Freeland's cap number can be stretched 5 years. So the 5.8M left would go from 2.89M this year to (2.89M-1.18M) or give us an additional 1.71M in space. But remember, we'd then get a cap hold hit, so it actually would only give us 1.22M in new space. And we'd have an un-tradeable 1.18M on each of our next 4 caps.
BUMP for post-draft, post-Robinson, post-Lopez, post-Wright, pre-FA. Wright's salary was reported as 2yr/6M, but I don't know if it's a straight 3M/yr or $2,933,985 & $3,066,015. Lopez's salary is 5.118M, but tweets are saying that POR is paying his 1.6M trade kicker. That is factored in for salary purposes as being split over the remaining years in proportion to the percentage of the contract left being paid each year. So since there are two years left at roughly a 45/55 split, it will be just under 800k added to his 2013-14 salary number and just over 800k to his 2014-15 number. Hopefully this helps a bit: maybe instead of a thread it could be an article post, b/c this will probably be pretty long. But this way you can ask questions. 1. Guaranteed roster spots As the roster currently stands, there is $55.6M committed to the following 11 players: Aldridge: $14.6M Batum: $11.3M Matthews: $6.9M Lopez: $5.9M Robinson: $3.5M Lillard: $3.2M Wright: $3.0M (or 2.9M) Freeland: $2.9M Leonard: $2.2M Claver: $1.3M Barton: $0.8M The non-guaranteed contract of Pavlovic was another $1.4M, but he was just released. Additionally, Harris' contract has a cap number of 0.9M, but he is non-guaranteed before 10/31/13. So running cap number is still at $55.6M. Draft Picks: McCollum's $1.9M hold make the running cap number $57.5M. Crabbe does not carry cap hold, unless and until they're signed. But he also doesn't count as "roster spots filled" until signed. McCollum does. $490k hold for each unoccupied roster spot under 12. With the 11 guaranteed players and McCollum, that leaves 0 holds at $490k apiece or $0M. Once someone is signed (or another hold is enforced, like a free agent hold for Hickson or Maynor) then that $490k hold goes away. Running cap number is now $57.5M. 2. Uncertain (Potential) free agent cap holds: Hickson's cap hold is $7.6M (190% of his salary this year--as a Bird below-average contract NOT following rookie contract) if the team chooses to keep his Bird rights. This would be useful if we plan on signing him over $7.6M a year. If we keep this cap hold, it takes the place of one of the $490k roster holds and add $7.6M to the cap number. Maynor's cap number is $5.85M (250% of his salary this year--as a below-average salary following 4th year of rookie contract). The Blazers must offer a qualifying offer to make him an RFA ($3.4M). If he signs the QO, the $5.85M hold goes away and the $3.4M contract becomes the new cap number and one of the roster holds goes away. He will not be offered the QO, which means we either keep his 5.85M cap hold (not likely) or he is renounced. He agreed to sign with Wiz 3. 2013-14 Salary Cap This year's salary cap number was $58.044M, a luxury tax line of $70.307M and the apron of $74.307M. For 2013-14, it will be 53.51% of BRI (minus benefits) divided among the 30 teams. As a rough calculation (NOT the official one) I use 1.21*(salary cap projection) to get my luxury tax projections. If the 58.5M salary cap projection is to be believed, then the tax line would be about 70.8M and the apron would be 74.8M. This year is the first year of the "incremental" tax rate, and 2014-15 will be the first year of the the "repeater rate" penalty. 4. Other tidbits: Moratorium is July 1-July 9. First available time to sign is July 10 12:01. New free agents can be visited 12:01am EST July 1. The non-taxpayer MLE is $5.15M. The taxpayer MLE is $3.183M. The room exception (for teams that started out below the salary cap): $2.652M. Can only be a maximum of 2 years. The BAE (if you are below apron--$4M over tax-- and didn't use whichever MLE or room you qualified for) is $2.016M. To receive a player in a S&T, you cannot end up above apron after your trade, and cannot have used MLE already. (Clarification by Storyteller: Just to clarify, to receive a player in a S&T, you cannot be over the apron or have used the taxpayer MLE. You can, however, use the non-taxpayer MLE or the Room Exception and still receive S&T players.") Cash available for trades $3.2M total for the year. You cannot buy a pick for $3.2M, sell a pick for $3.2M, and buy a new one for $3.2M. 5. Conclusion: If the cap number is $58.5M, and we have a running number of $57.5M, then then cap space available is $1.0M. (Edit: Cap holds only drop off after a contract is signed.) Unless you're signing Crabbe for a minimum deal, (in which case their starting salary is 490k) then you have to use cap space (or break up the room exception) to sign them. But to sign him to the same deal they would've had as the #30 pick in the draft would be a 4yr deal starting a 900k/yr with team options for yr 3 and 4 . Summary: Assuming that we didn't send out anything to get Lopez, that Wright's salary starts at 3.0M instead of 2.9M, and that we're paying the full 1.6M trade kicker, we have 1.0M left in space and the 2.6M Room Exception. And we still need to sign Crabbe
In other words, Neil is probably done for the summer unless there is some street free agent that catches his eye in Summer League.
2.6M/yr for a 2 year max deal. Well, Maynor just signed for less than that. Jermaine likely won't need more than that. If we make a consolidation trade, having something left over for spares might be useful. Getting a Euro or early-2nd pick and paying outside rookie scale. Etc.
Is Watson's deal guaranteed? Isn't his cap number somewhat reduced by his veteran status? It's something like 50%, right?
The cap subsidy is whatever it takes to go from a 2nd-year player min ($788,872) to what a 13th-year player would make at the minimum ($1,399,507). The difference doesn't go on our cap ($788,872 does) and gets reimbursed to the Blazers by the league. The Players Association doesn't want older veterans cut in favor of younger ones just b/c of cost or cap considerations. Basically, the league is paying the Blazers to give Earl Watson, rather than Nolan Smith, a minimum contract. This is another one of those "timing" signings. We actually can keep using all of our cap space, and then sign Watson to a veteran's minimum with a vet exception (those are unlimited). What I actually think is going to happen is that we use the last 1M or so to sign Crabbe to a multiple-year guaranteed deal, sign Watson with a vet exception, and then still have the Room Exception (2.6M) if needed/wanted.
BUMP for post-draft, post-Robinson, post-Lopez, post-Wright, pre-FA. Wright's salary was reported as 2yr/6M, but I don't know if it's a straight 3M/yr or $2,933,985 & $3,066,015. Lopez's salary is 5.118M, but tweets are saying that POR is paying his 1.6M trade kicker. That is factored in for salary purposes as being split over the remaining years in proportion to the percentage of the contract left being paid each year. So since there are two years left at roughly a 45/55 split, it will be just under 800k added to his 2013-14 salary number and just over 800k to his 2014-15 number. Hopefully this helps a bit: maybe instead of a thread it could be an article post, b/c this will probably be pretty long. But this way you can ask questions. 1. Guaranteed roster spots As the roster currently stands, there is $55.6M committed to the following 11 players: Aldridge: $14.6M Batum: $11.3M Matthews: $6.9M Lopez: $5.9M Robinson: $3.5M Lillard: $3.2M Wright: $3.0M (or 2.9M) Freeland: $2.9M Leonard: $2.2M Claver: $1.3M Barton: $0.8M The non-guaranteed contract of Pavlovic was another $1.4M, but he was just released. Additionally, Harris' contract has a cap number of 0.9M, but he is non-guaranteed before 10/31/13. So running cap number is still at $55.6M. Draft Picks: McCollum's $1.9M hold make the running cap number $57.5M. Crabbe does not carry cap hold, unless and until they're signed. But he also doesn't count as "roster spots filled" until signed. McCollum does. $490k hold for each unoccupied roster spot under 12. With the 11 guaranteed players and McCollum, that leaves 0 holds at $490k apiece or $0M. Once someone is signed (or another hold is enforced, like a free agent hold for Hickson or Maynor) then that $490k hold goes away. Running cap number is now $57.5M. 2. Uncertain (Potential) free agent cap holds: Hickson's cap hold is $7.6M (190% of his salary this year--as a Bird below-average contract NOT following rookie contract) if the team chooses to keep his Bird rights. This would be useful if we plan on signing him over $7.6M a year. If we keep this cap hold, it takes the place of one of the $490k roster holds and add $7.6M to the cap number. Maynor's cap number is $5.85M (250% of his salary this year--as a below-average salary following 4th year of rookie contract). The Blazers must offer a qualifying offer to make him an RFA ($3.4M). If he signs the QO, the $5.85M hold goes away and the $3.4M contract becomes the new cap number and one of the roster holds goes away. He will not be offered the QO, which means we either keep his 5.85M cap hold (not likely) or he is renounced. He agreed to sign with Wiz 3. 2013-14 Salary Cap 2012-13's salary cap number was $58.044M, a luxury tax line of $70.307M and the apron of $74.307M. For 2013-14, it will be $58.679M, , then the tax line would be about 71.7M and the apron would be 75.7M. This year is the first year of the "incremental" tax rate, and 2014-15 will be the first year of the the "repeater rate" penalty. 4. Other tidbits: Moratorium is July 1-July 9. First available time to sign is July 10 12:01. New free agents can be visited 12:01am EST July 1. The non-taxpayer MLE is $5.15M. The taxpayer MLE is $3.183M. The room exception (for teams that started out below the salary cap): $2.652M. Can only be a maximum of 2 years. The BAE (if you are below apron--$4M over tax-- and didn't use whichever MLE or room you qualified for) is $2.016M. To receive a player in a S&T, you cannot end up above apron after your trade, and cannot have used MLE already. (Clarification by Storyteller: Just to clarify, to receive a player in a S&T, you cannot be over the apron or have used the taxpayer MLE. You can, however, use the non-taxpayer MLE or the Room Exception and still receive S&T players.") Cash available for trades $3.2M total for the year. You cannot buy a pick for $3.2M, sell a pick for $3.2M, and buy a new one for $3.2M. 5. Conclusion: The cap number is $58.7M, and we have a running number of $57.5M, then then cap space available is $1.2M. (Edit: Cap holds only drop off after a contract is signed.) Unless you're signing Crabbe for a minimum deal, (in which case their starting salary is 490k) then you have to use cap space (or break up the room exception) to sign them. But to sign him to the same deal they would've had as the #30 pick in the draft would be a 4yr deal starting a 900k/yr with team options for yr 3 and 4 . Summary: Assuming that we didn't send out anything to get Lopez, that Wright's salary starts at 3.0M instead of 2.9M, and that we're paying the full 1.6M trade kicker, we have 1.2M left in space and the 2.6M Room Exception. And we still need to sign Crabbe. Watson's is one of those "timing" signings. We actually can keep using all of our cap space, and then sign Watson to a veteran's minimum with a vet exception (those are unlimited). What I actually think is going to happen is that we use the last 1M or so to sign Crabbe to a multiple-year guaranteed deal, sign Watson with a vet exception, and then still have the Room Exception (2.6M) if needed/wanted.
