We learned overnight that the NBA’s new Collective Bargaining Agreement will introduce a second tax apron that imposes more severe restrictions on the league’s highest-spending teams. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski explains (via Twitter) what some of those restrictions will be.
Teams that exceed the second apron won’t be permitted to send out cash in deals, trade away first-round picks seven years in the future or sign players who become free agents in the buyout market, sources tell Wojnarowski. The new apron will reportedly be set $17.5MM above the luxury tax line, and ESPN reported earlier that teams in that category will also lose their mid-level exception in free agency.
Teams exceeding the second apron will also be prohibited from taking back more salary than they send out in a trade, sources tell Tim Bontemps of ESPN (Twitter link).
Bobby Marks of ESPN points to the Suns’ acquisition of Kevin Durant in February and the Nets’ trade for James Harden in 2021 as deals that would likely have needed to be altered if the new rules were in place at the time they were made (Twitter link).
There’s more on the new CBA agreement:
- Positions will no longer be taken into consideration in voting for All-NBA teams, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic. Under the current rules, voters must pick two guards, two forwards and a center for each of the three teams. Nikola Jokic and Joel Embiid were the top vote-getters in the MVP race last year, but because they both play center, Embiid had to settle for second-team All-NBA honors.
- Draymond Green isn’t a supporter of the new agreement, claiming the union didn’t get enough in negotiations. “Players lose again…. Smh! Middle and Lower spectrum teams don’t spend because they don’t want to,” he tweeted. “They want to lose. So increase their spending capabilities, just to increase them. They continue to cut out the middle. And this is what we rushed into a deal for? Smdh! Never fails.” In an exchange with fans, Green pointed out that the Warriors sold for $500MM shortly before he arrived and claimed that the team is now worth $8 billion. “Never seen someone go to a table with the assets that makes an entire machine go, and lose EVERY time! Blasphemous,” Green added.
- The one-and-done rule that prevents players from entering the NBA draft directly out of high school remains in place, but Devin Booker believes it will eventually be changed, writes Dana Scott of The Arizona Republic. “I think most kids are still finding their way out or they’re not even going to college and their spending a year removed training somewhere at a prep school or something of that such,” Booker said. “So with the NIL, I think that’s a step forward. Those players are able to get paid now off their name and likeness, so that’s really important. But we’ll see. I think it will eventually get back to no college.”
Like the buyout market change for the second tax apron. It always annoyed me how the biggest contenders could somewhat forgo depth because they knew they would be able to secure veteran talent via that method.
that definitely needs to be fixed.
Reward teams that draft correctly!!! Penalties should only go towards free agents that were not drafted by the team…. Wiggins is the only high paid player on warriors that was not drafted by them but they have the most penalties and fines….. makes no sense
It makes a lot of sense. They went way over the salary threshold, then kept on going. I’m sure they’ll figure out ways around these new rules too though, so you’ll be OK.
The price of Splash Brothers!!!
Also paying 286mil taxes with only a team payroll of 215 mil seems far from getting around anything…
Knowing they’d have to pay that tax, having the ability to pay it, and doing it anyway seems a lot like getting around the rule.
It’d be different if the owner didn’t approve the moves that put them so far over, or couldn’t actually afford it, but he apparently did, and only chose to complain about it afterwards.
The players lose again?! Say it aint so Draymond! I feel so bad for you and your friends making 30 million plus a year for playing a childrens game. Not to mention the commercials, sponsorships, and other avenues of revenue that are available all to you because you play in the NBA. Those dam owners should of gave Zion more than 200 million. Ben Simmons is luckily taking his own stand against these owners by not playing, hes taking that money and putting a fork into these owners ways. John Wall, another leader in this great players movement has only made 140 million from sitting, thats right, he had to sit at home for 3-4 years, I feel so bad for him. Andre Iguadala stood up to these awful owners by giving his 2 cents on the city of Memphis, took his stand, and did not play so that he can show the Memphis owner and their fans whos boss. He still got paid though, for sitting. Yeah Draymond all the fans hate these NBA owners too, you players just want to feed your family
Draymond was standing up for the “Middle Class” in the NBA. LeBron and Chris Paul spearheaded getting the “star” players paid by far the most. This is why LeBron, AD and Westbrook ate up almost all of the Lakers cap. Veterans are forced to play for minimum salary if they cannot get an exemption. Vucevic will be a free agent. If he don’t get a cap exemption deal …. He will have to take a vet minimum because nobody will have any cap space to give anything else.
Wizards whole cap about to be taken by Beal, Porzingis and Kuzma. Not even a play-in team.
Positions should stay
The buyout market has been a horrible rule for sometime. However, I agree that a team should be rewarded for keeping it’s drafted nucleus together. Unlimited player movement lessens fan commitment to a team. Magic Johnson knew to hate the Celtics. Bird wasn’t going to sign with the Lakers. Rivalries did not lead to superteams. It lead to fan loyalty for life.
Dray is just so right, players always take a lesser deal when they are the show, like seriously, does anyone really care about any team?
All is about the players, should have gotten a bigger cut of the pie & force teams to spend up to the salary cap, any less & the money gets spread between the players, as simple as!
Draymond is an annoying player, but he’s one of few players in the 4 majors that is willing to call a spade a spade here. Every sport keep trying to hinder the spending of rich teams to create parity, when the biggest benefit to both fans and players comes from parity though cheaper teams spending more. The decision to give the middle finger to large market fans by basically making them help foot the bill to support cheap owners is a horrible idea.