni Brooks (Raptors): Partial guarantee ($50,000) increases to $250,000. (❌)
- Tre Jones (Spurs): Non-guaranteed salary ($1,782,621) becomes partially guaranteed ($500,000). (✅)
- Jalen McDaniels (Hornets): Non-guaranteed salary ($1,930,681) becomes fully guaranteed. (✅)
August 15:
- Luke Kornet (Celtics): Partial guarantee ($100,000) increases to $300,000. (✅)
Team’s first game of regular season:
- Dalano Banton (Raptors): Partial guarantee ($300,000) increases to full guarantee ($1,563,518). (✅)
- Keita Bates-Diop (Spurs): Non-guaranteed salary ($1,878,720) becomes fully guaranteed. (✅)
- Justin Champagnie (Raptors): Partial guarantee ($325,000) increases to $825,000. (✅)
- Matthew Dellavedova (Kings): Non-guaranteed salary ($2,628,597) becomes partially guaranteed ($250,000). (✅)
- Haywood Highsmith (Heat): Partial guarantee ($50,000) increases to $400,000. (✅)
- Josh Jackson (Raptors): Non-guaranteed salary ($2,133,278) becomes fully guaranteed. (❌)
- Isaiah Joe (Sixers): Non-guaranteed salary ($1,782,621) becomes fully guaranteed. (❌)
- Tre Jones (Spurs): Partial guarantee ($500,000) increases to full guarantee ($1,782,621). (✅)
- Luke Kornet (Celtics): Partial guarantee ($300,000) increases to $1,066,639. (✅)
- Chima Moneke (Kings): Partial guarantee ($250,000) increases to $500,000. (✅)
- Markieff Morris (Nets): Non-guaranteed salary ($2,905,581) becomes partially guaranteed ($500,000). (✅)
- KZ Okpala (Kings): Partial guarantee ($250,000) increases to $500,000. (✅)
- Edmond Sumner (Nets): Partial guarantee ($250,000) increases to $500,000. (✅)
- D.J. Wilson (Raptors): Partial guarantee ($250,000) increases to full guarantee ($2,133,278). (❌)
December 1:
- Haywood Highsmith (Heat): Partial guarantee ($400,000) increases to $700,000. (✅)
December 10:
- Markieff Morris (Nets): Partial guarantee ($500,000) increases to $1,000,000. (✅)
January 1:
- Justin Champagnie (Raptors): Partial guarantee ($825,000) increases to full guarantee ($1,637,966). (❌)
Southeast Draft Notes: Wizards, Magic, Hawks, Hornets
The Wizards have six draft prospects visiting on Tuesday, Josh Robbins of The Athletic tweets. They’ll evaluate Jules Bernard (UCLA), Theo John (Duke), Davion Mintz (Kentucky), Alex O’Connell (Creighton), Nate Roberts (Washington) and Au’Diese Toney (Arkansas).
We have more draft-related news involving Southeast Division clubs:
- Alabama shooting guard Keon Ellis is working out for the Magic on Tuesday, according to Locked On Sports (Twitter link). He’s ranked No. 66 on ESPN’s Best Available list.
- The Hawks are looking at four players on Tuesday, Chris Kirschner of The Athletic tweets. That group includes Alex Barcello (BYU), Marcus Bingham Jr. (Michigan State), JD Notae (Arkansas) and Dereon Seabron (NC State). The latter may be the most interesting name in that quartet, as he’s rated No. 55 on ESPN’s list.
- Barcello visited the Hornets on Monday, the team’s PR department tweets. The other prospects who joined him included Ron Artest III (KW Titans/Canada), Buddy Boeheim (Syracuse), Malcolm Cazalon (Mega Mozzart/Serbia), Christian Koloko (Arizona) and Kur Kuath (Marquette).
Draft Decisions: Travers, Badji, Nakic, Zugic, Cazalon, Maronka
The early entry deadline to withdraw from the draft was 5 p.m. on Monday. It’s mostly relevant for international prospects, since the deadline to retain NCAA eligibility was June 1.
Several more international prospects have made their draft decisions, according to ESPN’s Jonathan Givony (Twitter links):
- Wing Luke Travers, who played for the Perth Wildcats in Australia’s National Basketball League, is staying in the draft. He averaged 7.8 PPG, 5.4 RPG and 2.3 APG last season.
- Ibou Badji, a 7’1” center from Senegal, is also staying in the draft. He played for ICG Força Lleida last season, averaging 8.5 PPG and 4.3 RPG in 36 games.
- Spanish forward Mario Nakic is removing his name from the draft.
- German guard Fedor Zugic has withdrawn from the draft.
- Serbian guard Malcolm Cazalon has withdrawn from the draft.
- Spanish forward Zsombor Maronka has also withdrawn from the draft.
As our early entrant tracker shows, there are still over a dozen international prospects whose intentions haven’t been reported. We expect the majority of those players pulled their names out of the draft, but we should get official confirmation from the league within the next day or two.
Draft Notes: Wesley, Sotto, Rockets, Timberwolves
Notre Dame shooting guard Blake Wesley has upcoming workouts scheduled with the Grizzlies, Heat and Bulls, Josh Robbins of The Athletic tweets. Wesley told Robbins he had already worked out for the Spurs, Cavaliers, Bucks and Pistons.
A potential first-round selection, the 6’5” Wesley is ranked No. 27 overall on ESPN’s Best Available list.
We have more draft-related news:
- International center prospect Kai Sotto will return to NBA team workouts this week on the West Coast after nursing a sprained ankle, Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog.com tweets. He already worked out for the Knicks, Magic and Hawks, among others. The 7’3” big man from the Philippines spent last season in Australia’s National Basketball League, averaging 7.5 PPG and 4.5 RPG for the Adelaide 36ers.
- The Rockets are sitting at the No. 3 spot and will presumably take the remaining big man in the trio of Jabari Smith, Chet Holmgren and Paolo Banchero, unless there’s a draft-day surprise. The Houston Chronicle’s Jonathan Feigen picks the brains of some NBA executives and a college coach to get a handle on how the trio’s skills will translate to the NBA.
- The Timberwolves brought in six prospects on Monday, Andrew Slater tweets. That group included Tyson Etienne (Wichita State), Jermaine Samuels (Villanova), Aminu Mohammed (Georgetown,) Justin Lewis (Marquette), Fanbo Zeng (G League Ignite) and Kalob Ledoux (Louisiana Tech).
Montrezl Harrell Faces Felony Drug Charges
Hornets forward/center Montrezl Harrell was scheduled to be arraigned Monday on felony drug charges stemming from a traffic stop in Richmond, Ky., last month, according to Roderick Boone of the Charlotte Observer.
Harrell will be an unrestricted free agent next month.
Harrell, 28, was initially pulled over by a Kentucky state trooper on May 12 while driving on I-75 because the trooper said Harrell was following the vehicle in front of him too closely, according to the police report.
The trooper observed an odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle and Harrell “admitted to being in possession of marijuana and produced a small amount from his sweatpants,” according to the report.
A search of the vehicle, which Harrell claimed was rented, found three pounds of marijuana in vacuum sealed bags. He has been charged with trafficking less than five pounds of marijuana.
Under Kentucky law, possessing or trafficking eight or more ounces but less than five pounds of marijuana is a Class D Felony for first-time offenders. It is punishable by 1-5 years of incarceration with a fine ranging from $1-10,000. The Hornets declined comment, according to Boone.
The NBA stopped testing for marijuana in 2020 and that policy continued into this season. Harrell began the season with the Wizards and appeared in 46 games. He was traded to Charlotte in February and appeared in 25 more games, averaging 11.4 PPG and 4.9 RPG.
Draft Decisions: Diop, Spagnolo, Savkov, Nzosa, Matkovic
The early entry deadline to withdraw from the draft was 5 p.m. on Monday. It’s mostly relevant for international prospects, since the deadline to withdraw while retaining NCAA eligibility was June 1.
Several more international prospects have decided to stay in the draft, according to ESPN’s Jonathan Givony (Twitter links available right here). Here is that list:
- Big man Khalifa Diop, is ranked No. 39 on ESPN’s Best Available list and the fourth-highest at the center spot. The 7-footer had a solid season in the ACB with Gran Canaria, winning the EuroCup’s Rising Star award.
- Italian guard Matteo Spagnolo is another potential second-rounder, rated No. 59 overall and No. 11 among point guards. He shot 44% for 3 this season for Cremona in the first division.
- Russian wing Pavel Savkov isn’t listed among ESPN’s top 100 prospects. The 6’7” Savkov shot 40% on 3-pointers in Spain the past two seasons.
- Congolese big man Yannick Nzosa is the youngest player in the draft class. He’s played for Unicaja Malaga in Spain. Ranked No. 54, Nzosa is an extremely mobile big man with an excellent motor and strong defensive versatility, according to Givony.
- Croatian power forward Karlo Matkovic is also staying in the draft after a last-minute change of heart. He’s slotted at No. 60 on ESPN’s list.
You can check out all early entrant decisions here.
Hawks To Elevate Landry Fields To GM Under Schlenk
The Hawks are promoting Landry Fields to general manager, beginning next month, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets.
Fields, who has been an assistant GM with the franchise, will continue to work under president of basketball operations Travis Schlenk.
Just 33 years old, Fields began his front office career with the Spurs. He joined the Hawks as an assistant GM in 2020.
Hawks owner Tony Ressler has expressed high confidence in his current front office personnel and Fields’ promotion reflects that. There were rumors early in the season that other teams were trying to lure away Fields but that he was likely to be promoted by the Hawks.
Fields started out as a scout with San Antonio in 2016 and eventually worked his way up to becoming the GM of the G League’s Austin Spurs. He also spent five seasons in the NBA, playing for both the Knicks and Raptors. In 255 games, he averaged 6.8 PPG and 4.3 RPG.
FA/Trade Rumors: Ayton, Centers, Turner, Beal, Saric, Lakers
Echoing comments made last week by Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report, Marc Stein writes in his latest Substack article that Suns center Deandre Ayton – a restricted free agent this summer – may be the biggest name to change teams in the coming weeks.
Phoenix is “increasingly expected” to explore sign-and-trade scenarios involving Ayton, according to Stein, who says there’s plenty of skepticism around the NBA about the team’s desire to make a significant financial commitment to the young center.
Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report conveys a similar sentiment in his latest round-up of NBA rumors, suggesting there’s “considerable skepticism” that the Suns will re-sign Ayton. The Pistons, Spurs, Trail Blazers, Hawks, and Raptors have all been mentioned as possible suitors for the former No. 1 overall pick, Stein notes.
Here are a few more updates from Stein and Pincus on some of this year’s top free agents and trade candidates:
- According to Pincus, some sources believe that the Spurs (Jakob Poeltl), Bulls (Nikola Vucevic), Hawks (Clint Capela/John Collins), and Pacers (Myles Turner) are among the teams that could be willing to move their current centers in a package for one of the offseason’s top available big men (Ayton, Rudy Gobert, etc.). Grizzlies center Steven Adams also may be a summer trade candidate, though he’s well-liked in the locker room, says Pincus.
- While both Pincus and Stein have talked to sources who believe the Pacers are likely to keep Myles Turner, Stein notes that the situation could change if the big man wants to play out his expiring contract rather than agreeing to an extension, since Indiana may not want to risk losing him for nothing next year.
- According to Stein, one or two teams hopeful of landing Bradley Beal believe the All-Star guard wants to be the Dirk Nowitzki of D.C., sticking with the Wizards for his entire career.
- While Dario Saric‘s $9.24MM expiring contract makes him an obvious trade candidate, Pincus writes that the Suns are hopeful the forward can return to form after missing last season due to an ACL tear, and may not be looking to move him.
- If the Lakers have any hope of trading Russell Westbrook without including a first-round pick, they’ll likely have to take on at least one or two players earning $15-25MM annually on multiyear deals, Pincus writes, citing veterans like Davis Bertans and Duncan Robinson as hypothetical examples. Rival executives and agents don’t expect the Lakers to get clarity from LeBron James on his long-term intentions before the draft or free agency, which will complicate L.A.’s decision-making process — the team would be more comfortable taking on pricey multiyear contracts with a guarantee that LeBron is sticking around long-term, Pincus observes.
Raptors Rumors: Anunoby, VanVleet, Boucher, Young, More
The Raptors aren’t actively looking to trade forward OG Anunoby, Michael Scotto said in the latest episode of The HoopsHype Podcast. According to Scotto, it would require a “substantial” return for Toronto to consider moving Anunoby, along the lines of a significant upgrade at center or a top-10 draft pick. That’s similar to what Jake Fischer has recently reported.
Scotto’s guest, Blake Murphy of Sportsnet 590 The Fan, agrees that it would take “a lot” for the Raptors to seriously considering moving Anunoby, noting that assistant GM Dan Tolzman recently expressed skepticism when asked if the No. 7 pick in this year’s draft would develop at the same rate and with the same ceiling as Anunoby.
While Murphy acknowledges that Anunoby would be an obvious trade candidate if the Raptors attempt to trade for an impact player, he believes the team would rather enter the 2022/23 season without a traditional center than include Anunoby in a trade for a center who isn’t as well-rounded and versatile a player as the 24-year-old forward.
Murphy and Scotto also point out that Toronto is high on Precious Achiuwa, whose role would be cut back if the team added a starting center to play 30-35 minutes per night.
Here’s more on the Raptors:
- Fred VanVleet and the Raptors are expected to discuss a possible contract extension this offseason, league sources tell Scotto. If VanVleet were to decline his 2023/24 player option, he could extend for up to four years and $114MM this summer. However, Murphy doesn’t think there will be a rush to get anything done, since Toronto will hold VanVleet’s Bird rights and would be in the driver’s seat to re-sign him if he opts out in 2023.
- The Raptors have interest in re-signing both Chris Boucher and Thaddeus Young in free agency, according to Scotto. Murphy observes that the team should have about $31MM in wiggle room below the luxury tax line, which could be used to bring back Boucher and Young and fill out the roster, possibly using the mid-level exception. A deal in the mid-level range ($10MM) might make sense for Boucher, Murphy adds.
- Addressing Boucher’s free agency in his own story today, Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report suggested that it seems safe to “pencil in” the big man’s return to Toronto.
- Svi Mykhailiuk‘s decision on his $1.88MM player option may go down to the wire, according to Scotto, who says June 22 is the deadline for Mykhailiuk to opt in.
- Murphy would be shocked if two-way restricted free agent Justin Champagnie doesn’t remain with the Raptors, perhaps on a two-year, minimum-salary deal.
O’Connor’s Latest: Sixers, Collins, Blazers, Cavs, Magic
The Sixers are exploring potential trades involving the No. 23 pick in the 2022 draft and Danny Green‘s expiring $10MM contract, Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer reports within his latest mock draft.
Because they owe their unprotected 2023 first-round pick to Brooklyn, the Sixers can’t trade their 2022 first-rounder until after it has been used. However, they could reach a tentative trade agreement on or before draft night and make that pick on another team’s behalf, officially completing the deal after the draft.
Using Green’s expiring contract as a salary-matching piece would also be a little tricky, since it’s currently non-guaranteed, meaning it would count as $0 for outgoing purposes. The Sixers could guarantee some or all of Green’s $10MM salary to make it more useful in a trade. But the more money they guarantee, the less appealing it will be as an asset to a potential trade partner, since Green is expected to miss most or all of next season after tearing his ACL.
Here’s more from O’Connor:
- The Hawks are looking to acquire a lottery pick and are dangling John Collins, league sources tell The Ringer. It sounds like Atlanta also wouldn’t be opposed to including the No. 16 pick in the right deal. The Trail Blazers, who hold the seventh overall pick, are one of the teams the Hawks have talked to, says O’Connor.
- O’Connor is the latest reporter to hear from sources that the Cavaliers would like to re-sign Collin Sexton and bring back point guard Ricky Rubio, and to confirm that the Pistons are among the teams with interest in Sexton.
- Chet Holmgren “has some supporters” within the Magic‘s front office, but O’Connor believes “all indications” point to Orlando selecting Jabari Smith with the No. 1 overall pick.