Teams Just Below The Tax Line
Earlier today, I looked at the six NBA teams projected to be taxpayers at the end of this season. However, just because those are the teams currently in the tax doesn't mean that they're a 100% lock to be the league's only taxpayers this year.
In all likelihood, no club currently below the tax threshold ($70,307,000) will make a signing that takes its team salary into tax territory. The cost would simply outweigh the benefit. But there are a handful of teams whose current cap figure is close enough to the cutoff that they're worth keeping an eye on for the remainder of the season.
If, for instance, a team near the tax line suffered a number of injuries and needed to release a couple of guaranteed salaries and replace those players with free agents, suddenly that team's cap hit would be dangerously close to the tax.
With about 70% of the season in the books, minimum-salary contracts would only be worth a pro-rated amount of the usual amount, so a rest-of-season minimum deal signed today would only represent a cap hit of about $250K. Still, even if they're faced with injury or depth issues, the following teams may be reluctant to make too many moves the rest of the way, for fear of approaching that tax threshold:
- San Antonio Spurs: $69,750,910
- Golden State Warriors: $69,631,506
- Los Angeles Clippers: $69,354,409
- Detroit Pistons: $69,050,344
Storytellers Contracts was used in the creation of this post.
Teams With Open Roster Spots
Since the trade deadline, a pair of contenders have taken advantage of having an open roster spot, with the Knicks adding Kenyon Martin on a 10-day contract and the Thunder agreeing to sign Derek Fisher for the remainder of the season.
For New York and Oklahoma City, adding a veteran as a 15th man makes sense for depth purposes, and we may see a few more playoff contenders take the same approach as Friday's buyout deadline nears. For non-contenders, a D-League pickup or two may be more likely, as teams take a look at players who may be able to contribute beyond this season.
Clubs carrying fewer than 15 players are more likely to add free agents at this point, since they won't have to release a player on a guaranteed contract to clear space for a pickup. So with the help of our constantly-updated roster counts page, let's take a quick look at the list of teams with at least one open roster spot. The number of available spots is indicated in parentheses.
Eastern Conference:
- Boston Celtics (2)
- Brooklyn Nets (1)
- Charlotte Bobcats (1)
- Chicago Bulls (1)
- Detroit Pistons (1)
- Miami Heat (1)
- Orlando Magic (1)
Western Conference:
- Golden State Warriors (2)
- Houston Rockets (1)
- Los Angeles Clippers (1)
- Los Angeles Lakers (1)
- Memphis Grizzlies (2)
- New Orleans Hornets (2)
- Sacramento Kings (1)
Central Rumors: Pistons, Redick, Bynum, Ayon
A pair of Central Division teams welcomed additions to their lineups last night, as J.J. Redick made his debut for the Bucks while Danny Granger saw his first action of the season for the Pacers. If and when Derrick Rose makes his way back to the Bulls this year, the Central's playoff-bound teams will be poised to enter the postseason on an upswing. Here's more on Redick, the Bucks, and other news from the Central:
- The Magic's pursuit of a first-round pick derailed talks the Pistons had about acquiring Redick, reports MLive's David Mayo. The Blazers' insistence on a first-rounder also put an end to Detroit's pursuit of J.J. Hickson, as we heard earlier, but according to Mayo, the Pistons never spoke to the Thunder about Will Bynum.
- The Spanish website El Contraataque is reporting that FC Barcelona is trying to engineer a buyout of Gustavo Ayon's contract with the Bucks so that he can sign a three-year deal worth the equivalent of $2MM annually with the overseas club (translation via HoopsHype). FC Barcelona acquired his Spanish league rights in October, but shortly thereafter, Ayon's agent, Emilio Duran, said his client is content to remain in the NBA. Milwaukee holds a $1.5MM team option on Ayon for next season.
- USA Basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo told Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal that Kyrie Irving will be invited to a four-day tryout camp this summer in Las Vegas for Team USA's entry in the 2014 basketball World Cup.
Charlie Villanueva To Exercise 2013/14 Option
Charlie Villanueva will exercise his $8.5MM player option to remain with the Pistons for the 2013/14 season, the veteran forward tells Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press. Villanueva cited money and the closeness to his son, who lives in Toronto, as reasons for not opting out of his contract to become an unrestricted free agent.
Ellis writes that, although Villanueva has been a disappointment during his four seasons in Detroit, he is likely playing well enough this season to avoid being waived using the amnesty clause this summer. He is the only player currently on the Pistons' roster who would be eligible to be amnestied.
Pistons Discussed Jason Maxiell, Will Bynum Deals
The Pistons were inactive on deadline day, having already been involved in their lone trade last month, when they acquired Jose Calderon from the Raptors. But that doesn't mean that Detroit wasn't exploring its options leading up to the deadline.
According to Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News, the Pistons spoke to the Trail Blazers about swapping J.J. Hickson and Jason Maxiell. However, Portland wanted the Pistons to include a first-round pick, which Detroit was unwilling to do. Maxiell also drew some interest from the Spurs, reports Goodwill.
Besides Maxiell, another Piston on an expiring contract, Will Bynum, received a little interest. The Thunder inquired on Bynum before eventually trading Eric Maynor to the Trail Blazers and acquiring Ronnie Brewer from the Knicks, says Goodwill.
J.J. Redick Rumors: Thursday
Based on reports late last night, it sounds like the Magic are still on the fence about whether or not they'll trade J.J. Redick. While the team is clearly fielding offers, Orlando also seems willing to hang on to Redick for the season if no suitable proposals are made. We'll track today's Redick rumors here, with the newest items added throughout the day:
- The Pacers are out of the running for Redick, tweets ESPN.com's Chris Broussard.
- The Redick talks are coming "down to the wire" with the Pacers, Sixers, and Bucks still involved, tweets David Aldridge of TNT. The Spurs are out, according to Aldridge.
- A source involved in the Redick talks now believes there's a strong chance the sharpshooter will remain in Orlando, tweets Ken Berger of CBSSports.com.
Earlier updates:
Trade Rumors: Knicks, Lakers, Pierce, Pistons
With so many trade rumors swirling around in the hours leading up to the deadline, we're scrambling to keep tabs on them all. Here's the latest:
- The Knicks won't make a major move, but they're exploring make a trade to clear a roster spot for an eventual free agent pickup, tweets Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com.
- Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times is fairly confident the Lakers won't make a move today (Twitter link).
Earlier updates:
- Although the Celtics continue to discuss Paul Pierce, they're seeking a big package of expiring contracts and draft picks, which is unlikely, tweets Chris Mannix of SI.com. The Nets are "on the outside looking in" when it comes to Pierce, tweets Sam Amick of USA Today.
- TNT's David Aldridge was told unequivocally that the Rockets won't flip Thomas Robinson in a second trade. Houston "loves" Robinson, according to Aldridge (Twitter link).
- "Nothing at all" is happening on the trade front for the Pistons, reports Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press, though he notes there's still some time for that to change (Twitter links).
- The Warriors and Suns are on Eric Gordon's list of desired destinations, tweets Amick. While there's a chance Gordon is moved today, a deal down the road, perhaps this summer, is more likely — Gordon isn't even eligible to be traded to Phoenix until July.
- Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express-News is hearing that the consensus is the Spurs' asking price for DeJuan Blair remains too high.
Pistons Rumors: Bynum, Villanueva, Maxiell
The Pistons have already been in one major trade this season, sending away Tayshaun Prince, thelast link to their 2004 championship team, in a package that brought back Jose Calderon. Here's the latest on whether another deal could be on the horizon, and more from Detroit:
- Mark Bartelstein, the agent for Pistons guard Will Bynum, told Shams Charania of RealGM his client won't be leaving Detroit at the deadline. Bynum, 30, is on an expiring deal, and but it appears the Pistons aren't interested in using him as a trade chip.
- There's little doubt that Charlie Villanueva will exercise his $8.58MM player option for next season, and the power forward gave strong indications to Vincent Ellis of the Detroit Free Press that he won't opt out. "You know what I'm going to do. Think I'm going to leave that money?" Villanueva said (Twitter link).
- MLive's David Mayo estimates there's a 35% chance the Pistons make a trade (Twitter link). He tabs Bynum and Jason Maxiell the likeliest to go, though if Bynum's agent is correct that he won't be dealt, the chances of Detroit making a deal are probably even slimmer.
Spears On Oden, Kings, Gordon, Ridnour, Bucks
In the last pre-trade-deadline installment of his weekly power rankings, Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports shares trade nuggets for a good chunk of the NBA's 30 teams. We've already heard many of them, but here are a few of Spears' notes of interest:
- Agent Mike Conley tells Spears that his client Greg Oden likely won't sign with a team until the offseason. We've heard that the Cavaliers and Bobcats are preparing to make Oden offers after the trade deadline, so if he really waits until the summer to sign, it would strongly suggest to me that he prefers to go to the Heat. Miami can only offer a minimum-salary contract at this point, but would have the mini mid-level exception available again in July.
- The Kings prefer to let a new ownership group inherit the team as is, so they likely won't make any moves at the deadline.
- Eric Gordon figures to remain with the Hornets through the deadline, but the club may explore potential trades involving Gordon this summer.
- A source tells Spears that, contrary to previous reports, the Timberwolves aren't actively shopping Luke Ridnour.
- The Bucks doubt that they'll move either Brandon Jennings or Monta Ellis this week, even though both players could become free agents in the summer.
- Mark Cuban would like to make a trade that makes Dirk Nowitzki the Mavericks' second-best player, according to Spears. I have a hard time believing there's a deal out there like that for Dallas.
- The Pistons are expected to stand pat at the deadline.
Eastern Rumors: Jerebko, Stuckey, Ellington
Jonas Jerebko and Rodney Stuckey are the two Pistons players other teams ask about most, and sources tell Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press that while Detroit is likely to wait to make another major move until summer, a smaller deal isn't out of the question. "You have already had the main course. You aren't getting seconds," a source told Ellis, referencing the Jose Calderon/ Tayshaun Prince swap before adding, "You might get dessert."
While we wait to bite into the sweet spot of trade deadline chatter in the days to come, here's more of what we're hearing from the Eastern Conference:
- Terry Pluto of The Plain Dealer checks in with Wayne Ellington, who's enjoying his expanded role with the Cavaliers and would like to stay with the team as he eyes restricted free agency this summer.
- Cavs owner Dan Gilbert risks alientating Kyrie Irving if he doesn't get over his frustration from 2010 and make a push for LeBron James in 2014, opines fellow Plain Dealer columnist Bud Shaw.
- Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel gives his thoughts on why James hasn't put an end to talk about whether he'd return to the Cavs, surmising that James would be wise not to box himself in with more than 16 months to go before he can hit free agency.
- Tom Moore of PhillyBurbs.com looks at a few questions the Sixers will face heading into the second half regarding trades, Doug Collins and Andrew Bynum.
- Nets center Brook Lopez is angling for a spot on Team USA, as Tim Bontemps of the New York Post observes.