Under the NBA’s current rules, players who reach buyout agreements become unrestricted free agents and are able to sign with anybody. Of course, they almost always choose championship contenders, giving a handful of teams a huge advantage in the buyout market.
Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel is the latest writer to support changes to the system, using Dwyane Wade as an example. Wade seems likely to negotiate a buyout with the Bulls at some point this season, then is expected to join former Heat teammate LeBron James in Cleveland.
Winderman endorses a suggestion made last season by ESPN’s Zach Lowe to establish a secondary waiver process that would allow teams to bid on players who agree to buyouts, using any remaining cap space or exceptions they might have. The Pacers, for instance, with $7MM in cap space could submit a claim for Wade, as could the Heat with their $4.3MM mid-level exception.
The Cavaliers and Warriors, who have been to three straight NBA Finals, benefited greatly from the buyout process late last season. Cleveland added Deron Williams and Andrew Bogut, although he suffered a fractured left tibia in his first game and was eventually waived. Golden State reached an agreement with Jose Calderon, then changed direction after an injury to Kevin Durant and gave that roster spot to Matt Barnes.
Do you believe the current system is unfair, or have players who take buyouts earned the right to join teams that can win a title? Please share your thoughts in the space below. We look forward to what you have to say.
As a Heat fan, I totally disagree with 90 year old Ira Winderman, as usual. It’s part of the game. If buyouts are allowed, then naturally, players that are making a ton of money anyway will be willing to take on small deals to facilitate a chance to win. Those players are likely being bought out of situations that are bad. If they were to end up in similar situations, they likely would just stay where they are. Organizations that do a good job of making their culture a place where people want to be are the teams getting rewarded. Other teams can benefit too, if they get to a point where they’ve made themselves a destination place as well. The only people that complain about this are just salty their team didn’t get someone. If you build your roster at an optimum level, buyouts shouldn’t matter. It’s very rare that anyone of significance gets bought out anyway
What an awful idea. Why would we take away the free choice of the players and instead have organizations bid for them like it’s an auction?
Because they are under contract and they should not be allowed to influence the outcome of seasons with anything other than their play on the court. Dwyane Wade had an opportunity to sign with Cleveland, but he chose to sign with Chicago for x # of years. He should honor that. As should the team that signed him. We need to just get rid of the buy out completely. If Chicago wants to be rid of him, they should trade him or waive him. If a team is not willing to trade for him or place a waiver claim for him, then they shouldn’t get him. To expedite the process, the NBA could allow a one week slight exception to salary rules around the trade deadline allowing someone like Wade to be traded without having salaries match up completely. But players have been running the league for far too long and it needs to be stopped for the sake of competitive balance.
That’s not how the waiver wire works in baseball, when a team waives a player they are responsible for the entire guarantee on the contract, less the pro rated value of league minimum yearly until the original contract has been completed. The new team however would assume the original options/arbitration years on the player, basically their are very few scenarios that a guaranteed baseball contract can’t be canceled or bought out for less then its face value. I can think of only 1 buyout and that was bobby b with the mets and he made out with far more then the original contract value, just paid out over a long period of time. Of course one exception would be if the player got claimed, the original team could just let the player and his entire contract go to the claiming team without any compensation or work out a trade with the claiming team.
He is being waived. He is just negotiating taking less money to incentivise the transaction. Also this system allows everyone to have a fair shot at him versus the waiver wire where certain teams getting first pick. People who don’t like the buyout system either don’t understand how it works or are mad they don’t get the best talent
He is not being waived…he is being released. When a player is waived, the teams with the worst record have claiming rights. Which is how it should be.
Yeah I think the NBA needs a waiver system like baseball.
A team can waive a player and then any team can claim him at 50% salary (original team pays the other half). The team with the worst record gets priority. If the player goes unclaimed by any team, THEN he’s a regular free agent.
I like it just the way it is.
So KD can sign with the warriors at a discount but dwade can’t sign with the Cavs for a discount just cuz it’s midseason? How does that make sense?
Because DWade is under contract and all 30 teams will not have a legitimate chance to acquire him.
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Oh yeah good catch.