<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Stan "The (Rich) Man" Kroenke loves basketball. Let's see how high he can vertically leap. Tax time is here in the NBA. The league announced Monday that five teams - including Kroenke's lovable Nuggets - must pay the "luxury tax" for surpassing the league-mandated salary cap payroll last season. The Nuggets received a tab, due July 25, for $2,022,418. That tax is no luxury. But it could be worse for the Nuggets. Much worse. The New York Knicks owe $45,142,002. That Big Apple corps, rotten to the core, won only 33 games and didn't reach the playoffs - again. The champion Spurs are obligated for about $200,000. But it could be worse for the Nuggets. Next year. At this very moment, after signing guard Chucky Atkins ($3.2 million) the Nuggets are about $12 million above the expected luxury tax threshold for the 2007-08 season. The Nuggets have 13 players under contract totaling around $80.6 mil. The salary cap is about $55.6 million. Even I know 55.6 subtracted from 80.6 is not 12, but the cap in the NBA is Charmin-soft, and the tax brink actually is expected to be around $67.8 million because there are so many exceptions (midlevel, rookie, biannual, etc.) to the rules. Just trust me on the number of millions, although I can't figure out my $34 water bill. Kroenke can't reduce his payroll by ordering the release of any of his high-priced players with guaranteed contracts next season. Allen Iverson will be at $19 mil, Kenyon Martin $13.2 mil, Carmelo Anthony $12.45 mil and Nene $8.8 mil. The Nuggets could trade Marcus Camby ($9.0 mil) or Reggie Evans ($4.3 mil), but they would receive players earning similar-sized salaries (with some exceptions). So, what to do if you and I were Kroenke? ("Sitting on a beach with an umbrella drink in Bora Bora" is our answer.) Realistically, the Nuggets' owner has three options: (1) Tango with this team all season, and accept (rather reluctantly) the tax hit in July 2008; (2) Fox trot toward the trade deadline next season, and if the Nuggets are out of step (and out of the playoff chase), make trades (think Earl Boykins for Steve Blake last season) to decrease some of the tax total; or (3) Bring in additional dance partners to increase the potential tax amount. Kroenke has established that in hoops and pucks he will think large, like Pat Bowlen and unlike another set of owners in town. </div> Source: Denver Post
