The players union is worried that teams like the Heat are trying to strong-arm players into making financial sacrifices by triggering hard caps with the use of the non-taxpayer’s mid-level and bi-annual exceptions, as Grantland’s Zach Lowe explains. Clubs can’t exceed the tax apron, the line $4MM above the tax threshold, if they use either the larger mid-level or the bi-annual. Ron Klempner, the interim executive director for the union, argues that such teams can eschew those exceptions and find ways that don’t trigger a hard cap to accommodate contracts for the players they want.
“Teams are being exposed for what they are doing,” Klempner told Lowe. “It has been laid bare. They are hiding behind the rules. Teams like the Heat have the ability to bring back all their players, and give them raises, but they are choosing to go in another direction.”
Here’s more from around the league:
- The Celtics remain on the lookout for players who will appeal to the Wolves in hopes that Minnesota will agree to a deal that sends Kevin Love to Boston, as Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe details.
- The Raptors will meet Wednesday with free agent Andray Blatche, tweets Chris Broussard of ESPN.com.
- Former NBA swingman Yakhouba Diawara is working out for the Raptors today in hopes of a comeback, reports Shams Charania of RealGM (Twitter link).
- Sixers second-round pick Vasilije Micic is staying overseas and won’t sign with Philadelphia for this season, reports Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Micic went 52nd overall last month.
- Janis Timma, the 60th pick in last year’s draft, will also stay overseas this coming season rather than sign with the Grizzlies, who hold his rights, as Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal writes in a subscription-only piece.
- The Jazz, Rockets and Warriors all recently auditioned Tyler Honeycutt, but the former Kings small forward has signed a two-year deal with Russia’s Khimki Moscow, the team announced (translation via Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia).
Union probably has little room to complain about a CBA when it was, you know, collectively bargained. Close the loophole next time around.
I don’t think you’re trying to understand their point of view. The Heat are telling their players they can’t be resigned because of the hard cap. The reality is they could avoid the hard cap and pay their players what they deserve, but are deceiving them by telling them they have to take a paycut because of the hard cap. If the Heat face the hard cap, its because they value signing new players to the exception more than they do their existing players to reasonable deals. They’re hoping by lying to them they can get them to agree to sign for less than they deserve, which is why the union is making noise about it. The players went to the union with what the Heat said, and the union has clarified what’s going on.