Hoops Rumors’ Arthur Hill held a live chat today exclusively for Trade Rumors Front Office subscribers. Topics included the Knicks' salary cap maneuverings, early-season favorites in the Eastern Conference, a surprising start in Brooklyn, Zion Williamson's latest injury issues, concerns about Giannis Antetokounmpo leaving Milwaukee and more!
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.
Hoops Rumors' Arthur Hill held a live chat today exclusively for Trade Rumors Front Office subscribers.
Arthur took questions on possible Bulls trades, potential in-season coaching changes, the Thunder's top challenges in the West, the chances of a fire sale in Milwaukee, which veteran star might fit best in Houston, and more!
Roster continuity is typically viewed as a positive trait for NBA teams. It's not uncommon for players to express appreciation for the opportunity to spend multiple seasons getting comfortable with the same teammates rather than having to deal with significant personnel changes from year to year.
Still, it's roster turnover - rather than continuity - that draws the most headlines during the NBA offseason and generates the most hype entering the fall. That's why we spent way more time talking about teams like the Knicks and Sixers in the weeks and months leading up to opening night than we did discussing the Cavaliers, who added exactly one new player (rookie Jaylon Tyson) to the standard roster they carried into the end of last season.
There's no set formula to NBA success -- carrying over a significant number of players from last year's team doesn’t necessarily give a club a leg up entering a new season. But continuity was a signifier of success in 2023/24.
Of the seven teams who carried over at least 13 players (including two-ways) from their end-of-season rosters in 2022/23 to the start of the '23/24 season, five improved their records and a sixth equaled its win total from the previous season. The Grizzlies were the only exception, and they were hurt far more by injuries than they were by a lack of roster changes.
Many of the top candidates for veteran extensions this offseason have already signed new contracts.
While stars like Jayson Tatum, Bam Adebayo, and Donovan Mitchell finalized new deals shortly after the July moratorium lifted, there has been a steady stream of veteran extensions since then, with Joel Embiid, Jamal Murray, Jose Alvarado, T.J. McConnell, Terance Mann, Ivica Zubac, and Wendell Carter having all completed new contracts since the start of September.
In total, 18 veterans have signed extensions since the 2024/25 league year began, dwarfing the four rookie scale extensions that have been finalized during that same period.
As we wrote last week, there will likely be a small flurry of rookie scale extensions ahead of Monday's deadline. That may not be the case for veteran extensions, but there's reason to believe we could see some action on that front too.
For one, while the day before the regular season isn't the deadline for all veteran extensions - like it is for rookie scale extensions - it is the last day for an extension-eligible vet to work out a new deal if he has a contract (not an option year) for 2025/26. Those players will be ineligible for new deals during the season if they don't sign by Monday -- they would regain their eligibility next summer.
Players who are on expiring contracts or who hold options for 2025/26 (which could be declined as part of an extension agreement) will remain eligible to sign new deals all season, but some of those players may prefer to get something done before opening night in order to avoid the distraction of having their contract situation hanging over their head during the season.
In the space below, we'll take a look at three groups of players eligible for veteran extensions -- those who face an October 21 deadline, those who will remain eligible all season, and those who are good extension candidates but aren't expected to sign until at least 2025.
This is a sponsored post from BetterHelp.
Get Matched to the Best Therapist for You. Self-Care is Focusing on Your Mental Health
What’s an important holiday you might not know about? World Mental Health Day on October 10th – encouraging all of us to talk about and take care of our mental health since 1992.
The Mental Health Of Athletes: Statistics, Self-Care, And Support
Athletes often experience high pressure, busy schedules, and exposure to harmful stigmas and stereotypes that can lead to mental health conditions or chronic stress and burnout.
If you’re an athlete, there are various ways you can practice self-care to improve your mental health.
Mental health challenges common in athletes
Up to 35% of elite professional athletes are living with a mental illness, and student-athletes and those who participate in athletics for pleasure are also at risk. Below are statistics on the most common mental health conditions in athletes.
Eating disorders
Eating disorders may be more common in athletes due to pervasive stereotypes about what an athlete’s body “should” look like. In addition, bullying or rejection from teammates, coaches, and team supporters can lead to individuals experiencing fear of shame or the loss of their athlete status if they gain weight, lose muscle, or experience bodily changes.
Depression
One study found that the prevalence of depression in athletes is around 15.6% to 21%. The same study reported that athletes who were at a higher risk of depressive disorders were those with sports injuries, those who had been terminated from their career as athletes, and those rated poorly in performance. Depression can lead to a higher suicide risk in athletes, so therapy is often recommended.
Anxiety
Research by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) found that almost 85% of certified athletic trainers believe anxiety disorders are an issue for student-athletes. Other studies report that sports can lead to high levels of stress and pressure, which can cause anxiety.
Substance use disorders
According to studies, medication and alcohol misuse are the most common forms of substance use in athletes. Athletes may self-medicate due to other mental health challenges, physical pain, or difficulty sleeping. In addition, “sports culture” can sometimes lead to social pressure to drink or take other substances. Breaking down stigmas on a societal and team level can be a way to reduce these challenges.
How to practice self-care as an athlete
If you’re an athlete, whether you practice for fun or are in an elite team, there are a few self-care tips you can consider.
Prioritize mental health as much as physical health
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), mental healthcare can reduce the risk of physical illnesses like heart disease, stroke, and diabetes. To prioritize your mental health, pay attention to what your emotions tell you, learn about self-care, take breaks when needed, and address your stress when it arises.
Challenge harmful practices, stigma, and misconceptions
Stigmas, harmful practices, and misconceptions are common in athletic communities. Below are some ways to challenge these:
- Refuse substance use if you’re not interested in partaking, and encourage teammates and other athletes to value bodily autonomy
- Speak up when someone uses a stereotype or stigmatizing term
- Report abusive or unethical team practices imposed in professional environments
- Speak up against transphobia in sports
- Share your own story about mental health and what helped you cope
- Be open about stress and stress management
- Take steps to address toxic masculinity in athletics
- Be accepting of the religious and cultural practices of team members
- Seek therapy and be open about it with others
Nurture a strong support system
Having a support system can significantly reduce mental health challenges, leading to increased wellness and quality of life and a reduced risk of physical illness. Nurture your support system by ensuring you spend quality time with those you love outside of a sports context.
How to find professional support as an athlete
Therapy can be an effective tool for reducing stress and the chances of mental burnout in athletes. For those facing barriers to in-person therapy, online platforms like BetterHelp may be more accessible. Through an online platform, athletes can access resources like support groups and worksheets and weekly therapy with a provider via phone, video, or live chat.
Studies show that online therapy can be effective in treating conditions commonly seen in athletes, like anxiety and depression. In one study, online therapy was found to be more effective in symptom reduction for these conditions than face-to-face therapy.
Takeaway
For those who are struggling, mental health treatment may be beneficial. Seeking help is not a sign of weakness but strength, and over 41.7 million US adults see a therapist. By talking to a professional, you can develop ways to cope productively with your challenges and potentially receive referrals to other support options, such as psychiatry or support groups.
Four NBA players have signed rookie scale extensions so far in 2024, but if recent history is any indication, that number should at least double - and perhaps triple - by October 21, which is the deadline for those deals to be completed.
In each of the past four offseasons from 2020-23, at least 10 rookie scale extensions have been signed, including a record-setting 14 a year ago.
And while it's not uncommon for the most lucrative of those extensions to be finalized early in the offseason - like the maximum-salary deals for Scottie Barnes, Cade Cunningham, Evan Mobley, and Franz Wagner were this summer - many negotiations go down to the wire. In each of those last four years, at least six rookie scale extensions have been completed in October (or, in the case of the COVID-delayed 2020 offseason, December).
Based on those figures, it seems safe to assume news will break within the next 10 days about a few more rookie scale extension agreements, but which of the players eligible to sign those contracts are the best bets to actually get something done? That's the question we're considering today.
Listed below are the 20 players still eligible for rookie scale extensions, ranked by the likelihood that they'll finalize new deals by October 21. We're starting with the least likely candidates and working our way up to the most likely.
To clarify, this list isn't ranking these players by value -- the No. 1 player isn't necessarily the one who should get the most lucrative contract. We're just using our best judgment to predict which of them are most likely to have new contracts in hand by opening night, allowing them to avoid going through the restricted free agency process in July 2025.
Let's dive in...
Not happening
20. Chris Duarte (Bulls)
Never say never, but it's pretty hard to envision a scenario in which Duarte signs a new contract with the Bulls before the season begins. He was sent from Sacramento to Chicago in the DeMar DeRozan sign-and-trade for salary purposes after two disappointing seasons in Indiana and Sacramento in which he averaged just 5.6 points per game on 37.4% shooting (32.9% on three-pointers). Duarte showed real promise in his rookie year in 2021/22 (13.1 PPG, .369 3PT%) and if he can recapture that form, he'd be worth retaining beyond the coming season, but now isn't the time to commit to him.
The new rules in place this season for NBA teams operating above either tax apron dictate that those clubs are prohibited - in most cases - from taking back more salary than they send out in a trade.
That restriction will make it difficult for two teams operating above the apron to make a trade with one another, but the Knicks and Timberwolves provided a blueprint with this week's Karl-Anthony Towns blockbuster for one way it can happen -- find a third team to take on some extra salary.
In the Towns trade, the Hornets acquired approximately $6.8MM in salary from the Knicks without trading away any themselves, which allowed both Minnesota and New York to send out more salary than they took back in the deal. Charlotte received three second-round picks - two from the Knicks and one from the Wolves - for their troubles.
That's not the only way for two apron teams to trade with one another, but it's the most straightforward path, particularly in bigger deals like the Towns one. With that in mind, it's worth considering which teams around the NBA are the best candidates to be the next Hornets, acting as facilitators in deals involving two clubs facing apron-related restrictions.
There are essentially three characteristics that make a team an ideal candidate to be a third-party facilitator in this sort of trade:
We've spent much of the offseason discussing the roster moves that an NBA team operating over the first or second tax apron can and can't make, and why it makes sense for a front office to do its best to stay under one or both of those aprons if it's in position to do so.
So it came as a bit of a surprise when one of the top free agents left on the market - Nassir Little - agreed to a contract with the Heat, who had been carrying 14 players on standard contracts and were operating approximately $1.64MM below the second apron line. After all, the expectation had been that Miami would stick with a 14-man roster to open the regular season in order to remain below the second apron -- a minimum-salary deal for Little (or any other player) would push them above that threshold.
Now, there are a couple points worth clarifying on Little's contract.
First, his one-year, minimum-salary deal is fully non-guaranteed, with Exhibit 9 language, Hoops Rumors has confirmed. That means that the forward's salary doesn't currently count against the salary cap, and if he's waived before the season begins, the Heat's cap situation will be right back where it was before the signing, about $1.64MM away from the second apron.
Even if Little makes the team, he'd be paid by the day during the season, so if he's waived in the first month or two, Miami would be stuck with only a partial cap hit and would be able to move back below the second apron.
The second point is more complex and it's the one we'll focus on at length today. Let's say the Heat decide they want to keep Little on their opening night roster, then he earns a regular rotation role in the first couple months of the season, making himself indispensable and forcing Miami to guarantee his full-season salary.
In that scenario, the Heat would go from operating under the second apron to operating approximately $449K over it. However, for the most part, their proximity to the apron wouldn't actually change the moves they can and can't make during the season in any material way.
With the start of most NBA training camps just 11 days away (and even sooner than that for the Celtics and Nuggets), the 2024 offseason is nearing its end.
Before we put a bow on the summer of 2024, we have one more installment of our "Offseason Observations" to share today, following up on similar articles published in July and August.
Here are some of the under-the-radar cap- and CBA-related stories I'm keeping an eye on as teams around the league prepare for their media days and training camps.
The disparity between Exhibit 10 bonuses
As we've written many teams in recent weeks, when a player signs an Exhibit 10 contract with an NBA team, is waived before the regular season begins, and then spends at least 60 days with his club's G League affiliate, he's eligible to earn a bonus worth up to $77.5K.
We always clarify that those bonuses can be worth "up to" $77.5K because that's the maximum possible Exhibit 10 bonus in 2024/25 (up from $75K a year ago, having increased at the same rate as the salary cap). But not every player who signs an Exhibit 10 contract is able to negotiate that maximum bonus.