NBA salary cap

The NBA salary cap is the limit to the total amount of money that National Basketball Association teams are allowed to pay their players. It is defined by the league's collective bargaining agreement (CBA). This limit is subject to a complex system of rules and exceptions and as such is considered a "soft" cap.

The actual amount of the salary cap varies on a year-to-year basis, and is calculated as a percentage of the league's revenue from the previous season; for instance, in 2007–08, the NBA's salary cap was approximately US$55.6 million per team, and for the 2008–09 season it was $58.68 million.[1] Like many professional sports leagues, the NBA has a salary cap to control cost.[2] The salary cap for the 2014-15 season is $63.065 million, and the luxury tax limit is $76.8 million.[3]

Under the league's new CBA, ratified in December 2011, the cap will continue to vary in future seasons based on league revenues.

History

The NBA had a salary cap in the mid-1940s, but it was abolished after only one season. The league continued to operate without such a cap until 1984–85, when one was instituted in an attempt to level the playing field among all of the NBA's teams and ensure competitive balance for the League in the future. Before the cap was reinstated, teams could spend whatever amount of money they wanted on players, but in the first season under the new cap, they were each limited to $3.6 million in total payroll.

Under the 2005 CBA, salaries were capped at 57 percent of basketball-related income (BRI) and lasted for six years, until June 30, 2011.[4] The 2011 agreement set the cap at 51.2 percent of BRI in 2011–12, with a 49-to-51 band in subsequent years.[5][6]

NBA salary cap and average player salary since the introduction of the cap in 1984.[7][8][9]

Salary Cap

Avg. Player Salary

2007–08 NBA season 2006–07 NBA season 2005–06 NBA season 2004–05 NBA season 2003–04 NBA season 2002–03 NBA season 2001–02 NBA season 2000–01 NBA season 1999–2000 NBA season 1998–99 NBA season 1997–98 NBA season 1996–97 NBA season 1995–96 NBA season 1994–95 NBA season 1993–94 NBA season 1992–93 NBA season 1991–92 NBA season 1990–91 NBA season 1989–90 NBA season 1988–89 NBA season 1987–88 NBA season 1986–87 NBA season 1985–86 NBA season 1984–85 NBA season

Soft versus hard caps

Unlike the NFL and NHL, the NBA features a so-called soft cap, meaning that there are several significant exceptions that allow teams to exceed the salary cap to sign players. This is done to allow teams to keep their own players, which, in theory, fosters fan support in each individual city. By contrast, the NFL and NHL caps are considered hard, meaning that they offer relatively few (if any) circumstances under which teams can exceed the salary cap. The NBA version of the "soft" cap is less significant than that of the MLB, which has an infinite allowance to pay players. Like the NBA, however, it has a point in which the luxury tax kicks in, to help prevent large market teams from monopolizing the free agent market.

Maximum individual contracts under the NBA

The maximum amount of money a player can sign for is based on the number of years that player has played and the total of the salary cap. The maximum salary of a player with 6 or fewer years of experience is either $9,000,000 or 25% of the total salary cap (2013–14: $14,670,000), whichever is greater. For a player with 7–9 years of experience, the maximum is $11,000,000 or 30% of the cap (2013–14: $17,603,700), and for a player with 10+ years of experience, the maximum is $14,000,000 or 35% of the cap (2013–2014: $20,537,650).[10] There is an exception to this rule: a player is able to sign a contract for 105% of his previous contract, even if the new contract is higher than the league limit.[11]

Designated Player

Each team in the NBA can nominate a player on his rookie contract to receive a "Designated Player" contract extension. A Designated Player is eligible for a 5-year contract extension, instead of being held to the standard 4-year restriction.[6] A team can only allocate a single Designated Player contract at any one time (if a team has already extended a rookie contract by using the Designated Player extension they cannot create a second Designated Player contract until the current contract expires, or until the player moves to a different team); however the CBA rules do allow teams to sign a second Designated Player from another team in addition to the one they already have. All teams are limited to having a maximum of two Designated Players contracted on their roster at any time (one which they have created from one of their own rookie contracts, and one which they have acquired from another team).[12]

"Derrick Rose" Rule

In a rule named after Derrick Rose, accomplished players coming off their rookie contract could earn more money in the 2011 CBA.

A Designated Player may be eligible to earn 30% of the salary cap (rather than the standard 25%) if he passes certain criteria. To be eligible, the player must be voted to start in two All-Star Games, or be named to an All-NBA Team twice (at any level), or be named MVP. Officially titled the "5th Year 30% Max Criteria"[2] it has been dubbed (and is more commonly known as) the "Derrick Rose Rule" after the 2011 MVP,[13] due to the fact that when the criterion was introduced, Rose was the only player in the NBA eligible to sign the maximum extension (due to his MVP award).[14] The reasoning for the rule is to suitably reward players being extended off of their rookie contract who are considered to be of a higher "caliber" than their peers, without restricting them to the lower (25%) salary level.[15] A player may sign a "5th Year, 30% Max" contract before the final year of his rookie contract and before fulfilling the criteria needed to receive the 30% salary grade. Should the player fail to fulfil the criteria before the start of his Designated Player contract, he will receive the standard five year, 25% Designated Player contract. James Harden of the Houston Rockets had such a clause in his contract extension, but failed to meet the criteria.[16] The only player in the NBA who was attempting to qualify for a full 30% contract in 2013–14 was Paul George, who signed a provisional 30%/5 year contract in September 2013. George, who had made the All-NBA third team in 2012-13,[17] qualified by again making the All-NBA third team.[18]

5/30% Contracts

The following players have signed 5 year/30% contracts:[2]

5/25% Contracts

In addition the following players are known to have signed 5 year/25% contracts:[2]

Kevin Love was eligible for a designated player contract, but the Minnesota Timberwolves opted[20] for a 4 year contract (with a player option year included, potentially allowing him to become an unrestricted free agent) instead.[21] Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City teammate of Russell Westbrook, is currently receiving a Designated Player level salary. His contract was initially drawn up before the lockout—during which the Derrick Rose Rule was implemented—but was officially approved under the provisions of the 2005 CBA[1] by the NBA after the lockout. This has led some people[22] to question whether the Thunder have (with NBA approval) effectively signed two players as their Designated Player, as both are contracted for 5 years.

Exceptions

Because the NBA's salary cap is a soft one, the CBA allows for several important scenarios in which a team can sign players even if their payroll exceeds the cap. The exceptions are as follows:

Mid-level exception

Once a year, teams can use a mid-level exception (MLE) to sign a player to a contract for a specified maximum amount. The amount of the MLE and its duration depend on the team's cap status. The MLE was initially set at $5 million for a duration of four years for teams that are over the cap either before or after the signing, but under the luxury tax apron, which is $4M above the tax line. Teams above the luxury tax apron have an MLE that was initially set at $3 million with a three-year duration. Teams with cap room, previously ineligible for the MLE, have a new MLE, initially $2.5 million with a two-year duration. The MLE was frozen at the stated levels through the 2012–13 season, since then, it will increase by 3% per season (with the percentage based on the initial amount of the exception, and not compounded).[6] In turn, this means that MLEs in the current 2014–15 season are:

Before the 2011 CBA, the MLE was equal to the average NBA salary for all teams over the cap. Teams with cap room were previously ineligible for the MLE.[6] The Mid-Level Exception for the 2008–09 NBA season was $5.585 million.[23] The MLE was $5.854 million for the 2009–10 NBA regular season.[24]

Bi-annual exception

The bi-annual exception was used to sign any free agent to a contract starting at $1.672 million. Like the mid-level exception, the bi-annual exception was also split among more than one player, and was used to sign players for up to two years, with raises limited to 8% per year. This exception was referred to as the "$1 million exception" in the 1999 CBA, although it was valued at $1 million for only the first year of the agreement.

An example of the bi-annual exception was the Los Angeles Lakers' signing of Karl Malone to a contract before the 2003–04 season.

The exception was eliminated for luxury tax paying teams following the 2011 NBA lockout as many high spending teams were using this as a tool to gain top paid players.[6]

Rookie exception

The NBA allows teams to sign their first-round draft choices to rookie "scale" contracts even if their payroll exceeds the cap.

Larry Bird exception

Perhaps the most well-known of the NBA's salary cap exceptions is the Larry Bird exception, so named because the Boston Celtics were the first team permitted to exceed the salary cap to re-sign one of their own players (in that case, Larry Bird). Free agents who qualify for this exception are called "qualifying veteran free agents" or "Bird Free Agents" in the CBA, and this exception falls under the terms of the Veteran Free Agent exception. In essence, the Larry Bird exception allows teams to exceed the salary cap to re-sign their own free agents, at an amount up to the maximum salary. To qualify as a Bird free agent, a player must have played three seasons without being waived or changing teams as a free agent. Players claimed after being amnestied have their Bird rights transferred to their new team. Other players claimed off waivers are not eligible for the full Bird exception, but may qualify for the early Bird exception. Prior to an arbitrator ruling in June 2012, all players that were waived and changed teams lost their Bird rights.[25][26] This means a player can obtain "Bird rights" by playing under three one-year contracts, a single contract of at least three years, or any combination thereof. It also means that when a player is traded, his Bird rights are traded with him, and his new team can use the Bird exception to re-sign him. Under the 2011 CBA, Bird-exception contracts can be up to five years in length, down from six under the 2005 CBA.[6]

Early Bird exception

The lesser form of the Larry Bird exception is the "early Bird" exception. Free agents who qualify for this exception are called "early qualifying veteran free agents", and qualify after playing two seasons with the same team. Players that are traded or claimed off waivers have their Bird rights transferred to their new team. Prior to an arbitrator ruling in June 2012, all players that were waived and changed teams lost their Bird rights.[25][26] Using this exception, a team can re-sign its own free agent for either 175% of his salary the previous season, or the NBA's average salary, whichever is greater. Early Bird contracts must be for at least two seasons, but can last no longer than four seasons. If a team agrees to a trade that would make a player lose his Early Bird Rights, he has the power to veto the trade.

A much-publicized example for this was Devean George, who vetoed his inclusion into a larger trade during the 2007–08 season that would have sent him from the Dallas Mavericks to the New Jersey Nets.

Non-Bird exception

"Non-qualifying free agents" (those who do not qualify under either the Larry Bird exception or the early Bird exception) are subject to the non-Bird exception. Under this exception, teams can re-sign a player to a contract beginning at either 120% of his salary for the previous season, or 120% of the league's minimum salary, whichever amount is higher. Contracts signed under the Non-Bird exception can last up to four years (down from six under the 2005 CBA).

Minimum Salary Exception

Teams can sign players for the NBA's minimum salary even if they are over the cap, for up to two years in length. In the case of two-year contracts, the second-season salary is the minimum salary for that season. The contract may not contain a signing bonus. This exception also allows minimum-salary players to be acquired via trade. There is no limit to the number of players that can be signed or acquired using this exception.

Traded Player Exception

If a team trades away a player with a higher salary than the player they acquire in return (the deal hereafter referred to as "Trade #1"), they receive a Traded Player Exception, also known as a "Trade Exception". Teams with a trade exception have up to a year in which they can acquire more salary in other trades (Trade #2, #3, etc.) than they send away, as long as the gulf in salaries for Trade #2, #3, etc. are less than or equal to the difference in salary for Trade #1. This exception is particularly useful when teams trade draft picks directly for a player; since draft picks have no salary value, often the only way to get salaries to match is to use a trade exception, which allows trades to be made despite unbalanced salaries. It is also useful to compensate teams for losing free agents, as they can do a sign and trade of that free agent to acquire a trade exception that can be used later. Note this exception is for single player trades only, though additional cash and draft picks can be part of the trade.

Disabled Player Exception

Allows a team that is over the cap to acquire a replacement for a disabled player who will be out for either the remainder of that season (for in-season injuries/deaths) or the next season (if the disability occurs during the offseason). The maximum salary of the replacement player is either 50% of the injured player's salary, or the mid-level exception for a non-taxpaying team, whichever is less. This exception requires an NBA-designated doctor to verify the extent of the injury. Under the 2005 CBA, a team could sign a player under this exception for five years; the 2011 CBA now allows this only for one year.[6]

Note that while teams can often use one exception to sign multiple players, they cannot use a combination of exceptions to sign a single player.

Reinstatement

A player banned from the league for a drug-related offense who is reinstated may be re-signed by his prior team for up to his previous salary.[10]

Free agency

Gilbert Arenas in 2003 was able to receive a bigger contract as a restricted free agent by leaving the Golden State Warriors for the Washington Wizards, prompting the "Gilbert Arenas Rule".

There are two types of free agency under the NBA's Collective Bargaining Agreement: Unrestricted and Restricted.

Unrestricted free agent

An unrestricted free agent is free to sign with any team.

Restricted free agent

A restricted free agent is subject to his current team's Right of First Refusal, meaning that the player can be signed to an offer sheet by another team, but his current club reserves the right to match the offer and keep the player. An offer sheet is a contract offer of at least two years made by another team to a restricted free agent.[10] The player's current club has three days to match the offer or loses the player to the new team; the CBA prior to 2011 allowed seven days.[27]

For first-round draft picks, restricted free agency is only allowed after a team exercises its option for a fourth year, and the team makes a Qualifying Offer at the Rookie-scale amount after the fourth year is completed. For any other player to be a restricted free agent, he must be at most a three-year NBA veteran, and his team must have made a Qualifying Offer for either 125% of his previous season's salary or the minimum salary plus $200,000, whichever offer is higher.[10]

Teams are limited in what they can offer an unrestricted free agent with two years or less experience. The maximum first-year salary in an offer sheet is the mid-level exception. The second-year salary can be raised a maximum of 4.5%. The third year salary is limited to the maximum a team has available in their salary cap. The salary in the fourth season may increase (or decrease) by up to 4.1% of the salary in the third season. The offer sheet can only increase in the third season if it provides the highest salary allowed in the first two seasons, the contract is fully guaranteed, and it contains no bonuses.[10][28] A player's original team can use the Early Bird exception or their Mid-Level exception to re-sign the player.[10]

If the raise in the third season is greater than 4.5% of the first year, the offering team must be able to fit the average of the entire contract under their cap. The accounting is different for the player's original team, where the player's salary for a given year—not the contract's average—is counted against the cap. In some cases, the offering team can exploit a loophole to create what is referred to as a poison pill for the player's original team, potentially forcing the original team to pay the luxury tax by the third season, as the Houston Rockets did in order to sign Jeremy Lin and Ömer Aşık away from the New York Knicks and Chicago Bulls, respectively. This could discourage them from matching the offer sheet.[29][30]

Before the 2005 CBA, the original team could only use an exception to re-sign a player who had been drafted in the first round. The 2005 CBA allowed teams to use exceptions on non-first-round picks, with the extension named the "Gilbert Arenas Rule". In 2003, Gilbert Arenas, who had been a second-round pick in 2001, signed a six-year, $60 million contract with the Washington Wizards after his original team, the Golden State Warriors, were unable to match the offer since they were over the salary cap.[31]

July moratorium

Players on a team's season-ending roster remain under contract with their respective team until the start of free agency on July 1.[32] During a period in the beginning of July, teams may begin negotiating with free agents, but trades cannot be made and most free agents cannot be signed. The salary cap for the upcoming year is not set until the league's audit is completed by the end of the period. Contracts that are allowed during this period are limited to:

During the moratorium, teams are restricted from commenting on deals.[33] Contracts can be signed once the moratorium ends.[10]

Rookie scale salary

First-round draft choices are assigned salaries according to their draft position. The first overall pick receives more than the second pick, the second more than the third, and so on. Each contract is for two years, with a team option for the third and fourth seasons (the previous CBA provided for three-year contracts with an option for the fourth season), with built-in raises every year to compensate for increases in the average salary. A team may elect to exceed rookie scale for a drafted player that was unsigned for which they retained his draft rights three seasons after the draft. The contract would be for at least three seasons, with a maximum value up to the team's available cap room.[34]

In 2013, the scale for lottery picks were as follows:

Options

Many NBA contracts are structured with options for either the player or the team. An option simply gives the party that controls the option the right to extend their contract for one more season at a salary no less than the prior year's amount.

Sign and trade agreements

Main article: Sign and trade

When a team is willing to sign an upcoming free agent, but the player's current team wants something in return, it might be in the best interest of both clubs to execute a sign-and-trade deal. This occurs when one team signs one of its free agents and immediately trades that player to another team. A sign-and-trade is beneficial to both the player and the teams; the player receives a bigger contract than he might ordinarily get from a team that he would like to play for, while the trading club gets something in return for a free agent, and the recipient of the trade gets the player they desire. Sign-and-trades are a reality in the NBA because of the CBA's rules: unlike baseball, where teams losing free agents are compensated with draft picks or cash, NBA teams that lose free agents receive no compensation.

When a team initiates a sign-and-trade agreement, it must trade the signed player immediately; teams cannot renege on the arrangement and keep the player for themselves, using the other team's financial situation to leverage the signee into a more favorable deal for themselves. Also, the contract signed before the trade must be for at least 3 years, with the first year guaranteed.

If a newly signed player is not part of a sign-and-trade, his new team cannot trade him until December 15 of the calendar year in which he was signed or three months after the date on which he signed, whichever arrives later.

Under the 2011 CBA, the signed player must have been on the roster of his previous team at the end of the last regular season. Previous agreements allowed teams to sign-and-trade any player to whom they held Bird rights, which do not automatically disappear with a player's retirement—for example, in July 2012, the Los Angeles Lakers still held Bird rights to John Salley, who had not played since 2000. In the 2007–08 season, two teams used sign-and-trades on players who had been out of the league. The Dallas Mavericks signed Keith Van Horn out of retirement as part of a package to acquire Jason Kidd, and the Lakers did the same with Aaron McKie to facilitate their deal for Pau Gasol.[35]

Trading and the salary cap

The tight salary-matching rules of the 2005 CBA often required what NBA cap analyst Larry Coon called "trade ballast"—extra players added to a deal solely for salary matching, who would typically be waived by their new teams. Under that CBA, such players were restricted from rejoining their original teams for 30 days during the season or 20 days in the offseason. This led to what Coon called "wink-wink deals where players are traded with the full expectation of returning later." A notable example of such a deal occurred in the 2009–10 season, in which the Cleveland Cavaliers included Žydrūnas Ilgauskas in their trade with the Washington Wizards for Antawn Jamison. Ilgauskas was waived a week later without ever appearing in a game for the Wizards, and re-signed with Cleveland after the 30-day waiting period passed. Under the 2011 CBA, a player acquired in a trade and waived by his new team cannot re-sign with his original team until one year after the trade or July 1 after the expiration of his contract, whichever is sooner.[6]

Base year compensation

Certain players in the first few months of a new contract are subject to base year compensation (BYC). The intent of BYC is to prevent teams from re-signing players to salaries specifically targeted to match other salaries in a trade (in other words, salary should be based on basketball value, not trade value). A BYC player's trade value as outgoing salary is 50% of his new salary, or his previous salary, whichever is greater. BYC applies only to players who re-sign with their previous team and receive a raise greater than 20%. It also applies only when (and as long as) the team is over the salary cap. Under the 2011 CBA, players subject to BYC cannot be traded before January 15 except in a sign-and-trade, and BYC is only applied to outgoing salary in sign-and-trade deals.[6]

Waivers

NBA teams can release a player to the waiver wire, where he can stay for 48 hours (during the regular season). While he is on waivers, other teams may claim him, for his existing salary. If he is not claimed, he is said to have "cleared waivers", and is treated like any free agent, able to sign with any team (with the special restriction noted above for players who were traded and then waived).

Players waived after March 1 are not eligible to be on a team's playoff roster.[36] The deadline was March 23 during the lockout-shortened 2011–12 season.[10]

Released players

Released/waived players with guaranteed contracts continue to be included in their former team's payroll. Players whose contracts are guaranteed are included in team salary in the amount they made while they were with the team. Players on non-guaranteed "summer contracts" are not included in team salary unless they make the regular season roster.

If another team signs a released player who had a guaranteed contract (as long as the player has cleared waivers), the player's original team is allowed to reduce the amount of money they still owe the player (and lower their team payroll) by the right of set-off. This is true if the player signs with any professional team—it does not even have to be an NBA team. The amount the original team gets to set off is limited to one-half the difference between the player's new salary and a pro-rated share of the minimum salary for a one-year veteran (if the player is a rookie, then the rookie minimum is used instead).

Stretch provision

Both the 2005 and 2011 CBAs contain a so-called "stretch" provision regarding payment of guaranteed money to waived players and its effect on the salary cap.

Under the 2005 CBA, players and teams could alter the schedule of payments to waived players by mutual agreement. The remaining guaranteed salary was equally spread across the remaining years of the player's contract.[6]

The 2011 CBA dramatically changes this regimen. While contracts signed under the 2005 CBA remain under the original scheme, different rules apply to new contracts. When a team waives a player signed under the 2011 CBA, it can spread the remaining guaranteed salary (and its accompanying cap hit) over twice the remaining length of the contract, plus one year. According to Coon, "if a team has an underperforming player with one season remaining at $12 million, the team can waive him and stretch his salary across three seasons at $4 million per season."[6]

Amnesty clause

The NBA Amnesty Clause provides franchises a means of escaping a contractual obligation to a player whose performance falls far short of the extremely large salary they initially agreed to pay him. Under the 2010 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), each franchise is allowed to waive just one player prior to the start of any season between the 2011-12 and 2015-16 seasons; however, the balance of his salary still contractually owed him will not be included in either the salary cap or luxury tax totals of the team terminating his employment. Each team can "amnesty" a player only once during the 2011-2016 timeframe, and only players signed prior to the 2011-12 season can be "amnestied".[37] The clause can be exercised during the seven days following the NBA's July moratorium period on player transactions.[lower-alpha 1][10] The clause's provisions allow a rival team to claim an amnestied player at a significantly (often, dramatically) reduced salary; the waiving team only has to pay the player the remaining balance. The team with the highest bid acquires the player. If unclaimed, the player becomes a free agent.[6] Teams over the salary cap can only acquire an amnestied player if he becomes a free agent and the offer would be limited to the veteran's minimum contract.[38]

Under the 2005 CBA, one player could be waived prior to the start of the 2005–06 season and not count toward the luxury tax. Unlike the 2011 CBA, the player still counted under the salary cap.[6] The 2005 amnesty provision was derisively named the "Allan Houston Rule", but his team, the New York Knicks, actually didn't use the measure on Houston—they instead applied it to Jerome Williams.[39]

Season Season the amnesty clause was exercised.
Team Team that exercised the clause.
Player Player that was amnestied by the team.
Next team The team the player joined after being amnestied.
Bid amount The bid amount used by the next team if the player was claimed off waivers. All unclaimed players become free agents.
* Denotes the team claimed the player off waivers (i.e. he was not a free agent).
N/A Denotes the player wasn't selected to join a new team (i.e. retirement) and/or wasn't bid on.
Players amnestied under the 2011 CBA
Season Team Player Next team Bid amount Ref
2011–12 Orlando Magic Arenas, GilbertGilbert Arenas Memphis Grizzlies N/A [10]
Golden State Warriors Bell, CharlieCharlie Bell Italy Juvecaserta Basket N/A
New York Knicks Billups, ChaunceyChauncey Billups Los Angeles Clippers* $2,000,032
Cleveland Cavaliers Davis, BaronBaron Davis New York Knicks N/A
New Jersey Nets Outlaw, TravisTravis Outlaw Sacramento Kings* $12,000,000
Indiana Pacers Posey, JamesJames Posey N/A (Retired)[upper-roman 1] N/A
Portland Trail Blazers Roy, BrandonBrandon Roy Minnesota Timberwolves[upper-roman 2] N/A
2012–13 Philadelphia 76ers Brand, EltonElton Brand Dallas Mavericks* $2,100,000 [40]
Minnesota Timberwolves Miličić, DarkoDarko Miličić Boston Celtics N/A [41]
Dallas Mavericks Haywood, BrendanBrendan Haywood Charlotte Bobcats* $2,000,500 [42]
Houston Rockets Scola, LuisLuis Scola Phoenix Suns* $13,500,000 [43]
Phoenix Suns Childress, JoshJosh Childress Brooklyn Nets N/A [44]
Washington Wizards Blatche, AndrayAndray Blatche Brooklyn Nets N/A [45]
Denver Nuggets Andersen, ChrisChris Andersen Miami Heat N/A [46]
Los Angeles Clippers Gomes, RyanRyan Gomes Germany Artland Dragons N/A [47]
2013–14 Los Angeles Lakers World Peace, MettaMetta World Peace New York Knicks N/A [48]
Charlotte Bobcats Thomas, TyrusTyrus Thomas N/A N/A [49]
Milwaukee Bucks Gooden, DrewDrew Gooden Washington Wizards N/A [50]
Toronto Raptors Kleiza, LinasLinas Kleiza Turkey Fenerbahçe Ülker N/A [51]
Miami Heat Miller, MikeMike Miller Memphis Grizzlies N/A [52]
2014–15 Chicago Bulls Boozer, CarlosCarlos Boozer Los Angeles Lakers* $3,200,000 [53]
Note
  1. ↑ Posey would be retired from the NBA before he could find another team that he could play for.
  2. ↑ Roy initially retired from basketball due to persistent knee injuries and was then amnestied by Portland. However, after a year of inactivity, he returned to the NBA.

Luxury tax

While the soft cap allows teams to exceed the salary cap indefinitely by re-signing their own players using the "Larry Bird" family of exceptions, there are consequences for exceeding the cap by large amounts. A luxury tax payment is required of teams whose payroll exceeds a certain "tax level", determined by a complicated formula, and teams exceeding it are punished by being forced to pay bracket-based amounts for each dollar by which their payroll exceeds the tax level.

While most NBA teams hold contracts valued in excess of the salary cap, few teams have payrolls at luxury tax levels. The tax threshold in 2005–06 was $61.7 million. In 2005–06, the New York Knicks' payroll was $124 million, putting them $74.5 million above the salary cap, and $62.3 million above the tax line, which Knicks owner James Dolan paid to the league. Tax revenues are normally redistributed evenly among non-tax-paying teams, so there is often a several-million-dollar incentive to owners not to pay the luxury tax.

The luxury tax level for the 2008–09 season was $71.15 million.[23] For the 2009–10 season, the luxury tax level was set at $69.92 million.[24] The luxury tax level for the 2010–11 and 2012–13 NBA seasons was $70,307,000.[9]

The 2011 CBA instituted major changes to the luxury tax regime. The previous CBA had a dollar-for-dollar tax provision system, which remained in effect through the 2012–13 season. Teams exceeding the tax level were punished by being forced to pay one dollar to the league for each dollar by which their payroll exceeded the tax level. Starting in 2013–14, the tax changed to an incremental system. Under the current system, tax is assessed at different levels based on the amount that a team is over the luxury tax threshold.[54] The scheme is not cumulative—each level of tax applies only to amounts over that level's threshold. For example, a team that is $8 million over the tax threshold will pay $1.50 for each of its first $5 million over the tax threshold, and $1.75 per dollar for the remaining $3 million. Starting in 2014–15, "repeat offenders", subject to additional penalties, are defined as teams that paid tax in previous seasons. In the first season, repeat offenders from in all previous three seasons will pay a stiffer tax rate; from 2015–16 thereafter, teams paying taxes in three out of four years will be subject to the higher repeater rate.[10] As in the previous CBA, the tax revenue is divided among teams with lower payrolls.[55] However, under the new scheme, no more than 50% of the total tax revenue can go exclusively to teams that did not go over the cap.[6] Initial reports did not specify the use of the remaining 50% under the 2011 CBA,[6] but it was later confirmed that this amount would be used to fund revenue sharing for the season during which tax was paid.[56]

For the 2013–14 season, the luxury tax threshold was set at $71.748 million. The Brooklyn Nets, whose payroll for that season was projected to be over $100 million, would face a luxury tax bill above $80 million, resulting in a total payroll cost of $186 million.[57]

Tax levels from 2013–14

Amount over tax threshold Standard tax per excess dollar Repeat offender tax per excess dollar
$4,999,999 or less $1.50 $2.50
$5 million to $9,999,999 $1.75 $2.75
$10 million to $14,999,999 $2.50 $3.50
$15 million to $19,999,999 $3.25 $4.25
Over $20 million $3.75 + $0.50 per $5 million $4.75 + $0.50 per $5 million

Notes

  1. ↑ For the 2011-12 season, that period was December 9–16, 2011, due to the delayed start of the season after the lockout.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "NBA Sets Salary Cap for 2007–8 Season". NBA.com. July 10, 2007. Retrieved July 18, 2010.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "Salary Cap".
  3. ↑ http://hangtime.blogs.nba.com/2013/07/09/2013-14-nba-salary-cap-figure-set-at-58-679-million/
  4. ↑ Broussard, Chris (October 7, 2011). "Sources: Meeting before deadline off". ESPN.com (ESPN Internet Ventures). Archived from the original on October 8, 2011.
  5. ↑ Stein, Marc (November 27, 2011). "Billy Hunter sends players memo on BRI". ESPN.com (ESPN Internet Ventures). Archived from the original on November 30, 2011.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 6.7 6.8 6.9 6.10 6.11 6.12 6.13 6.14 6.15 Coon, Larry (November 28, 2011). "Breaking down changes in new CBA". ESPN.com (ESPN Internet Ventures). Archived from the original on November 30, 2011.
  7. ↑ "CBA 101" (PDF). NBA.com. NBA. p. 2. Archived from the original on July 5, 2012.
  8. ↑ Ford, Chad (July 11, 2006). "NBA – Salary cap for 2006–07 season set at $53.135 million". ESPN.com. Retrieved March 22, 2007.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 "NBA salary cap for 2012-13 season set at $58.044 million" (Press release). National Basketball Association. July 10, 2012. Archived from the original on July 11, 2012.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 10.5 10.6 10.7 10.8 10.9 10.10 10.11 "NBA Salary Cap FAQ". cbafaq.com. Archived from the original on July 5, 2012.
  11. ↑ Coon, Larry (2012); "NBA Salary Cap/Collective Bargaining Agreement FAQ"- Salary Restrictions. Retrieved July 27, 2013.
  12. ↑ Coon, Larry (2012); "NBA Salary Cap/Collective Bargaining Agreement FAQ" - Contract Extensions. Accessed 27th July 2013.
  13. ↑ "Derrick Rose eager for season to start". ESPNChicago.com (ESPN Internet Ventures). November 29, 2011. Archived from the original on December 1, 2011.
  14. ↑ Entire list of players eligible for Higher Max Contract - Accessed 25th July, 2013
  15. ↑ ESPN - "Derrick Rose Eager for Season to Start" - Accessed 27th July 2013
  16. ↑ Twitter discussion with Larry Coon (author of the CBA FAQ) who clarified the distinction between 25%/5 DPs and 30%/5 DPs who had failed to meet the criteria.
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 Feldman, Dan NBCSports.com "Report: Paul George, Pacers finalizing five-year max contract" Accessed 23rd September 2013.
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 "Durant, LeBron headline 2013-14 All-NBA First Team" (Press release). National Basketball Association. June 4, 2014. Retrieved June 6, 2014.
  19. ↑ CBS - Wizards agree to 5 year deal for Wall - Accessed 1st August 2013
  20. ↑ Wojnarowski, Adrian. "Kevin Love unsure about Timberwolves' future" Yahoo.com. Accessed 30th September 2013
  21. ↑ Stein, Marc; Broussard, Chris (January 25, 2012). "Kevin Love, Wolves agree to deal". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on January 25, 2012.
  22. ↑ SBNation: "NBA's bizarre decisions around Kevin Durant's contract" - accessed 25th July, 2013
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 "NBA Salary Cap for 2008–9 Season". NBA.com. July 9, 2008. Retrieved July 18, 2010.
  24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 "NBA salary cap set for 2009–10 season". NBA.com. July 7, 2009. Retrieved July 18, 2010.
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 Beck, Howard (June 29, 2012). "Deal Gives Knicks Lift in Effort to Re-Sign Lin". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 2, 2012.
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 Beck, Howard (June 22, 2012). "Lin Granted Early-Bird Rights". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 2, 2012.
  27. ↑ "Most Popular E-mail Newsletter". USA Today. December 1, 2011.
  28. ↑ Beck, Howard (February 12, 2012). "Knicks Can Keep Their Breakout Star". The New York Times. p. SP3. Retrieved February 13, 2012.
  29. ↑ O'Neil, Danny (July 6, 2012). "NBA's poison-pill provision a reminder of Seahawks' Hutchinson debacle". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on July 10, 2012.
  30. ↑ Manfred, Tony (July 2, 2012). "A Quick Explanation Of The 'Poison Pill' Contract That Could Stop The Knicks From Signing Jeremy Lin". businessinsider.com. Archived from the original on July 10, 2012.
  31. ↑ Hu, Janny (June 23, 2005). "Final looks in store for Warrick, Granger". San Francisco Chronicle. p. D-3. Archived from the original on February 13, 2012.
  32. ↑ "Hawks letter names Paul, Howard". ESPN.com. June 5, 2013. Archived from the original on June 6, 2013.
  33. ↑ Beck, Howard (July 2, 2012). "With Eye on Williams, Nets to Acquire Johnson". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 5, 2012.
  34. ↑ "Splitter: The Difference". ESPN.com. April 23, 2009. Archived from the original on May 6, 2012.
  35. ↑ Coon, Larry (January 15, 2014). "101. How are teams able to trade players who are out of the league, like Dallas did with Keith Van Horn?". NBA Salary Cap FAQ. Archived from the original on February 5, 2014.
  36. ↑ Helin, Kurt (March 21, 2011). "Winderman: Still time to add good player (or Eddy Curry) to playoff roster". NBCSports.com. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
  37. ↑ "NBA Board of Governors ratify 10-year CBA" (Press release). National Basketball Association. December 8, 2011. Archived from the original on December 12, 2011.
  38. ↑ Bresnahan, Mike (December 14, 2011). "Lakers upset with Chris Paul's trade to Clippers". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on December 15, 2011.
  39. ↑ Aldridge, David (December 2, 2011). "No amnesty from preseason speculation engulfing league". NBA.com. Archived from the original on December 12, 2011.
  40. ↑ Stein, Mark (July 13, 2012). "Mavericks claim Elton Brand". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on July 13, 2012.
  41. ↑ Remme, Mark (July 12, 2012). "Wolves Waive Darko Milicic". NBA.com. Archived from the original on July 12, 2012.
  42. ↑ Caplan, Jeff. "Mavs officially use amnesty on Brendan Haywood". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on July 12, 2012.
  43. ↑ "Suns claim Luis Scola off waiver wire, amnesty Josh Childress". SI.com. Associated Press. July 16, 2012. Archived from the original on July 16, 2012.
  44. ↑ Young, Royce. "Suns claim Luis Scola off waiver wire, amnesty Josh Childress". CBSsports.com.
  45. ↑ Peay, Carla. "Wizards release Andray Blatche using amnesty clause". washingtontimes.com.
  46. ↑ "Nuggets waive F/C Chris Andersen under amnesty provision". NBA.com (Turner Sports Interactive, Inc.). July 17, 2012. Retrieved July 17, 2012.
  47. ↑ "Clippers waive Gomes as amnesty player". NBA.com (Turner Sports Interactive, Inc.). July 18, 2012. Retrieved July 18, 2012.
  48. ↑ "Los Angeles Lakers waive Metta World Peace under amnesty clause". ESPN. July 11, 2013.
  49. ↑ . Sports Illustrated. July 4, 2013 http://nba.si.com/2013/07/04/tyrus-thomas-amnesty-clause-charlotte-bobcats/. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  50. ↑ . SB Nation. July 17, 2013 http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2013/7/17/4531136/2013-nba-free-agency-rumors-news. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  51. ↑ . Yahoo!. July 16, 2013 http://sports.yahoo.com/news/nba--raptors-to-amnesty-linas-kleiza-084703294.html. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  52. ↑ . Yahoo!. July 16, 2013 http://sports.yahoo.com/news/heat-designate-mike-miller-amnesty-190744525--nba.html. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  53. ↑ Johnson, K. C. (July 15, 2014). "Bulls use amnesty provision on Boozer". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on July 15, 2014.
  54. ↑ "What is the 'luxury tax?' Why does it exist? How is it determined? Who pays it?"
  55. ↑ Bresnahan, Mike (November 27, 2011). "New NBA deal may curtail Lakers' free-spending ways". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 12, 2011.
  56. ↑ Stein, Marc (July 10, 2013). "Lakers to pay hefty luxury tax". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 11, 2013.
  57. ↑ Freeman, Eric (July 11, 2013). "Andrei Kirilenko joins the Brooklyn Nets, who will pay $186 million for their roster next season". Ball Don't Lie (Yahoo! Sports). Retrieved July 16, 2013.

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