A trade kicker is a contractual clause that pays an NBA player a bonus when he’s traded. They’re one of the tools teams have at their disposal to differentiate their free agent offers from the ones put on the table by competing clubs — or to incentivize a player to sign an extension before he reaches free agency.
Sometimes the kicker is worth a fixed amount, but usually it’s based on a percentage of the remaining value of the contract. So, a player who has a 10% trade kicker is eligible for a bonus worth 10% of the amount of money he has yet to collect on his deal.
Regardless of whether a trade kicker is set at a fixed amount or a percentage, the bonus can’t exceed 15% of the remaining value of the contract. Most trade kickers are worth 15%, the highest percentage allowed.
A trade bonus must be paid by the team that trades the player, rather than the team acquiring him. The current Collective Bargaining Agreement also allows a player to waive his trade kicker as part of a deal, if he so chooses.
If you want a more detailed explanation of how trade kickers work, check out the Hoops Rumors Glossary entry on the subject.
Here’s a list of the NBA players who have active trade kickers for 2022/23, listed alphabetically, along with the details of those trade bonuses:
- Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bucks (15%)
- Bogdan Bogdanovic, Hawks (15%)
- Jalen Brunson, Knicks (10%)
- Reggie Bullock, Mavericks (5%)
- Jimmy Butler, Heat (15%)
- Anthony Davis, Lakers (15%)
- Donte DiVincenzo, Warriors (15%)
- Dorian Finney-Smith, Mavericks (5%): Traded
- Draymond Green, Warriors (15%)
- James Harden, Sixers (15%)
- Tobias Harris, Sixers (5%)
- Isaiah Hartenstein, Knicks (5%)
- Gordon Hayward, Hornets (15%)
- Richaun Holmes, Kings (15%)
- Kyrie Irving, Nets (15%): Traded
- Reggie Jackson, Clippers (15%)
- Kawhi Leonard, Clippers (15%)
- Caleb Martin, Heat (15%)
- Donovan Mitchell, Jazz (15%)
- Bobby Portis, Bucks (15%)
- Julius Randle, Knicks (15%)
- Marcus Smart, Celtics (15% or $1MM, whichever is lesser)
- Jalen Smith, Pacers (10%)
- Jayson Tatum, Celtics (15%)
- Klay Thompson, Warriors (15%)
- Karl-Anthony Towns, Timberwolves (5%)
- Jonas Valanciunas, Pelicans (15% or $1MM, whichever is lesser)
The following players have trade bonuses on their contracts, but those bonuses would be voided if they were to be traded during the 2022/23 league year, since they’re already earning this season’s maximum salary:
- Bradley Beal, Wizards (15%)
- Stephen Curry, Warriors (15%)
- Luka Doncic, Mavericks (15%)
- Kevin Durant, Nets (15%)
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder (15%)
- Brandon Ingram, Pelicans (15%)
- LeBron James, Lakers (15%)
- Zach LaVine, Bulls (15%)
- Trae Young, Hawks (15%)
The following players have signed contract extensions that will include trade kickers, but those extensions won’t go into effect until at least the 2023/24 season:
- Devin Booker, Suns (10%)
- Darius Garland, Cavaliers (15%)
- Nikola Jokic, Nuggets (15%)
- Ja Morant, Grizzlies (15%)