Although the NBA and the players’ union has reached an agreement on a new Collective Bargaining Agreement, that deal has yet to be ratified, so we don’t yet know all the official details. Nonetheless, Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post has several more updates on what we can expect from that new CBA when it formally goes into effect. Here’s the latest:
Designated Player Exception:
- The new designated player exception, which allows certain players to sign for 35% of the salary cap even though they don’t have 10+ years of NBA experience, can be used on a player who reach free agency in addition to a player who is in the final year of his contract. For instance, next July, someone like DeMarcus Cousins – who would have one more year left on his deal – would be eligible for a designated player extension, and so would Stephen Curry, whose contract will expire in July.
- To be eligible for the DPE, a player must have made an All-NBA team or have been named the MVP or Defensive Player of the Year in the previous season, or in two of the three prior seasons. He also has to be on the team that drafted him — or have been traded on his rookie contract to another team. So Curry, Cousins, Russell Westbrook, and some other players would be eligible for this extension, but Kevin Durant wouldn’t be.
Veteran Contract Extensions:
- Regular veteran contract extensions not tied to the designated player exception will also be affected by the new CBA. Under the current deal, veteran extensions can be for up to three new years and can start with a 7.5% salary bump, assuming the team doesn’t have cap room. Under the new CBA, the limit on new years for an extension will increase to four, and the starting salary can increase by up to 20% on the player’s previous salary.
Free Agency:
- Exceptions like the minimum salary, mid-level, and rookie scale will be increasing by 45% next year and will be tied to the salary cap after that. Additionally, players will be able to get slightly larger raises on free agent contracts. Instead of 7.5% annual raises for a Bird Rights player, and 4.5% for other players, it will be 8% and 5%, respectively.
- In free agency, teams will still only have to account for 12 roster spots, even though the minimum roster size is increasing to 14 players. For instance, if a team goes into free agency with five players under contract, it will have to account for minimum-salary cap holds for seven empty spots. The rule should help teams looking to maximize their cap room in free agency.
- The cap holds for restricted free agents were previously 200% or 250%, depending on whether or not their previous salary was above the league’s average salary. Under the new CBA, those figures will increase to 250% and 300%. The goal is to try to discourage teams from doing what the Wizards and Pistons did with Bradley Beal and Andre Drummond this past summer — those teams knew they’d be signing their own players to max deals, but waited until well until free agency to get those contracts done, in order to keep their modest cap holds on the books and use their cap room on other players.
Rookie Salaries:
- With rookie scale contracts set to rise by 45% for new NBA players next year, there will also be some adjustments made to current rookie deals, so recent draftees don’t miss out on those increases due to unlucky timing. In 2017/18, a first-rounder from 2014, 2015, or 2016 who remains on his rookie contract will have his salary increased by 15%. In 2018/19, first-rounders from 2015 and 2016 will have their salaries increased by 30%. In 2019/20, the salaries for 2016 first-rounders still on rookie contracts will increase by 45%. These salary bumps won’t be reflected in salary cap figures.
Luxury Tax Apron:
- The luxury tax apron, which is the space between the luxury tax line and the hard tax line that certain teams aren’t allowed to surpass, is at $4MM under the current CBA. In the new CBA, that figure will increase to $6MM for next season, and will continue to rise based on inflation after that.