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Re-Examining NBA Player Options For 2020/21

May 19th, 2020 at 3:26pm CST by Luke Adams

Following the NBA’s salary cap spike four years ago, just eight of 53 veterans who held player options on their contracts in 2016 and 2017 actually exercised those options — the other 45 opted out in search of a larger and/or longer-term deal.

However, the pendulum has swung back in the other direction over the last couple years. Of the 55 vets who held player options in 2018 and 2019, just 20 opted out, with the rest choosing security and putting off their free agency by a year.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, 2020 may represent one of the most extreme years in recent memory in terms of option decisions. Even with the NBA’s salary cap projected to increase to $115MM, less than one third of the league’s teams was expected to open up cap room. If the cap instead stays level – or declines – those teams will have even less flexibility. Suddenly, those option years may look a whole lot more appealing to players than trying to secure a big payday on the open market.

ESPN cap guru Bobby Marks recently predicted to Marc Berman of The New York Post that all 29 players with options for 2020/21 will pick them up. Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports conveyed a similar sentiment this morning, tweeting that he expects at least 27 of those players to opt in.

Are those predictions realistic? Let’s take a closer look at the NBA’s player options for 2020/21, dividing them up into four separate categories…

Group 1: The options that look too good to pass up

In all likelihood, these players would have opted in for 2020/21 regardless of whether or not the NBA’s revenue streams were disrupted. In each of these cases, the player’s option salary outweighs his likely value on the open market, either due to performance or injury. They look like safe bets to exercise their options for next season.

Group 2: The minimum-salary options

Players with minimum-salary options often turn them down even if they’re not sure they can get more than the minimum on their next deal, since there’s little downside. However, if the cap doesn’t increase, these players would be better off with their option salaries, which will be more lucrative than the minimum salary on a new contract. Rondo, for example, would make $2,564,753 next season if he opts out and signs a new minimum deal, if the cap stays at the same level.

In other words, the only way it would make sense for anyone in this group to opt out is if he felt confident in his chances of getting an offer above the minimum as a free agent. Maybe that’ll be the case for a solid rotation player like Matthews or Rivers, but it wouldn’t be a shock if all six of these guys opt in.

Group 3: It may not be worth rolling the dice in free agency

In a typical year, many of these players would likely think long and hard about opting out — even if they weren’t sure whether they’d be able to top their 2020/21 salaries in free agency, there would be a good chance of earning more overall money by signing a new, longer-term deal. For instance, Hayward won’t get any offers with a starting salary of $34MM, but a three- or four-year deal with a lesser annual salary could have been a win-win for him and the Celtics.

With the cap in flux though, these 11 players may be better off picking up their options and trying their luck on the 2021 free agent market. That’s especially true if they’re seeking an offer greater than the mid-level, like Drummond, Fournier, Hardaway, and Hayward would be. There just won’t be that many teams with both the desire and the necessary cap room to spend big on veteran free agents.

I wouldn’t consider most of these players locks to opt in, but I think they’re probably more likely than not to do so.

Group 4: Potential wild cards

Unless the salary cap really plummets, it still makes sense for Davis to opt out. The cap would have to dip below $96MM for his option salary to be worth more than the 30% max he’d earn as a free agent. Still, it seems unlikely that he’ll ink a long-term contract this offseason. A one-year guarantee with a second-year player option is probably his best bet for maximizing his earnings going forward.

DeRozan was the second player identified by Keith Smith as a candidate to opt out since it’s unclear whether or not he’s happy in San Antonio. A March report indicated the Spurs guard isn’t thrilled with his current situation, while another suggested he plans to opt out if he doesn’t receive a contract extension.

Those reports both came the week the NBA season was suspended, so even if they were accurate, it’s possible DeRozan’s mindset has changed over the last couple months. If not for the rumors about his potential dissatisfaction, I’d place him in Group 3 and assume he’d be opting in.

As for Grant, it’s possible he’ll play it safe and pick up his option, but even given a cap crunch, I don’t think there will be a shortage of teams willing to do a longer-term with a slightly higher average annual value than his $9.3MM option. If he opts in, he’d probably do so banking on the idea of getting more lucrative multiyear offers in 2021.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Community Shootaround: Most Interesting 2020 Lottery Outcome

May 19th, 2020 at 1:55pm CST by Luke Adams

The 2020 NBA draft lottery was initially scheduled to be held tonight in Chicago. Of course, as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, the lottery, the subsequent combine, and just about everything else NBA-related has been postponed indefinitely.

Still, a Monday report provided an important update on this year’s lottery: its format and process is expected to remain unchanged. That means the NBA’s three worst teams will still have the best odds to land the No. 1 overall pick, even if those teams don’t complete a full 82-game schedule and end up playing a different number of games.

It’s possible the NBA will be able to resume play this summer and complete some of the regular season games that were initially supposed to take place in March and April. However, it seems just as possible at this point that not all of the league’s 30 teams will be asked to take part in the resumption of the season.

[RELATED: 2019/20 NBA Reverse Standings]

Even in the event that bottom-feeders like the Warriors, Cavaliers, and Timberwolves do play again, the results of their final few regular season games are unlikely to significantly alter their lottery odds. So the hypothetical odds we passed along in March will probably end up being pretty similar to what the NBA uses whenever the lottery finally arrives. As a reminder, here are those tentative odds:

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
GSW 14 13.4 12.7 12 47.9 – – – – – – – – –
CLE 14 13.4 12.7 12 27.8 20 – – – – – – – –
MIN 14 13.4 12.7 12 14.8 26 7.1 – – – – – – –
ATL 12.5 12.2 11.9 11.5 7.2 25.7 16.8 2.2 – – – – – –
DET 10.5 10.5 10.6 10.5 2.2 19.6 26.7 8.8 0.6 – – – – –
NYK 9 9.2 9.4 9.6 – 8.6 29.6 20.6 3.8 0.2 – – – –
CHI 7.5 7.8 8.1 8.5 – – 19.7 34.1 12.9 1.3 >0 – – –
CHA 6 6.3 6.7 7.2 – – – 34.5 32.1 6.7 0.4 >0 – –
WSH 4.5 4.8 5.2 5.7 – – – – 50.7 25.9 3 0.1 >0 –
PHX 3 3.3 3.6 4 – – – – – 65.9 18.9 1.2 >0 >0
SAS 2 2.2 2.4 2.8 – – – – – – 77.6 12.6 0.4 >0
SAC* 1.3 1.4 1.6 1.8 – – – – – – – 86.1 7.6 0.1
NOP* 1.2 1.3 1.5 1.7 – – – – – – – – 92.0 2.3
POR 0.5 0.6 0.6 0.7 – – – – – – – – – 97.6

With those odds in mind – and in honor of the lottery that would have happened tonight – we want to get your thoughts on what the most entertaining outcomes of the 2020 NBA draft lottery would be.

While this year’s draft class lacks a surefire No. 1 pick like Zion Williamson, prospects like LaMelo Ball, James Wiseman, Anthony Edwards, Onyeka Okongwu, Deni Avdija, and Obi Toppin should certainly appeal to 2020’s lottery teams, and jumping into the top four would be a big deal for some franchises in this group.

The NBA’s revamped lottery format ensures that the league’s very worst teams don’t have a huge advantage for the top picks and has created more opportunities for middle-of-the-pack lottery teams to get lucky. That’s exactly what happened a year ago — the Pelicans, Grizzlies, and Lakers (who eventually traded the No. 4 pick) moved into the top four despite ranking seventh, eighth, and 11th respectively in the lottery order. This year’s equivalent would be the Bulls and Hornets grabbing the top two picks, with the Spurs moving up to No. 4.

Teams like the Cavs, Pistons, and Knicks would more greatly benefit from landing a top pick, but there’s a chance the Warriors could end up at No. 1, despite already looking like a 2020/21 contender, with or without adding a potential future star to their roster.

Could the Wizards getting lucky and land a top rookie to add to the mix as John Wall returns? How about the Suns adding a top prospect to a core that already features Devin Booker and Deandre Ayton? Near-playoff teams like the Trail Blazers, Pelicans, and Kings, meanwhile, would become even more intriguing if they defy the odds and secure a top pick.

What do you think? Putting aside your fandom, what draft lottery outcome would be the most interesting or entertaining?

Head to the comment section below to share your thoughts!

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Community Shootaround: The Last Dance

May 18th, 2020 at 9:23am CST by Luke Adams

On Sunday night, ESPN aired the final two hours of The Last Dance, its 10-part documentary series that told the story of the Bulls‘ 1997/98 season, with a number of entertaining digressions along the way.

With nearly every North American professional sport on a hiatus for the time being, the Michael Jordan-centric series was well-timed. It dominated the discussion among basketball fans for five weeks while appealing to more casual viewers as well.

For older viewers, it was an opportunity to relive the Bulls’ dynasty of the 1990s while perhaps learning some new details along the way. For younger viewers who didn’t get a chance to follow Jordan in his prime, it was perhaps more illuminating, offering the opportunity to explore iconic NBA moments such as MJ’s series-winning shot over Cleveland in 1989, his rivalry with the Bad-Boy Pistons, and his return from an 18-month stint as a baseball player.

Even now that the documentary has finished airing, there are no shortage of topics to discuss. For instance, did 1998 really have to be the “last dance” for that Bulls dynasty? ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne explored this morning whether the team could have been kept intact beyond that season.

ESPN’s Royce Young, meanwhile, notes that Jordan said in the last installment of the doc that he would’ve been willing to sign up for one more year if the rest of the team’s key players were brought back too; on the other hand, ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link) expresses some skepticism that Scottie Pippen would have been on board to return when he had a massive offer from Houston waiting for him in free agency.

Of course, the ongoing Jordan vs. LeBron James debate hasn’t lost any momentum in recent weeks, though an ESPN survey suggests that The Last Dance may have helped tip the scales in further in Jordan’s favor when it comes to public opinion. According to ESPN’s poll, 73% of respondents now believe Jordan is the superior overall player.

We want to know what you think. Could the Bulls have won a seventh title if they’d brought back the 1998 team, or was it the right call for that version of the club to go out on top? Did The Last Dance change – or solidify – your stance in the Jordan/LeBron debate?

Outside of those topics, we want to know what you thought about the documentary in general. What were you favorite moments or episodes? Were you surprised by anything you learned over the course of those 10 episodes? Were you disappointed by details that may have been left out? Did you think the story of Jordan and the Bulls was well told?

And, of course, do you buy Jordan’s claim that he didn’t really push off Bryon Russell in Game 6 of the 1998 Finals?

Head to the comment section below to share your thoughts on The Last Dance!

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2020/21 Salary Cap Preview: Philadelphia 76ers

May 15th, 2020 at 2:04pm CST by Luke Adams

Hoops Rumors is looking ahead at the 2020/21 salary cap situations for all 30 NBA teams. Due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the NBA, it’s impossible to know yet where the cap for 2020/21 will land. Given the league’s lost revenue, we’re assuming for now that it will stay the same as the ’19/20 cap, but it’s entirely possible it will end up higher or lower than that.

No team gave the 2019 champion Raptors a more competitive series than the Sixers, who were inches away from forcing overtime in Game 7 in Toronto last spring. That knowledge helped fuel lofty expectations in Philadelphia entering the 2019/20 season, with the 76ers widely considered part of the conference’s two-team top tier alongside Milwaukee.

An up-and-down season saw the Sixers fall short of those expectations — they were 39-26 and ranked just sixth in the East entering the NBA’s hiatus. However, there was still hope that they could make noise in the playoffs, and it’ll be fascinating to see if they get that chance. After all, decisions on Brett Brown‘s future and potential roster changes may hinge in large part on whether or not the club can make a deep postseason run.

Here’s where things stand for the Sixers financially in 2020/21, as we continue our Salary Cap Preview series:

Guaranteed Salary

Player Options

  • None

Team Options

  • None

Non-Guaranteed Salary

Restricted Free Agents

  • None

Unrestricted Free Agents / Other Cap Holds

Offseason Cap Outlook

No matter where the cap lands for the 2020/21 season, the Sixers will have a tough time avoiding the luxury tax. A flat cap – with no increase – would result in a tax threshold of $132.6MM; the NBA’s $115MM cap projection called for a $139MM tax line. The 76ers already have more than $142MM in guaranteed money committed for nine players next season, and that number will only increase once the team fills out its roster.

Reducing team salary via a trade is a possibility, but there might not be many clubs looking to take on unwanted contracts this offseason. Philadelphia would have to trim a substantial amount of salary to gain access to the full mid-level exception and bi-annual exception.

Cap Exceptions Available

  • Taxpayer mid-level exception: $5,718,000 4
  • Trade exception: $1,882,867 (expires 2/8/21)

Footnotes

  1. This is a projected value. Simmons’ actual maximum salary will be 25% of the cap, unless he makes an All-NBA team, in which case it will be anywhere from 28-30% of the cap.
  2. Korkmaz’ new salary guarantee date is unknown.
  3. Pelle’s salary becomes fully guaranteed after October 22.
  4. This is a projected value.

Note: Minimum-salary and rookie-scale cap holds are based on the salary cap and could increase or decrease depending on where the cap lands.

Salary information from Basketball Insiders and Early Bird Rights was used in the creation of this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Community Shootaround: 2020’s Rookie Scale Extension Candidates

May 15th, 2020 at 11:41am CST by Luke Adams

Every year, former first-round picks who are entering the fourth and final season of their rookie scale contracts become eligible to sign rookie scale extensions, which allow their teams to lock them up for multiple seasons and avoid restricted free agency.

As we detailed on Wednesday, there are 24 players who will become eligible for rookie scale extensions this year, whenever the 2020/21 league year officially begins.

In recent years, as few as four players (2017) and as many as nine (2019) have signed offseason rookie scale extensions. However, given the unusual circumstances created by the coronavirus pandemic, this year’s extension period could look different than usual.

Based on the uncertainty about how the NBA’s lost revenue will affect the league’s salary cap going forward, players might be more reluctant to lock themselves into long-term contracts a year before reaching restricted free agency. Conversely, a team considering offering a player a long-term extension this year will have to weigh how financially advantageous it will be to wait until 2021 to make that offer — doing so could allow the team to take advantage of its player’s modest RFA cap hold and maximize cap room that may be at a premium.

Still, it’s a safe bet that at least a handful of teams will pursue rookie scale extensions this offseason. Completing those deals early helps a team maintain a good relationship with the player and his agent, and provides that team with long-term cost certainty on one of its rising young stars.

In 2020, the players who most obviously fit that bill are Jayson Tatum (Celtics), Donovan Mitchell (Jazz), Bam Adebayo (Heat), and De’Aaron Fox (Kings). It seems likely that Boston, Utah, Miami, and Sacramento will be eager to sign those players to extensions worth the maximum salary or something very close to it.

While those four players are the most obvious extension candidates, there’s no shortage of others. John Collins (Hawks) leads the second tier, having expressed that he believes he’s max-worthy as well. Jonathan Isaac (Magic) and Lonzo Ball (Pelicans) won’t get the max, but they look like players their teams will want to build around. OG Anunoby (Raptors) and Derrick White (Spurs) are probably keepers too, though it’s possible Toronto and San Antonio will wait a year to let the RFA market set their prices.

After that, we start to get into some more challenging cases. Lauri Markkanen (Bulls), Kyle Kuzma (Lakers), and Zach Collins (Trail Blazers) could have cemented their cases for extensions this season, but Markkanen took a step back, Kuzma struggled to find his fit on the new-look Lakers, and Collins appeared in just three games before a shoulder injury derailed his season.

Luke Kennard (Pistons) would normally be a solid candidate for a new deal, but it’s not clear whether or not Detroit envisions him as a core piece or a potential trade candidate. The same goes for Jarrett Allen (Nets), who lost his starting center job before the NBA suspended its season.

We want to know what you think. Which of this year’s 24 extension-eligible players – perhaps including some of the ones we didn’t mention above – are the best bets for new deals this offseason? How do you think the NBA’s financial situation might impact those negotiations? Will we see fewer rookie scale extensions than usual or approximately the same amount?

Head to the comment section below to share your thoughts!

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2020/21 Salary Cap Preview: Orlando Magic

May 14th, 2020 at 1:44pm CST by Luke Adams

Hoops Rumors is looking ahead at the 2020/21 salary cap situations for all 30 NBA teams. Due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the NBA, it’s impossible to know yet where the cap for 2020/21 will land. Given the league’s lost revenue, we’re assuming for now that it will stay the same as the ’19/20 cap, but it’s entirely possible it will end up higher or lower than that.

The Magic entered the 2019/20 season looking to build on its strong finish the previous year, but have ended up taking a slight step back instead, entering the hiatus with a 30-35 record after winning 42 games in 2018/19.

With Nikola Vucevic, Aaron Gordon, and Terrence Ross still earning eight-figure salaries for multiple years beyond this season, and Jonathan Isaac and Markelle Fultz expected to eventually be locked up too, the Magic may not be in position to make major changes to their roster within the next year or two unless they do so on the trade market.

Here’s where things stand for the Magic financially in 2020/21, as we continue our Salary Cap Preview series:

Guaranteed Salary

Player Options

Team Options

Non-Guaranteed Salary

  • None

Restricted Free Agents

Unrestricted Free Agents / Other Cap Holds

Offseason Cap Outlook

Assuming they plan to keep their first-round pick and sign Okeke in 2020, the Magic will have more than $102MM in guaranteed money committed to 10 players. That should put the club in position to either re-sign Fournier or accommodate his $17MM player option without approaching tax territory.

Letting Fournier walk would theoretically give the Magic even more flexibility, but probably wouldn’t result in any cap room. It would make more sense for Orlando to operate as an over-the-cap team in that scenario in order to retain its full mid-level and bi-annual exceptions.

Cap Exceptions Available

  • Mid-level exception: $9,258,000 3
  • Bi-annual exception: $3,623,000 3

Footnotes

  1. The cap holds for Grant, Afflalo, and Speights remain on the Magic’s books because they haven’t been renounced after going unsigned in 2019/20. They can’t be used in a sign-and-trade deal.
  2. The 16th overall pick in 2019, Okeke has yet to sign his rookie scale contract. He’ll be eligible to sign in 2020/21 for the same amount as the No. 16 pick in the 2020 draft.
  3. These are projected values. If the Magic’s team salary continues to increase, it’s possible they’d be limited to the taxpayer mid-level exception ($5,718,000).

Note: Minimum-salary and rookie-scale cap holds are based on the salary cap and could increase or decrease depending on where the cap lands.

Salary information from Basketball Insiders and Early Bird Rights was used in the creation of this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Players Eligible For Rookie Scale Extensions In 2020 Offseason

May 13th, 2020 at 1:21pm CST by Luke Adams

When the NBA’s 2020/21 league year begins in November, players eligible for free agency will be able to begin negotiating and reaching contract agreements with suitors. In addition to those free agents, another group of players will also become eligible to sign new deals.

For players who are entering the fourth and final year of their rookie scale contracts, the first day of the new league year (November 21) is the first day they can agree to rookie scale extensions. Those players, who are almost exclusively 2017 first-round selections, will have until December 21, the day before the 2020/21 regular season starts, to finalize long-term agreements with their current teams.

Players eligible for rookie scale extensions can sign new deals that run for up to four – or five – years, with those contracts taking effect beginning in 2021/22. If they don’t sign extensions during the coming offseason, those players will be eligible for restricted free agency in the summer of 2021.

A year ago, nine players eligible for rookie scale extensions signed new deals between July 1 and the start of the season. That number was a little higher than usual, likely because few teams projected to have significant cap room available in 2020. Still, we should have at least that many viable candidates for rookie scale extensions this time around, even if that doesn’t mean they’ll all sign new contracts.

Here are the players who will be eligible to sign rookie scale extensions during the 2020 offseason:

The following players were either selected in the first round of the 2017 draft or signed their rookie scale contracts in ’17 along with the players listed above. However, they aren’t eligible for rookie scale extensions this year for the reasons noted:

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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2020/21 Salary Cap Preview: Oklahoma City Thunder

May 12th, 2020 at 12:52pm CST by Luke Adams

Hoops Rumors is looking ahead at the 2020/21 salary cap situations for all 30 NBA teams. Due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the NBA, it’s impossible to know yet where the cap for 2020/21 will land. Given the league’s lost revenue, we’re assuming for now that it will stay the same as the ’19/20 cap, but it’s entirely possible it will end up higher or lower than that.

After trading away Russell Westbrook, Paul George, and Jerami Grant last July, the Thunder seemed on track for a rebuild. However, even after spending the offseason stockpiling draft picks, Oklahoma City still had too much talent on its roster to bottom out.

Instead of returning to the lottery, the Thunder emerged as a no-doubt playoff team in the West, entering the hiatus with a 40-24 record that placed them fifth in the conference. Some form of rebuilding is probably still around the corner for the franchise, but it looks as if OKC will be able to remain competitive during that transition.

Here’s where things stand for the Thunder financially in 2020/21, as we continue our Salary Cap Preview series:

Guaranteed Salary

Player Options

Team Options

Non-Guaranteed Salary

  • None

Restricted Free Agents

Unrestricted Free Agents / Other Cap Holds

Offseason Cap Outlook

A taxpaying team for all but one of the last six seasons, the Thunder are finally in position to remain below that threshold in 2020/21, even if the cap doesn’t increase.

Re-signing Gallinari would push team salary well beyond the cap, and even if they don’t bring him back, the Thunder figure to operate as an over-the-cap team. But there’s some flexibility here that Oklahoma City didn’t have in past seasons. That flexibility should only increase as pricey contracts for Paul, Adams, and Schroder expire in the next couple years.

Cap Exceptions Available

  • Mid-level exception: $9,258,000 4
  • Bi-annual exception: $3,623,000 4
  • Trade exception: $10,389,997 (expires 7/10/20)
  • Trade exception: $9,346,153 (expires 7/8/20)
  • Trade exception: $1,620,564 (expires 1/25/21)

Footnotes

  1. If his team option is exercised, Nader’s salary remains non-guaranteed.
  2. If his team option is exercised, Burton’s salary becomes partially guaranteed for $1,174,336.
  3. The cap holds for Cole, Collison, Felton, and Evans remain on the Thunder’s books because they haven’t been renounced after going unsigned in 2019/20. They can’t be used in a sign-and-trade deal.
  4. These are projected values. If the Thunder’s team salary continues to increase, it’s possible they’d be limited to the taxpayer mid-level exception ($5,718,000).

Note: Minimum-salary and rookie-scale cap holds are based on the salary cap and could increase or decrease depending on where the cap lands.

Salary information from Basketball Insiders and Early Bird Rights was used in the creation of this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Poll Results: Hoops Rumors’ 2020 All-Rookie Teams

May 11th, 2020 at 1:53pm CST by Luke Adams

The coronavirus pandemic and the resulting NBA hiatus have thrown award season into disarray, but it’s probably safe to assume that any remaining regular season games for 2019/20 won’t affect award races too significantly. With that in mind, we asked you to vote last week on the 10 players you feel deserve All-Rookie spots for ’19/20.

We opened voting for the All-Rookie First Team last Tuesday before moving onto the Second Team on Friday. The results of all those polls are in, so let’s check them out.

All-Rookie First Team:

All-Rookie Second Team

The rest of the top vote-getters in the final round of polling who didn’t quite earn spots on the All-Rookie Second Team were Cameron Johnson (Suns) and Michael Porter Jr. (Nuggets), followed by Terence Davis (Raptors) and Matisse Thybulle (Sixers).

I think these results will end up being pretty close to what the actual All-Rookie teams for 2019/20 look like. In fact, it wouldn’t be a total shock if these match up exactly with the official results.

I expect Paschall and Washington to receive some First Team votes, but given the roles that Morant, Clarke, Nunn, and Herro had on playoff teams, they’re all very worthy choices. And I anticipate Williamson will make the cut too — 19 games isn’t a lot, but I think it’ll be enough for voters, especially in a shortened season.

Given my personal bias toward rookies that play important roles on playoff teams over those who rack up counting stats on lottery-bound clubs, I’d give strong consideration to Porter, Davis, and/or Thybulle for the Second Team. Their offensive numbers – especially Thybulle’s – paled in comparison to those posted by Barrett, White, and Hachimura, but the minutes they saw were more important.

Porter probably didn’t play enough overall – and wasn’t a strong enough defender – to earn one of my spots, and Thybulle’s limitations on offense hurt his case. But I’d at least make room for Davis, who had a +10.0 net rating and was the only Raptors player not to miss a game this season. Hachimura, who appeared in just 41 games and ranked 91st out of 95 power forwards in defensive real plus-minus, would likely be my odd man out.

What do you think? Do our poll results match up closely with your picks, or do you think we made some major missteps? Do you expect these results to line up pretty closely with the actual All-Rookie teams for 2019/20, or do you think the official voters will make some different choices?

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2020/21 Salary Cap Preview: New York Knicks

May 9th, 2020 at 1:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Hoops Rumors is looking ahead at the 2020/21 salary cap situations for all 30 NBA teams. Due to the coronavirus pandemic and its impact on the NBA calendar, it’s impossible to know yet where the cap for 2020/21 will land. Given the league’s lost revenue, we’re assuming for now that it will stay the same as the ’19/20 cap, but it’s entirely possible it will end up higher or lower than that.

It was another dismal season for the Knicks, who were on track to miss the playoffs for a seventh consecutive year when the season was suspended in March. And while RJ Barrett and Mitchell Robinson look like potential long-term building blocks, former top-10 picks Kevin Knox and Frank Ntilikina still aren’t producing consistently for the club.

The good news? The Knicks have a new president of basketball operations (Leon Rose) who will likely bring in a new head coach and some new voices in the front office. Plus, with plenty of cap flexibility going forward, the team isn’t locked into the current roster.

Here’s where things stand for the Knicks financially in 2020/21, as we launch our Salary Cap Preview series:

Guaranteed Salary

Player Options

  • None

Team Options

Non-Guaranteed Salary

  • Taj Gibson ($8,450,000) 1
  • Wayne Ellington ($7,000,000) 2
  • Elfrid Payton ($7,000,000) 3
  • Reggie Bullock ($3,200,000) 4
  • Mitchell Robinson ($1,663,861) 5
  • Kenny Wooten (two-way)
  • Total: $27,313,861

Restricted Free Agents

Unrestricted Free Agents / Other Cap Holds

Offseason Cap Outlook

In theory, the Knicks could operate as an over-the-cap team if they retain all of their veterans with team options or non-guaranteed salaries. In reality, I’d expect only two or three of those players to be back. Besides Robinson, who will obviously be retained, Bullock looks like a solid value, and Gibson and/or Payton are candidates to stick around.

Even if they retain all of those players, plus their guys on guaranteed deals and their two first-round picks, the Knicks project to open up more than $25MM in cap space, assuming the cap doesn’t drop from its 2019/20 level. Moving on from Gibson, Payton, and/or Bullock would push that number even higher and could result in New York having the second- or third-most room of any NBA team this offseason.

Cap Exceptions Available

  • Room exception: $4,767,000 6
  • Trade exception: $3,988,766 (expires 2/8/21) 7

Footnotes

  1. Gibson’s salary becomes fully guaranteed after October 17.
  2. Ellington’s salary becomes fully guaranteed after October 17.
  3. Payton’s salary becomes fully guaranteed after October 17.
  4. Bullock’s salary becomes fully guaranteed after October 17.
  5. Robinson’s salary becomes fully guaranteed after October 17.
  6. This is a projected value.
  7. The Knicks will have to renounce this exception in order to use cap room.

Note: Minimum-salary and rookie-scale cap holds are based on the salary cap and could increase or decrease depending on where the cap lands.

Salary information from Basketball Insiders and Early Bird Rights was used in the creation of this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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