Not every dollar of each team’s payroll shows up on the court, as franchises often dish out funds to players who are no longer on their rosters. Players with guaranteed money who are waived, either through a standard waiver release, use of the stretch provision, or when a buyout arrangement is reached, still count against a team’s cap figure for the duration of their contracts, or the amount of time specified by the collective bargaining agreement for when a player’s salary is stretched. There are even situations that arise, like the one with JaVale McGee and the Sixers, where these players are actually the highest-paid on the team! McGee is set to collect $12MM from Philly, and he won’t score one point or collect one rebound for the franchise this season. The next highest-paid athlete on the Sixers’ roster is Gerald Wallace, who is scheduled to earn $10,105,855. He could conceivably be a buyout or waiver candidate himself at some point this season, though that is merely my speculation.
Listed below in alphabetical order are the names and cap hits associated with players who are no longer on the rosters of teams that still owe them money. Teams are able to carry as many as 20 players prior to the beginning of the regular season, so there will be quite a few training camp deals inked that include partially guaranteed funds. As franchises pare down their rosters to the regular season maximum of 15, any players cut loose with guaranteed money will be added to this list.
Boston Celtics
- Zoran Dragic: $1,706,250 (Waived)
Brooklyn Nets
- Deron Williams: $5,474,787 (Waived via stretch provision)
Chicago Bulls
- Richard Hamilton: $333,333 (Waived via stretch provision)
Dallas Mavericks
Denver Nuggets
- Pablo Prigioni: $440,000 (Waived)
Detroit Pistons
- Aaron Gray: $452,049 (Waived via stretch provision)
- Josh Smith: $5,400,000 (Waived via stretch provision)
Los Angeles Clippers
- Carlos Delfino: $650,000 (Waived via stretch provision)
- Jordan Farmar: $510,922 (Waived via stretch provision)
- Miroslav Raduljica: $252,042 (Waived via stretch provision)
Memphis Grizzlies
- Jamaal Franklin: $163,297 (Waived via stretch provision)
- Fab Melo: $437,080 (Waived via stretch provision)
Milwaukee Bucks
- Larry Sanders: $1,865,546 (Waived via stretch provision)
Philadelphia 76ers
- JaVale McGee: $12,000,000 (Waived)
Phoenix Suns
- Michael Beasley: $777,778 (Waived via stretch provision)
Sacramento Kings
- Wayne Ellington: $882,630 (Waived via stretch provision)
The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.
I’m not sure if the McGee trade will end up working out for the Sixers; there’s really no telling as far as that’s concerned. But, there are worse ideas than nabbing a first-rounder from a team that will probably be in the lottery for a string of years in a row in exchange for a contract that helps you meet the salary floor. No team other than the Sixers would have touched that $12MM for McGee.