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2020/21 Salary Cap Preview: Houston Rockets

April 23rd, 2020 at 6:48pm 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 Rockets took small-ball to another level at this year’s trade deadline when they sent Clint Capela to Atlanta in a four-team deal that left them without a real center. Houston’s ensuing “micro-ball” experiment brought out the best in Russell Westbrook and looked awfully effective at times, though the team turned in a few March duds, including losses to New York and Charlotte.

If the NBA is unable to resume its 2019/20 season, not getting to see how the Rockets’ lineup performed in the postseason will be a major loss — not just for fans, but for Houston’s front office, which didn’t get much of a sample to evaluate whether the experiment was worth extending beyond this season.

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

Guaranteed Salary

Player Options

Team Options

Non-Guaranteed Salary

Restricted Free Agents

Unrestricted Free Agents / Other Cap Holds

Offseason Cap Outlook

With more than $123MM in guaranteed money committed to just six players for the 2020/21 season, the Rockets figure to exceed the luxury tax line if it stays at $132.6MM, and could become a taxpayer even if faced with a more forgiving tax threshold.

Of course, Houston has navigated its way out of the tax in each of the last two years, and team owner Tilman Fertitta has been particularly hard this season by the club’s lost China revenue and the coronavirus pandemic, which has affected many of his other businesses. As such, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Rockets cut costs, at least to some extent. For now, we’re assuming they’ll be limited to the taxpayer’s mid-level exception, but that could change.

Cap Exceptions Available

  • Taxpayer mid-level exception: $5,718,000 4
  • Trade exception: $3,595,333 (expires 2/5/21)
  • Trade exception: $2,564,753 (expires 2/5/21)
  • Trade exception: $1,620,564 (expires 2/5/21)
  • Trade exception: $1,620,564 (expires 2/8/21)

Footnotes

  1. McLemore’s salary becomes fully guaranteed after October 18.
  2. The cap holds for Black, Faried, and Duval remain on the Rockets’ books because they haven’t been renounced after going unsigned in 2019/20. They can’t be used in a sign-and-trade deal.
  3. This is a projected value. If the team cuts costs, it could have the full mid-level exception ($9,258,000) and bi-annual exception ($3,623,000) available.

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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Follow NFL Draft Day At Pro Football Rumors

April 23rd, 2020 at 1:41pm CST by Hoops Rumors

The 2020 NFL Draft is just hours away! Whether you’re a hardcore football fan or a casual Sunday watcher, you’re going to want to follow every draft pick, trade, and rumors with Pro Football Rumors (@pfrumors on Twitter).

So far, the Bengals have laughed off every trade offer for their No. 1 pick, but the Dolphins won’t take no for an answer. The ‘Fins are trying to trade for the Lions‘ No. 3 pick, keep their own pick at No. 5, and ship both of ’em to Cincinnati for the top choice. The Bengals have been laser-focused on Joe Burrow for months, but the Dolphins believe they can change their minds with a ludicrous package.

Beyond that, practically every other pick is in play. The Dolphins, Falcons, and Tom Brady’s Buccaneers are all exploring aggressive leaps to move up the board. Meanwhile, the Lions, Panthers, and Jaguars are willing to part with their top-10 picks, if the price is right. Oh, and tons of big-name veterans are on the block, too – Redskins left tackle Trent Williams, Jaguars defensive end Yannick Ngakoue, and Buccaneers tight end O.J. Howard, just to name a few.

For breaking NFL Draft news – without tipped picks, for your viewing pleasure – stay tuned to Pro Football Rumors (@pfrumors on Twitter).

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2020/21 Salary Cap Preview: Golden State Warriors

April 22nd, 2020 at 5:20pm 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.

With Kevin Durant, Andre Iguodala, and Shaun Livingston gone and Klay Thompson out for the season with an ACL injury, the Warriors were expected to fall off to some extent in 2019/20. Once Stephen Curry went down with a long-term hand injury, Golden State bottomed out completely, entering the NBA’s hiatus with a 15-50 record, worst in the league.

Armed with a top-five pick in the 2020 draft and a $17MM+ trade exception, the Warriors are uniquely positioned to bring back multiple healthy stars while continuing to upgrade their roster — assuming they’re willing to pay a substantial tax penalty to do so.

Here’s where things stand for the Warriors 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

Barring a series of cost-cutting moves, it looks as if the Warriors will probably have the NBA’s highest team salary and tax bill next season by a comfortable margin. A roster that starts with their eight fully guaranteed salaries, plus full salaries for Chriss, Lee, and Bowman, would approach $146MM. Throw in a pricey lottery pick, plus potential additions using their massive trade exception and the taxpayer mid-level exception, and the cost of this roster would be eye-popping.

It will be interesting to see whether a reduced salary cap for 2020/21 will have a noticeable impact on the Warriors’ aggressiveness. The current ownership group hasn’t been shy about spending big, and it will want to take advantage of a still-open championship window with Curry, Thompson, and Green in their early 30s. But if the team does go all-in, its luxury tax bill will end up being comically large.

Cap Exceptions Available

  • Taxpayer mid-level exception: $5,718,000 3
  • Trade exception: $17,185,185 (expires 7/7/20)
  • Trade exception: $2,177,483 (expires 1/25/21)
  • Trade exception: $1,925,880 (expires 2/8/21)
  • Trade exception: $1,897,800 (expires 2/8/21)
  • Trade exception: $1,620,564 (expires 2/8/21)
  • Trade exception: $1,620,564 (expires 2/8/21)
  • Trade exception: $1,597,100 (expires 7/8/20)
  • Trade exception: $1,597,100 (expires 7/8/20)
  • Trade exception: $869,699 (expires 7/7/20)
  • Trade exception: $407,257 (expires 7/8/20)

Footnotes

  1. Chriss’ new salary guarantee date is unknown.
  2. The cap holds for Barnes, Bogut, Jerebko, West, and Derrickson remain on the Warriors’ books because they haven’t been renounced after going unsigned in 2019/20. They can’t be used in a sign-and-trade deal.
  3. 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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Poll: 2020 All-NBA Second Team

April 22nd, 2020 at 2:50pm CST by Luke Adams

With the coronavirus pandemic and the resulting NBA hiatus throwing award season into disarray, we’re assuming the 2019/20 regular season is close enough to over that it’s safe to start making our unofficial picks for the league’s end-of-year honors.

On Monday, we introduced our first series of All-NBA polls for 2020, asking you to pick two guards, two forwards, and two centers for the First Team. While the results ended up being fairly decisive, the positional eligibility for a pair of Lakers stars became a subject of debate in the comment section.

LeBron James has been an All-NBA forward for 15 straight seasons, but after a season in which he became the Lakers’ de facto point guard and led the league in assists, should he be shifted to the guard category? Based on the fact that he almost always played alongside two other guards in 2019/20, we kept him listed at forward, where he earned one of two All-NBA First Team spots in our poll.

How about Anthony Davis? Some of the Lakers’ most effective lineups include Davis at the center spot. However, he spent more time overall playing alongside Dwight Howard or JaVale McGee than he did at the five, and he has talked in the recent past about preferring to play power forward. We gave you the option of voting for Davis at either forward or center, and you picked him as your All-NBA First Team center. It’s not clear whether or not actual All-NBA voters will have the same flexibility or make the same choice.

Here are the voting results so far:

2020 All-NBA First Team

We’re moving on today to the All-NBA Second Team, so be sure to cast your votes below for the two guards, two forwards, and one center that you believe are most deserving of being named to that squad. Don’t forget that a few players qualify at two positions.

You’ll have about 48 hours for this round of voting before we move on to the All-NBA Third Team on Wednesday. You’ll also have the opportunity to select two players apiece in the guard and forward polls, so be sure to take advantage of that. And if there’s a player not listed below that you believe deserves All-NBA consideration, be sure to mention him in the comments section too — if I agree, I’ll make sure he’s included in our All-NBA Third Team polls later this week.

Guards:

(Choose two)

Trade Rumors app users, click here to vote on the All-NBA Second Team guards.

Forwards:

(Choose two)

Trade Rumors app users, click here to vote on the All-NBA Second Team forwards.

Center:

(Choose one)

Trade Rumors app users, click here to vote on the All-NBA Second Team center.

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Follow This Week’s NFL Draft At Pro Football Rumors

April 22nd, 2020 at 2:20pm CST by Hoops Rumors

The NFL Draft kicks off on Thursday night. If you’re a football fan, it’s already appointment television. If you’re more of a casual NFL fan, you’ll want to tune in anyway (save the re-watch of Tiger King for next week).

Start your draft prep today and stay tuned for every pick, trade, and rumor — visit ProFootballRumors.com and follow PFR on Twitter, @pfrumors.

Quarterback Joe Burrow – who threw for 60 touchdowns last year at LSU – is a mortal lock for the Bengals at No. 1. Beyond that, everything is up in the air. The Redskins are reportedly listening to calls for the No. 2 pick, so they could conceivably be tempted enough to pass on a potential generational talent in Ohio State’s Chase Young. The Lions (No. 3) and Giants (No. 4) are also answering the phone, so this year’s top rookies could all be up for grabs.

Meanwhile, Rob Gronkowski is headed to Tampa Bay to rekindle his bromance with Tom Brady and seven-time Redskins Pro Bowler Trent Williams could be the next superstar on the move.

That’s just a snapshot of what’s going on in the NFL right now. For the full scoop, stay tuned to ProFootballRumors.com and follow PFR on Twitter, @pfrumors.

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Early Entry Deadline For 2020 NBA Draft Fast Approaching

April 22nd, 2020 at 1:12pm CST by Luke Adams

We’re four days away from the deadline for early entrants to declare for the 2020 NBA draft. Players who aren’t automatically draft-eligible this year have until the end of the day on Sunday, April 26 to submit their names into the 2020 NBA draft pool.

So far, by our unofficial count, more than 150 players have decided to declare for the draft, as our tracker shows. That’s a big number that should only get bigger in the coming days, but this year’s total may fall short of the record number of early entrants established in recent years. In both 2018 and 2019, the NBA’s initial early entry list included more than 230 names.

Barring a last-minute surge of early entrants before Sunday night, it seems safe to assume that the uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic is probably contributing to keeping this year’s total below the high watermarks set in the last couple years — for borderline prospects, returning to school could be a safer bet than rolling the dice on a professional path.

Of course, the coronavirus situation has thrown the entire pre-draft process into disarray, creating uncertainty about whether Sunday’s deadline will even remain in place. So far, the NBA has offered little insight on how the 2020 draft date (June 25) and other deadlines leading up to that night may be changed as a result of the pandemic.

If the NBA is able to resume its 2019/20 season this summer, it seems extremely unlikely that the league would conduct its draft on June 25. Other dates – such as the NCAA’s June 3 early entrant withdrawal deadline or the NBA’s June 15 withdrawal deadline – could be adjusted accordingly if the NBA postpones the draft.

[RELATED: Tentative 2020 NBA Draft Dates, Deadlines]

Still, with the NBA not offering any updates yet on this Sunday’s deadline, we’re assuming for now that it will remain unchanged, which means players considering going pro will have just a few more days to submit the necessary paperwork — then they’ll have at least five-and-a-half weeks to decide whether or not to remain in the draft.

While most of this year’s projected lottery picks and first-rounders have already declared and signed with an agent, we’re still awaiting updates on a handful of players. Among the top 25 players on ESPN’s big board for 2020, Memphis forward Precious Achiuwa and Texas Tech guard Jahmi’us Ramsey are the only two who have to announce a draft decision.

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2020/21 Salary Cap Preview: Detroit Pistons

April 20th, 2020 at 4:07pm 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.

While one former No. 1 overall pick with a history of health issues (Derrick Rose) was a pleasant surprise for the Pistons in 2019/20, another (Blake Griffin) was limited to 18 ineffective games, which helped torpedo Detroit’s season.

After years of middle-of-the-pack finishes, the Pistons accepted that a rise to contention wasn’t around the corner and launched a full-scale rebuild, trading longtime center Andre Drummond, buying out veterans like Reggie Jackson and Markieff Morris, and focusing on player development. That focus figures to extend to next season and beyond, and since the Pistons’ roster isn’t exactly loaded with young talent, the rebuild will likely be a multiyear process.

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

Guaranteed Salary

Player Options

Team Options

Non-Guaranteed Salary

Restricted Free Agents

Unrestricted Free Agents / Other Cap Holds

Offseason Cap Outlook

Trading Drummond and his massive 2020/21 player option ensured that the Pistons should be one of a small handful of teams with actual cap room available this offseason.

Even if the cap doesn’t increase beyond the ’19/20 figure and the Pistons keep their non-guaranteed youngsters (Mykhailiuk, Brown, and Thomas), along with the cap hold for Wood, they project to have at least $29MM in space available. That number would increase a little with a larger cap.

Cap Exceptions Available

  • Room exception: $4,767,000 5
  • Trade exception: $1,716,873 (expires 2/8/21) 6

Footnotes

  1. Thomas’ salary becomes fully guaranteed after October 23.
  2. If his team option is exercised, Mykhailiuk’s salary becomes fully guaranteed after October 22.
  3. Brown’s new salary guarantee date is unknown.
  4. The cap holds for Calderon, Nelson, Pachulia, Lucas, and Whitehead remain on the Pistons’ books because they haven’t been renounced after going unsigned in 2019/20. They can’t be used in a sign-and-trade deal.
  5. This is a projected value.
  6. The Pistons 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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Poll: 2020 All-NBA First Team

April 20th, 2020 at 1:25pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA’s usual award season is in flux due to the coronavirus pandemic. Under normal circumstances, the regular season would be over by this point and voting would have taken place on the league’s major awards. This year, however, it’s unclear if or when the season will resume after being suspended last month, creating uncertainty about whether players will get any more regular season games to make their cases for award consideration, and about when voting will take place.

That’s hardly the most pressing concern facing the NBA, but as we remain in a holding pattern waiting for updates on how the league may proceed, we might as well engage in some award speculation.

For now, our assumption is that if the regular season isn’t entirely over, it’s very close to it. Even if the league is able to resume play this summer, there will likely only be a handful of regular season games on an abridged schedule. Those games are unlikely to have a massive impact on players’ cases for awards, so we’re moving forward with our annual vote on our All-NBA teams now.

We want to give you an opportunity to make your own picks, starting today with the First Team. We’ll move onto the Second Team later in the week, and the Third Team after that.

Polls for the guards, forwards, and center are below — you’ll have the opportunity to pick two players apiece in the guard and forward polls. We’ll leave today’s polls open for at least the next 48 hours before naming the players with the most votes to our All-NBA First Team and moving on to voting for the Second Team.

A couple caveats before we move onto the polls:

  1. If there’s a player you believe deserves All-NBA consideration who isn’t named below, be sure to mention him in the comment section — if I agree, I’ll make sure he’s included in our Second and Third Team polls.
  2. There are a few players I’ve listed at multiple positions. If there are any other players you believe deserve to be listed at a second position, please make your case in the comments and I’ll consider making adjustments for the Second and Third Team polls.

Vote for your All-NBA First Team below, then take to the comment section to explain your picks!

Guards:

(Choose two)

Trade Rumors app users, click here to vote on the All-NBA First Team guards.

Forwards:

(Choose two)

Trade Rumors app users, click here to vote on the All-NBA First Team forwards.

Center:

(Choose one)

Trade Rumors app users, click here to vote on the All-NBA First Team center.

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Follow Pro Football Rumors For NFL Draft Updates

April 20th, 2020 at 10:29am CST by Hoops Rumors

The first ever “fully virtual” NFL Draft kicks off this Thursday. This year’s draft is more unpredictable than ever, and you can stay tuned for every pick, trade, and rumor with Pro Football Rumors (@pfrumors on Twitter).

The drama starts as high as No. 3 overall, where the Lions are torn between their favorite draft crushes. They’re also discussing trades – a move down the board may allow them to add more draft ammo and still land Ohio State star Jeff Okudah.

The Giants, at No. 4, are also open for business. Will they trade down? Will they use this pick to take a stud offensive tackle? Will they be tempted by the freakish athleticism of Clemson’s Isaiah Simmons?  Will they do the unthinkable and draft quarterback Justin Herbert, one year after using the No. 6 pick on Daniel Jones? The draft is just around the corner and every scenario is on the table.

For the latest on the draft, free agency, and more from this wild NFL offseason, stay tuned to Pro Football Rumors and follow along on Twitter, @pfrumors.

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Community Shootaround: Resuming The Season

April 18th, 2020 at 12:29pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Most NBA fans were eagerly awaiting this day. Prior to the hiatus caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the playoffs were supposed to begin on Saturday.

Play was halted a little over five weeks ago but it seems so much longer for basketball fans, who were looking forward to a postseason that promised to hold plenty of intrigue. The Western Conference had plenty of storylines — the Los Angeles rivalry, the Rockets’ superstar guards and small-ball approach, the up-and-comers like the Nuggets, Jazz, and Mavericks, hoping to make a statement of their own. The Eastern Conference had a clear favorite – the Bucks – but the Celtics, the defending champion Raptors, and the enigmatic Sixers had the potential to make things interesting and dash Milwaukee’s aspirations.

All of the possible plot changes have been put on hold. Unfortunately, the league is no closer to setting a date for resuming play than on the scary night when everything came to a stop. Commissioner Adam Silver told the media on Friday that there’s still no way to tell if and when the season can restart. A lot of hurdles must be cleared for teams to even begin training again.

It’s generally assumed that if games are played again this season, spectators will be prohibited. There’s also been widespread speculation that games would be conducted at a neutral site such as Las Vegas but Silver indicated that the league isn’t actively pursuing a “bubble city” plan.

Meanwhile, financial losses are piling up. “Revenues, in essence, have dropped to zero,”  Silver said.

That brings us to our question of the day: Do you believe the 2019/20 NBA season can salvaged? If so, how will the league be able to pull it off and still ensure the safety of all involved?

Please take to the comments section to weigh in on this topic. We look forward to your input.

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