Hoops Rumors Originals

On January 5, NBA teams became eligible to sign players to 10-day contracts, and many of the signings that take place between now and the end of the regular season in April will be of the 10-day variety. Hoops Rumors has created a database that allows you to keep on top of those deals, tracking every 10-day signing all season long.

Besides featuring all of this year’s 10-day deals, our 10-Day Contract Tracker includes information on all 10-day contracts signed since the 2006/07 season. The search filters in the database make it easy to sort by team, player, and/or year. For instance, if you want to see all the 10-day contracts that the Kings have signed in the last 15-plus years, you can do so here. If you want to view Shaquille Harrison‘s history of 10-day deals, that list is here.

You can also see whether a player and team signed a second 10-day contract, or if those short-term deals led to an agreement that covered the rest of the season. Additionally, our tracker notes which 10-day deals remain active, saving you the hassle of having to figure out whether a particular contract ends on Wednesday or Thursday.

A link to our 10-Day Contract Tracker can be found at any time in the right sidebar under “Hoops Rumors Features” on our desktop site. On our mobile site, you can find it on our “Features” page. We’ll be keeping it up to date for the rest of the season, so be sure to check back to keep tabs on the latest signings as they become official.

As of December 29, there were 35 players who were signed to standard, full-season contracts but whose salaries for the 2023/24 campaign weren’t fully guaranteed.

The deadline for teams to waive those players and avoid having their full ’23/24 salaries become guaranteed was on Sunday, January 7 at 4:00 p.m. CT.

Although their salaries won’t technically become guaranteed until January 10, those players would still receive their full-season guarantees if they’re cut today or tomorrow, since they wouldn’t clear waivers before Wednesday.

Here’s a roundup of the decisions teams made with those 35 players:

Players on standard contracts who will have their salaries guaranteed:

Each player’s salary is noted here. His cap hit is identical to his salary unless otherwise indicated.

• Jonathan Isaac, Magic: $17,400,000
• Bismack Biyombo, Grizzlies: $5,000,000
• Markieff Morris, Mavericks: $3,196,448 *
• Ish Smith, Hornets: $3,196,448 *
• Tristan Thompson, Cavaliers: $3,196,448 *
• Boban Marjanovic, Rockets: $2,891,467 *
• Omer Yurtseven, Jazz: $2,800,000
• Ryan Arcidiacono, Knicks: $2,528,233 *
• Frank Ntilikina, Hornets: $2,528,233 *
• Luke Kornet, Celtics: $2,413,304
• Aaron Holiday, Rockets: $2,346,614 *
• Svi Mykhailiuk, Celtics: $2,346,614 *
• James Johnson, Pacers: $2,241,188 #
• Moses Brown, Trail Blazers: $2,165,000 *
• Harry Giles, Nets: $2,165,000 *
• Kevin Knox, Pistons: $2,144,320 ^
• Lamar Stevens, Celtics: $2,092,354 *
• Luka Samanic, Jazz: $2,066,585
• Dalano Banton, Celtics: $2,019,706
• Terry Taylor, Bulls: $2,019,706
• Trendon Watford, Nets: $2,019,706
• Isaiah Joe, Thunder: $1,997,238
• Sam Merrill, Cavaliers: $1,997,238
• Jordan Goodwin, Suns: $1,927,896
• Jose Alvarado, Pelicans: $1,836,096
• JT Thor, Hornets: $1,836,096
• Aaron Wiggins, Thunder: $1,836,096
• Orlando Robinson, Heat: $1,801,769
• Dru Smith, Heat: $1,801,769
• Gui Santos, Warriors: $1,029,483

(*) cap hit of $2,019,706
(^) cap hit of $1,845,593
(#) cap hit of $1,416,116

Of the 30 players on non-guaranteed contracts who were retained, 27 are earning the minimum salary, so the financial impact of keeping them is relatively minor.

Still, open roster spots are valuable at this time of year. A few of these players were fortunate not to be let go by a team prioritizing flexibility ahead of the trade deadline; many others have played regular rotation minutes during the first half and were never candidates to be cut.

Players on standard contracts who were waived before their salaries became guaranteed:

Each player’s cap hit is noted here. The team would no longer be on the hook for that cap charge if a player is claimed off waivers.

• Ish Wainright, Trail Blazers: $853,149
• Skylar Mays, Trail Blazers: $850,000
• DaQuan Jeffries, Knicks: $831,385
• Taj Gibson, Knicks: $477,630
• Juan Toscano-Anderson, Kings: $323,506

All five of these players were on minimum-salary contracts. Gibson and Toscano-Anderson were both signed on December 15, however, so their dead cap hits are relatively modest compared to the others.

Wainright and Jeffries each earned a prorated portion of a full-season minimum salary, while Mays was assured of an $850K partial guarantee when he was promoted to Portland’s standard roster from his two-way deal in November.

Jeffries has cleared waivers, leaving his dead money on the Knicks’ books, but the other four are still technically candidates to be claimed. Wainright and Mays are on track to clear waivers later on Monday, while Gibson and Toscano-Anderson would become free agents if they go unclaimed on Tuesday. A team that places a claim on one of those players would have to commit to guaranteeing his salary for the rest of the season.

There were a few other players with partially guaranteed salaries who were cut earlier in the season. That group consisted of Dylan Windler (Knicks), Filip Petrusev (Kings), and Danny Green (Sixers). Those moves didn’t go down to the wire like the others listed above, having occurred well in advance of the salary guarantee deadline.

Players on two-way contracts who were waived before their salaries became guaranteed:

For the first time, the league-wide salary guarantee date of January 10 also applies this season to players on two-way contracts. In the past, the guarantee date had been Jan. 20 for two-way salaries.

Two-way salaries are only worth half of the rookie minimum and don’t count against the salary cap, so many teams likely weren’t feeling a ton of pressure to make rest-of-season decisions on their two-way players by Sunday. Two-way contracts can be signed until March 4, so there will be clubs that make changes between now and then.

However, there were six players on two-way contracts at the start of January who were waived in advance of Sunday’s waiver deadline and won’t receive their full two-way salaries this season. Those players are as follows:

• Marques Bolden, Bucks
• Lindell Wigginton, Bucks
• Dmytro Skapintsev, Knicks
• Alex Fudge, Lakers
• D’Moi Hodge, Lakers
• Armoni Brooks, Nets

The Knicks (Duane Washington) and Lakers (Dylan Windler) have each signed a two-way player since the start of the month, so there are only four open slots around the NBA, belonging to the Bucks (two), Lakers, and Nets.

The full list of players who are still on two-way contracts and earned full guarantees can be found right here.

Every player currently on an NBA roster whose 2023/24 salary is non-guaranteed will have his salary become guaranteed next Wednesday (January 10) if he’s still under contract at that point. However, this Sunday, January 7, is the real deadline to watch.

A player who is no longer on his team’s roster but who is still on waivers as of Jan. 10 will also have his salary guaranted. So if a team wants to avoid locking in a player’s full 2023/24 salary, he must be placed on waivers on or before this Sunday at 4:00 pm Central time — that would ensure that he clears waivers on or before Tuesday, Jan. 9.

As our tracker shows, there are 34 players on standard contracts who still don’t have fully guaranteed salaries for this season. Here are those players, who are on minimum-salary deals unless otherwise indicated:

• Dalano Banton (Celtics)
• Luke Kornet (Celtics)
• Svi Mykhailiuk (Celtics)
• Lamar Stevens (Celtics)
• Harry Giles (Nets)
• Trendon Watford (Nets)
• Frank Ntilikina (Hornets)
• Ish Smith (Hornets)
• JT Thor (Hornets)
• Terry Taylor (Bulls)
• Sam Merrill (Cavaliers)
• Tristan Thompson (Cavaliers)
• Markieff Morris (Mavericks)
• Kevin Knox (Pistons)
• Gui Santos (Warriors)
• Aaron Holiday (Rockets)
• Boban Marjanovic (Rockets)
• James Johnson (Pacers)
• Bismack Biyombo (Grizzlies)
  • Note: Biyombo’s salary is $5,000,000.
• Orlando Robinson (Heat)
• Dru Smith (Heat)
• Jose Alvarado (Pelicans)
• Ryan Arcidiacono (Knicks)
• Taj Gibson (Knicks)
• Isaiah Joe (Thunder)
• Aaron Wiggins (Thunder)
• Jonathan Isaac (Magic)
  • Note: Isaac’s salary is $17,400,000.
• Jordan Goodwin (Suns)
• Moses Brown (Trail Blazers)
• Skylar Mays (Trail Blazers)
• Ish Wainright (Trail Blazers)
• Juan Toscano-Anderson (Kings)
• Luka Samanic (Jazz)
• Omer Yurtseven (Jazz)
  • Note: Yurtseven’s salary is $2,800,000.

Keith Smith of Spotrac took a player-by-player look through this list earlier today, examining which guys are at the greatest risk of being waived before their salaries become guaranteed.

Some of these decisions – like the Pelicans with Alvarado, or the Thunder with Joe and Wiggins – involve regular rotation players who are earning the minimum, making them no-brainers — those players obviously won’t be released. In fact, it’s safe to assume that the majority of the 34 players in this group will hang onto their roster spots.

But we’ll likely see at least a small handful of these players cut within the next couple days as teams opt to create a little extra roster and financial flexibility. Those teams could take advantage of the newly opened 10-day contract window to bring in a new player or to immediately re-sign a player they just waived.

In addition to these 34 players on standard non-guaranteed contracts, there are 90 more who will be keeping a close eye on that January 7 waiver deadline.

For the first time this season, the salary guarantee date for players on two-way contracts lines up with the date for players on standard deals, so the two-way players who remain under contract through Sunday will be assured of their full-season salaries, regardless of whether they actually spend the rest of the season on a roster.

The full list of players on two-way contracts can be found right here.

Although we’ll likely see some two-way roster moves in the coming days, it’s worth noting that those salaries don’t count against the salary cap, and the financial commitment is pretty minor relative to standard contracts (a two-way player’s full-season salary is $559,782). So we should expect to see some clubs continuing to move two-way players on and off their rosters after the salary guarantee deadline comes and goes.

Friday is the first day this season that an NBA team can sign a player to a standard 10-day contract. As we explained earlier this week in a glossary entry, a 10-day deal allows a club to temporarily add a player to its 15-man roster without any commitments beyond those 10 days.

Under the league’s new Collective Bargaining Agreement, all 10-day contracts are worth a player’s minimum salary. The minimum salary in a given season differs from player to player, based on his years of NBA service entering the season. For instance, in 2023/24, a rookie on a full-season minimum deal will earn $1,119,563, whereas a 10-year veteran who is earning the minimum will make $3,196,448.

[RELATED: NBA Minimum Salaries For 2023/24]

The same is true for 10-day deals. A rookie will earn significantly less over the course of his 10 days with a team than a tenured NBA veteran will.

Because the 2023/24 regular season is 174 days long, a player’s full-season minimum salary can be divided by 174 to calculate his daily salary. From there, it’s just a matter of multiplying by 10 to determine his salary on a 10-day contract.

Using that formula, here’s the full breakdown of what salaries for 10-day deals look like in ’23/24:

Because the NBA doesn’t want teams to avoid signing veteran players in favor of cheaper, younger options, the league reimburses clubs who sign veterans with three or more years of service to 10-day, minimum-salary contracts.

In those instances, teams are on the hook for $116,075, the minimum salary for a player with two years of experience, while the NBA covers the difference. So a team would pay the same amount ($116,075) whether they sign a player with three years under his belt or a player with 12 years of NBA experience.

As we explained when we identified the players who will become trade-eligible on unique dates this season, there’s a small group of players whose trade restrictions won’t lift until sometime after the February 8 trade deadline. These players meet one of the following criteria:

1. They signed a free agent contract or were promoted from a two-way contract after November 8.
   • A player who signs a free agent contract or is promoted from a two-way contract is ineligible to be traded for at least three months.
2. They signed a veteran contract extension (meeting certain criteria) after August 8.
   • A player who signs a veteran extension that keeps him under contract for more than three total years (including his current contract) and/or includes a raise exceeding 5% is ineligible to be traded for six months.
3. They signed a super-max contract.
   • A player who signs a super-max contract (also known as a designated veteran contract) is ineligible to be traded for one year.

We identified all the players who fell into these three categories in our previous story on unique trade dates, but they may have slipped through the cracks amid the larger list of players we discussed in that article.

With that in mind, we want to specifically single them out today to make sure it’s clear which players won’t become trade-eligible at all until sometime after the 2023/24 regular season.

Here are the players who fall into the three aforementioned groups and who can’t be traded this season:

Players who have signed free agent contracts since November 8:

• Taj Gibson (Knicks)
• James Johnson (Pacers)
• Skylar Mays (Trail Blazers)
• Joshua Primo (Clippers)
• Daniel Theis (Clippers)
• Juan Toscano-Anderson (Kings)

There hasn’t been a ton of action on the free agent market since the regular season began, with most players who have signed with NBA teams receiving two-way contracts rather than standard deals. But the Knicks and Pacers reunited with old friends Gibson and Johnson, respectively; the Blazers promoted Mays from his two-way deal; the Clippers added Primo and Theis to their standard roster; and the Kings filled an open roster spot by signing Toscano-Anderson.

All of those players are ineligible to be moved this season, and this list will continue to grow if more free agents sign standard contracts between now and February 8.

Players who have signed veteran contract extensions meeting certain criteria since August 8:

• Giannis Antetokounmpo (Bucks)
• Zach Collins (Spurs)
• Josh Hart (Knicks)
• Miles McBride (Knicks)
• Jarred Vanderbilt (Lakers)

While the Bucks never would have traded Antetokounmpo this season, the other four players might have emerged as viable candidates to be moved if they hadn’t signed new extensions. Now, they’re ineligible to be dealt until the 2024 offseason.

It’s not uncommon for some players who are eligible for in-season veteran extensions to sign new deals well into the season, as McBride did over the weekend, so it’s certainly possible more names will be added to this group before February’s trade deadline.

Players who have signed super-max contracts:

• Jaylen Brown (Celtics)

Brown signed his designated veteran extension on July 26, 2023, which means he won’t become trade-eligible until July 26, 2024.

No other players will join the Celtics wing on this list prior to next month’s trade deadline, since super-max deals can’t be signed during the season.

At the start of the 2023/24 campaign, we looked ahead and identified several dates and deadlines to watch on the NBA calendar this season. While that list covered the general highlights, it’s worth taking a closer look at some of those key dates to keep an eye out for in January, which should be a busy month.

Let’s dive in…

Non-guaranteed contracts become guaranteed

January 10 is the date that all non-guaranteed NBA contracts for 2023/24 will officially become guaranteed, but January 7 is really the day to watch.

If a team wants to avoid having a salary become guaranteed, the player must clear waivers before January 10, which means he needs to be cut by January 7 — at the latest.

Many players without fully guaranteed salaries are in no danger of being waived by next Sunday, but some teams will take the opportunity to save a little money and open up a roster spot.

It’s worth noting that players on two-way deals (which are non-guaranteed) are subject to that January 7 waiver deadline as well, and will have their salaries become fully guaranteed if they’re still under contract as of January 8.

In past seasons, the salary guarantee date for players on two-way contracts has been January 20, but that changed in the NBA’s latest Collective Bargaining Agreement.

Teams can begin signing players to 10-day contracts

As of January 5, clubs will be able to sign players to standard 10-day contracts, which count against team salary for cap and tax purposes and require an opening on the 15-man roster to complete.

Prior to January 5, teams were able to sign players to 10-day contracts only if they qualified for a hardship exception. As our 10-day contract tracker shows, only the Grizzlies have met that bill so far this season.

Rebuilding teams generally use 10-day contracts to audition G League standouts or other prospects to see if they might be worth investing in beyond this season. Contending clubs are more inclined to use 10-day contracts to bring in veterans who can step in right away to address a need or provide depth at a position hit hard by injuries.

Currently, nine teams have an open spot on their 15-man rosters, making them candidates to sign a player to a 10-day deal. That number could increase after next weekend’s salary guarantee deadline.

More players become trade-eligible

A significant portion of the NBA’s offseason signees became eligible to be traded on December 15, but there are still many players who can’t be dealt. By the end of January, that list of players ineligible to be traded will shrink further, since there are 24 players currently on track to have those restrictions lift between now and January 31.

January 15 is the key date, with 17 players becoming trade-eligible as of that Monday. That group includes some players who almost certainly aren’t going anywhere, but a handful of players on the list could be involved in trade rumors in 2024, including some who have already been popular subjects of speculation. Jerami Grant, Kyle Kuzma, Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimura, and Miles Bridges are some of the headliners.

A number of other offseason signees have unique trade-eligible dates in January, since they signed as free agents in October or inked a veteran extension in July. That list features names both big (like Domantas Sabonis) and small (such as Ish Smith). Notably, Jordan Clarkson and Dejounte Murray, who have each been at the center of some trade speculation, will become trade-eligible on January 7 and Jan. 9, respectively.

Last day to apply for a disabled player exception

January 15 is the last day that teams can apply for a disabled player exception to replace an injured player who is deemed unlikely to return this season.

A disabled player exception can give a club extra cap flexibility, but not an extra roster spot, so they often go unused. So far this season, the Bulls, Grizzlies, and Trail Blazers have been granted DPEs, while the Knicks have reportedly applied for one.