Over half of the NBA's 30 teams face some sort of hard cap for the rest of the 2024/25 league year. A total of 14 clubs are hard-capped at the first tax apron ($178,132,000) as a result of moves they made on the trade market or in free agency, while three more are hard-capped at the second tax apron ($188,931,000).
Those teams won't be permitted to surpass their respective hard caps for any reason for the rest of '24/25, and it's entirely possible - likely, actually - that more clubs will join them on that list as they finalize in-season signings and trades in the coming months. Just a couple weeks ago, the Grizzlies became the 17th team to get hard-capped when they used a portion of their non-taxpayer mid-level exception to sign Scotty Pippen Jr.
[RELATED: How NBA Teams Become Hard-Capped]
However, in most cases, a hard cap doesn't actually serve as a material obstacle for a team. For instance, the Hornets are currently hard-capped at the first apron, but their team salary for apron purposes is more than $16MM below that threshold.
While the Hornets could take on some additional salary in a pre-deadline trade, it's extremely hard to imagine a scenario in which they surpass the luxury tax line ($170,814,000), let alone approach their $178MM+ hard cap. Certainly, Charlotte's front office should be aware of that hard cap over the course of the season, but it shouldn't be a front-of-mind concern that would prevent the team from pulling the trigger on any moves it realistically wants to make.
Not every team can afford to approach its hard cap like the Hornets though. For a handful of clubs, the hard cap will be a day-to-day consideration that affects a team's ability to sign a free agent, make a trade, or even carry a full 15-man roster.
Let's take a closer look at which teams have to be most aware of their hard caps over the course of the 2024/25 league year.
Timberwolves point guard Mike Conley spoke in more detail this week about the left wrist injury he has dealt with for the last few years, admitting that it prevented him from golfing over the summer after he fell on the wrist last season and aggravated an old ligament issue, per Jerry Zgoda of The Minneapolis Star Tribune. Still, Conley has gotten used to playing through the injury and plans to continue doing so.
“When I’m 50, I’ll get surgery, not right now,” he said. “The surgery is a little bit complex and I’ve been playing with it for years, so I feel like I’ll just finish it.”
Entering Friday’s bout with Denver, Conley was shooting just 22.6% from the field through Minnesota’s first four games this season, including 27.3% on three-pointers. While the wrist issue may be a factor in the veteran’s shooting struggles, the sample size is small and he’s confident those numbers will improve once he gets through an early-season adjustment period.
“I’m just trying to work back the strength of it,” Conley said. “That’s the biggest thing. The pain and stuff is gone. But there are some times when I’ll shoot it and think, ‘Ah, that’s good,’ and it’ll be like two feet short. So you’re just trying to gauge the differences and work through that as the season goes forward.”
Here’s more from around the Northwest:
In the wake of his retirement as a player, six-time NBA All-Star Blake Griffin is said to be drawing significant interest not from NBA teams but from the league’s new television partners. According to Michael McCarthy of Front Office Sports, Griffin is in talks with Amazon Prime Video about a role as an analyst on their NBA coverage, with NBC and ESPN also believed to be interested in the former Clippers star.
Amazon and NBC aren’t currently airing NBA games, but will begin to do so in 2025/26, when the league’s new media rights deal takes effect, and will need to fill out their broadcast teams with both game and studio analysts. One source suggests to McCarthy that Griffin, who has an engaging personality and tried his hand at stand-up comedy during his playing days, is a candidate to become “the face” of Amazon’s NBA coverage.
Ryan Glasspiegel of The New York Post recently reported that veteran play-by-play broadcaster Ian Eagle, who calls NBA games for TNT and YES Network, is in serious talks to join Amazon for its NBA coverage. Mike Tirico and Ian’s son Noah Eagle are expected to be the top two play-by-play broadcasters for NBC’s NBA coverage, per Glasspiegel.
We have more odds and ends from around the basketball world:
Sixers star center Joel Embiid, who has missed the first four games of the season and has been ruled out for Saturday’s tilt vs. Memphis due to “left knee injury management,” told reporters on Friday that his goal is to make sure he feels fully comfortable on his surgically repaired knee before making his season debut, as Kyle Neubeck of PHLY Sports writes.
“I want to be at my best. I don’t want to be in a situation where I’m afraid if I do this I might do something or whatever,” Embiid said. “I mentioned it since the last surgery, I mentioned it so many times, it was probably the toughest mentally. I think mentally I’m just dealing with getting that trust back. In the past, it was just easy. But for some reason, this one is just like, mentally, trusting yourself and trusting your body. And I think that’s really what I’m doing.
“I’m almost there,” he continued. “And then with the team, we’re on the same page. I listen to them, they listen to me, and see how everything reacts. Been doing pretty good, going up and down five-on-five, and today was a great session with the whole team.”
According to Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter video link), Embiid experienced some “minor swelling” in his left knee during the preseason, which is one reason why the Sixers have taken a cautious approach with him this fall.
The former MVP has been scrimmaging for a few days, but Friday’s practice represented a big step forward because it was a live-action five-on-five session with teammates, rather than 76ers staffers.
While it sounds as if Embiid’s absence might not extend much further beyond Saturday’s contest, he was reluctant to name a specific target date for his return, as Neubeck relays.
“It’s unpredictable,” the big man said. “You can have good days, you can have bad days, so I think it’d be kind of foolish for me to sit there and be like, ‘Oh, I’m playing on Tuesday,’ when you don’t know. I played today and it reacts, you’re still getting back into game shape, still getting back to yourself.
“You need to feel 100%, because I think over the years, I’ve done a lot and I’ve put myself at risk for the team, which I’m going to continue to do. But right now is the time to make sure everything is great, which is trending that way. It’s pretty good right now, everybody’s trending the right way, and so we can go on and have a long season and a great couple of years.”
Embiid has faced criticism from some corners for his ongoing absence this fall, with Marcus Hayes of The Philadelphia Inquirer writing multiple columns accusing the 30-year-old of a lack of professionalism and ripping the Sixers for their lack of transparency.
Embiid, who said he’s doing what’s best for his body, pointed out that he has played through multiple injuries and come back early from others over the course of his career. He took exception to some of the criticism he has faced, calling out Hayes by name in his comments to reporters.
“When I see people saying, ‘He doesn’t want to play,'” Embiid said. “I’ve done way too much for this city and putting myself at risk for people to be saying that. I do think it’s bulls–t. Like that dude, Marcus whatever his name is, I’ve done way too much for this f—ing city to be treated like this. Done way too f—ing much. I wish I was as lucky as other ones, but that doesn’t mean that I’m not trying, and I’m not doing whatever it takes to be out there, which I’m going to be here pretty soon.”
Like Embiid, Sixers forward Paul George has missed the club’s first four games and will be unavailable on Saturday due to the bone bruise in his left knee. He’s also moving toward a return, telling reporters on Friday that he’s in the final stage of his rehab process.
“I think at this point, it’s more just cardio, getting the conditioning ready to go, so that when I do come back I’m not subject to any injuries because I’m fatigued and tired,” George said, per Neubeck. “I had really good two days of finally being on the court and practicing and running hard, being in live action, so the knee up to this point feels really good.”
Warriors guards Stephen Curry (left peroneal strain) and De’Anthony Melton (strained lower back) have been ruled out for Saturday’s contest against Houston, the team announced today (via Twitter), and Melton will remain sidelined for at least two games beyond that before being reevaluated a week from now.
However, the injury news from Golden State isn’t all bad. As Anthony Slater of The Athletic tweets, Curry has been cleared to participate in parts of Friday night’s practice and will be reevaluated on Sunday, so it’s possible he could return to action as soon as Monday vs. Washington.
Additionally, forward Andrew Wiggins is on track to suit up on Saturday after missing two games due to a low back strain. He’ll be immediately reinserted into the starting lineup upon returning, according to head coach Steve Kerr (Twitter link via Slater).
Here are a few more injury updates from around the NBA:
Just a week-and-a-half into the 2024/25 regular season, the injuries are piling up for the Grizzlies, who issued a press release on Friday (via Twitter) announcing updates on a handful of their players who have been affected by health issues this fall.
According to the team, swingman Desmond Bane (right oblique strain) and guard Marcus Smart (right ankle sprain) are both considered week-to-week after suffering injuries on Wednesday vs. Brooklyn.
While that’s a somewhat vague timeline, it sounds like the duo is at least expected to miss upcoming games against Philadelphia (on Saturday), Brooklyn (Monday), and the Lakers (Wednesday) and could be out well beyond that.
Second-year wing Vince Williams, who is recovering from a stress reaction in the upper portion of his left tibia, continues to make progress in his rehab process, but is still a little ways off from returning. According to the Grizzlies, Williams is on track to make it back to game action in about two-to-four weeks.
The club also provided an update on two-way guard Cam Spencer, the 53rd pick in this year’s draft. Originally diagnosed in September with a right ankle sprain, Spencer is also dealing with a talar stress reaction that he sustained at the same time, per the Grizzlies. The plan is to reevaluate the rookie in three weeks.
Memphis was the NBA’s most injury-plagued team last season, with Bane (42 games played) and Smart (20 games) among the key players who missed significant time due to various ailments. Star point guard Ja Morant also only played nine times between serving a 25-game suspension and going down with a season-ending shoulder injury.
There has been hope that a bounce-back year would be in the cards with better health luck, and that still could happen, but the season is off to an ominous start on the health front. In addition to the four players noted above, the Grizzlies are also missing forward GG Jackson, who is recovering from foot surgery.
Memphis may soon qualify for a hardship exception, which would allow the team to add an extra or player or two on top of the 15 currently on standard contracts.
A club qualifies for an extra short-term roster spot when it has at least four injured players who have missed three or more consecutive games and are expected to remain out for at least two more weeks. Jackson and Spencer fit that bill, and Williams should too — if either Bane or Smart is expected to have a multi-week absence, the club could apply for a hardship exception after Monday’s game, which will be the third that Bane and Smart have missed.
Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga is the headliner among the six players named by Sam Amick and John Hollinger of The Athletic as possible trade candidates to watch over the course of the 2024/25 season.
League sources tell Amick there was a “significant” gap between Kuminga and the Warriors when they discussed a possible rookie scale extension prior to the season, with Golden State’s offer topping out at around $30MM per year, while the fourth-year forward sought at least in the range of $35MM annually.
The two sides were unable to agree to an extension, putting Kuminga on track for restricted free agency in 2025. While he and the Warriors could finalize a new deal at that time, rival executives believe Golden State is “more willing than ever” to put the former No. 7 overall pick in a trade package, according to Amick, though he cautions the return would have to be significant.
Heat swingman Jimmy Butler is one name to keep an eye on, says Amick, citing league sources who say the Warriors registered some interest in the 35-year-old. Butler is extension-eligible and holds a player option for 2025/26, but reportedly plans to become an unrestricted free agent next summer.
Here are a few more trade-related rumors from around the NBA:
Decisions on rookie scale options for the 2025/26 season were due on Thursday — any team that wanted to exercise a third- or fourth-year option on a player for next season was required to do so by October 31.
As is typically the case, a huge majority of those options were picked up. Even for top picks, who are paid higher salaries due to the NBA’s rookie scale, those third- and fourth-year options are relatively team-friendly. So unless a player has fallen well short of his team’s expectations, it generally makes sense to lock in his salary for the following season at this point.
However, not every player with a 2025/26 team option had it exercised by Thursday’s deadline. A player who had his option declined will now be on track to reach unrestricted free agency during the summer of 2025, assuming he’s not waived before then. At the end of the season, his team won’t be able to offer him a starting salary that exceeds the value of his declined option.
Listed below are the players who had their options turned down, followed by the players whose options were exercised. If a player had his option picked up, his ’25/26 salary is now guaranteed and he won’t be eligible for free agency until at least 2026.
We saw more rookie scale options turned down this season than usual, which is perhaps a side effect of the NBA’s new tax apron system that has teams more wary than ever of carrying extraneous salary.
It’s also a little unusual to see so many players remain on their teams’ respective rosters after having their options declined. A year ago, for instance, five of the six of the players who didn’t have their rookie scale options exercised ahead of October’s deadline were waived outright, resulting in their options being declined as part of the transaction. That only happened with Griffin this year, and only because he chose to step away from basketball.
Among the players whose fourth-year options were declined, Davis, Moore, and Baldwin were the least surprising decisions. I was half-expecting one or more of them to be cut during the offseason or preseason. I also wasn’t shocked to see the Hawks and Bucks pass on Roddy’s and Beauchamp’s options, respectively. Neither player has established himself as a reliable rotation piece, and Milwaukee especially has luxury tax penalties to consider — the Bucks are better off replacing Beauchamp’s $4.8MM salary with a minimum-salary contract in 2025/26.
I didn’t view LaRavia as a lock to have his option picked up, but I thought the Grizzlies might pull the trigger on it, since he’s playing rotation minutes in the early going this season. That decision looks like it’s as much about roster flexibility as it is financial flexibility — Memphis has about $157MM in guaranteed money on its books for next season, which is well below the luxury tax line, but that’s for 12 players. Not locking in LaRavia’s contract gives the club some more room to maneuver with those last few roster spots.
Of all these option decisions, the Lakers declining Hood-Schifino’s was the biggest eyebrow-raiser. It’s rare for a player to have his third-year option turned down just a year after being made a first-round pick. It’s even rarer when it’s a player who was drafted as high as Hood-Schifino (No. 17). The Lakers have their cap situation to consider, and clearing Hood-Schifino from the books for 2025/26 could created some additional spending flexibility, but it’s a tacit acknowledgment from the front office that its top 2023 pick was a miss.
Fourth year:
Note: These players will become eligible for rookie scale extensions in July of 2025. If they’re not extended, they’ll be on track for restricted free agency in 2026.
These 22 players who had their fourth-year options exercised, along with the seven listed in the section above who had their fourth-year options declined, were drafted in the first round in 2022.
The 30th first-round pick in that class was TyTy Washington, who was waived by the Thunder in August 2023. Washington had both his third- and fourth-year options declined as part of that transaction last summer.
Third year:
Note: Teams will have to make fourth-year option decisions for 2026/27 on these players by October 31, 2025.
As usual, nearly every player from the 2023 draft class had his third-year option picked up, with 29 of 30 exercised. As noted above, Hood-Schifino was the only player from 2023’s first round who is on track to become an unrestricted free agent in 2025.
For a team-by-team breakdown of this year’s rookie scale option decisions for the 2025/26 season, along with full stories on each decision, you can check out our tracker.
The Grizzlies have opted not to exercise Jake LaRavia‘s rookie scale team option for the 2025/26 season, according to Drew Hill of The Daily Memphian (Twitter link).
LaRavia is currently earning $3.35MM in his third NBA season. His fourth-year option would have been worth $5,163,127, but the Grizzlies will turn it down, putting the forward on track for unrestricted free agency next summer.
As Hill explains, Memphis is “encouraged” by the progress LaRavia has made and have interest in retaining him beyond the current season, but want to retain some roster and cap flexibility. The Grizzlies already have 12 other players on guaranteed contracts for 2025/26.
LaRavia, who will turn 23 on Sunday, has appeared in 75 NBA regular season games since being drafted 19th overall out of Wake Forest in 2022. He has averaged 6.9 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 1.3 assists in 17.9 minutes per game, with a shooting line of .393/.335/.780.
LaRavia was one of four players selected by the Grizzlies in the 2022 draft. Memphis has since traded David Roddy and waived Kennedy Chandler, making No. 47 overall pick Vince Williams the team’s most successful selection in that class — Williams was elevated from his two-way contract to the standard roster last season, agreeing to a four-year deal with the Grizzlies.
The deadline for teams to exercise 2025/26 rookie scale team options was 11:59 pm Eastern time on October 31. Pistons wing Wendell Moore was among the other players who had his option declined, confirms Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).
Detroit had five players with rookie scale options for ’25/26 and announced on Oct. 21 that they’d exercised four of those options. That was a very strong signal they weren’t picking up the fifth one, Moore’s, which was worth $4,574,283.
A former No. 26 overall pick, Moore was acquired from the Timberwolves by the Pistons in a salary-dump deal during the offseason and has essentially only ever played garbage-time minutes at the NBA level, logging just 229 total minutes in 55 appearances.
Like LaRavia, Moore will be an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2025 if he plays out his current contract. The teams that have those players on their rosters at season’s end will be prohibited from offering them starting salaries exceeding what their options would have been worth.
You can view all of this year’s rookie scale option decisions right here.
Sixers star Joel Embiid has participated in multiple 5-on-5 scrimmages in recent days as he takes steps toward making his season debut, sources tell ESPN’s Shams Charania.
According to Charania, with the 76ers not in action again until Saturday, the expectation is that Embiid will be evaluated ahead of that game vs. Memphis after working out on Thursday and Friday. The former MVP has missed the first four games of Philadelphia’s season, but hasn’t yet been ruled out for Saturday’s contest against the Grizzlies.
The Sixers were fined $100K this week for inconsistent statements about Embiid’s health status. Pressed on Wednesday about the team’s lack of transparency, head coach Nick Nurse declined to offer any specific details about where things stand for the big man or Embiid’s co-star Paul George, who has yet to make his 76ers debut due to a bone bruise in his knee.
“They are making progress,” Nurse said, according to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. “They’re going to have workouts tomorrow, Friday. We hope to have a better indication where they are by then. I’ll update you then.”
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