by Austin Peters
(Note: All facts about the CBA can be found HERE)
The NBA, unlike other sports, controls salaries with what is known as a "soft" salary cap. In baseball, there is no salary cap. In soccer, there are no restrictions on how much you can spend on transfers. The NFL doesn't allow teams to go over the salary cap for any reason. The NBA, however, is a lot less black and white than other sports.
In the NBA, there is still a salary cap. The amount for the salary cap each season is determined during the moratorium, the first 10 days of July each year that are used to research and gather the information needed to set the salary cap. The cap is a certain percentage of the Basketball Related Income (BRI) of the previous season.
The term "soft" salary cap comes into play because there are lots of rules that allow teams to go over the salary cap. This makes it easier for teams to build rosters and keep their own free agents from leaving and joining other teams. In the current financial climate, however, the cap is rising at a historical rate each season (which is good for the NBA because then it shows that BRI is going up, which means that more people are becoming interested in the game). Since the cap is rising so fast, teams with cap space are making it more justifiable to overpay for players in order to lure them from their current teams.
A good example of this was last summer when the Hornets signed Gordon Hayward to a max offer sheet. At the time, it was debatable whether or not Hayward was deserving of a max contract (Hayward had played miserably in his first year as the lead guy in Utah). In order to try and keep the Jazz from matching an offer sheet, the Hornets offered Hayward the max salary he was eligible to receive. Hayward was coming off of his rookie deal, making him a restricted free agent, giving the Jazz a chance to match the Hornets' offer (which they did). Nevertheless, the principle is that the Hornets were willing to possibly overpay for a player because they had the cap room to do so.
The Hayward story from this past summer is a trend that we are going to see going forward as the salary cap continues to go up; teams will be more liberally offering players max contracts if they are wanting to sign them. With the current NBA situation in mind, here are things you need to know about max contracts.....
Max Salaries are Relative
When you hear or read that someone is getting offered a "max contract," there are a few things that you need to take into context before you give an opinion of whether or not that player is deserving of one. A player's max salary is determined by how many years they've played in the NBA. For example, Gordon Hayward's max is going to be a completely different structured contract than Carmelo Anthony's. Here is the chart that determines how much a max contract can be...
A player's max contract is a certain percentage of the salary cap. Most player's first contracts end after their fourth year, which happens to be the end of their rookie contract. Therefore, guys like Gordon Hayward, Chandler Parsons, Eric Bledsoe, and other restricted free agents last offseason were eligible for up to 25% of the salary cap in their first year of their second contract. A side effect of this is that players drafted a year later when the cap rises will be eligible for more money in their max contract. This just adds to the relativity of the term "max."
(Note: The only exception to the chart above is the "Derrick Rose Rule." This allows players coming off their rookie scale contract who have met certain awards and achievements to receive the 30% max. They named the rule after Derrick Rose because he had received the MVP while still on his first contract. Other criteria includes: voted an All-Star starter twice and being voted to an All-NBA team twice.)
Bird Rights Play a Huge Part
A player has Bird Rights if they have been with a team for three consecutive years. Bird Rights allow teams to sign their own free agents and go over the cap. If a team has a player's Bird Rights, they are allowed to offer a fifth year and 7.5% annual raises on the contract. If a free agent wants to sign with a different team, they can only offer four years and 4.5% raises. A fifth year of guaranteed money is huge because players like having more long term security. Marcin Gortat didn't sign a max deal last summer, but was still able to sign for five years in Washington instead of taking one less year and going to sign with the Miami Heat. The extra year matters a ton.
2015 MAX PLAYERS
With all of this in mind, here is a list of players this offseason who could receive max contracts this summer, with the full amount of their deal that they're eligible to sign.
(Note: All numbers will be based on a salary cap of $66.5 million, the projected salary cap for the 2015-16 season.)
Restricted Free Agents
5 years, $96 million (25% of the cap with 7.5% raises annually)
TOBIAS HARRIS - F, Orlando Magic
You might not think he is now, but Harris is going to get a max from somebody this offseason (probably the Knicks). He is leading the Magic in scoring, plays both forward positions really well, and will still only be 22 this summer. I've got a post coming about him soon, so I'll save a lot of what I think about him for that time.
JIMMY BUTLER - G/F, Chicago Bulls
I've already written a ton about Butler and the dilemma the Bulls have with him. While he cooled off a bit in January, he has been the best player for an Eastern Conference title contender. The Bulls will have to go into the luxury tax to keep him this summer, something that they haven't been willing to do in the past. Stay tuned.
BRANDON KNIGHT - G, Milwaukee Bucks
Knight is having one of the most underrated seasons in the league this year. He was a legitimate All-Star candidate, and still might make the team as a replacement for Dwyane Wade. He is averaging 18/5/4 with a PER of 18.64 and shooting splits of 44/41/90. The East isn't as strong at point guard as the West, making him one of top tier guys at his position.
DRAYMOND GREEN - F, Golden State Warriors
He is the front runner for defensive player of the year. He can legitimately guard, and lockdown, positions 1-5. He has been able to stand up to some of the best forwards in the league. I've personally seen Golden State play against the Clippers, Grizzlies, and Mavericks; teams that boast three All-Star power forwards in Blake Griffin, Zach Randolph, and Dirk Nowitzki. Green struggled a bit last night against Dirk, but he adjusted and was able to push Dirk off the block and use his length to alter shots; an incredibly difficult task given Dirk's high shot release. His combination of size and length along with his IQ make him a nightmare on defense.
Offensively, he has all the traits of the new age NBA power forward; moves the ball extremely well, pick and pop threat, and crashes the glass hard. Throw in his relentless motor, and you have a guy that just about any team would want. Golden State will have a really hard decision to make if Green signs an offer sheet with another franchise because of how close they are to the tax.
KAWHI LEONARD - F, San Antonio Spurs
He is getting a max. He is staying in San Antonio. Any questions? Didn't think so.
Unrestricted Free Agents 0-6 years
5 years, $96 million (25% of the cap with 7.5% raises annually)
GREG MONROE - F/C, Detroit Pistons
Monroe is the only guy that qualifies for this special category. The thing about restricted free agents is that at the beginning of free agency, if a team wants to have the right to match an offer sheet from another team for their own free agent, they must submit a qualifying offer. The player can either choose to sign a new deal with his current team, another team, or take the one year qualifying offer. If the player takes the one year qualifying offer, they will be an unrestricted free agent the following year, free to sign with whoever they want.
Such is the case with Monroe, who didn't reach a deal with any other team last summer and will now be a restricted free agent this summer. Monroe and his agent, David Falk, were seeking a max deal last summer and when they didn't get one, they decided to stay for the qualifying offer and be free to sign with another team in 2015. There is hardly a debate of whether or not Monroe is a max player now. He averaged 17/13 for the month of January while shooting 53% from the field and 79% from the line. The twin towers in Detroit are finally working the way Stan Van Gundy envisioned.
Unrestricted Free Agents 7-9 years
5 years, $116 million (30% of the cap with 7.5% raises annually)
DEANDRE JORDAN - C, Los Angeles Clippers
Somebody is offering DeAndre the max this summer. He was a top five defensive player of the year candidate last year, one of the best rim protectors in the league, and has led the league in rebounds the last two seasons. He will still only be 27 this offseason, making five years a worthy investment for someone with his skills. If the Clippers decide they can't afford to keep him, their championship window might close just as fast as it opened.
MARC GASOL - C, Memphis Grizzlies
He is the best center in the game right now and it's really not up for debate. Nobody else has the same blend of size, skill, and IQ that Gasol has at his position. He is the best player for a legit title contender and the starting center for the West in the All-Star game. There isn't one person that you will talk to that doesn't like his game. He loves playing in Memphis, and it would be shocking if he left.
GORAN DRAGIC - G, Phoenix Suns
Dragic's numbers haven't been as good this year as his third team All-NBA season last year, but he is still the X factor for the Suns if they are hoping to make the playoffs in the brutal Western Conference. You know someone is going to throw him the max this summer. And it's probably going to be the Lakers. Just warning all of you ahead of time.
Unrestricted Free Agents 9+ years
5 years, $135 million (35% of the cap with 7.5% raises annually)
PAUL MILLSAP - PF, Atlanta Hawks
This might come as a surprise to some, but in Millsap's two years in Atlanta, he has made two straight All-Star appearances and been arguably the best player for the Hawks in both those seasons. He probably won't get a deal quite that big, but somewhere in the ball park of $20 million a year wouldn't surprise me.
LaMARCUS ALDRIDGE - PF, Portland Trailblazers
Aldridge has had an incredible career in Portland. He said last summer that he would sign a max deal with them, and he has earned it. When he retires, he will go down as one of the best Blazers of all time, which says a lot because of the storied history of the franchise.
AL JEFFERSON - C, Charlotte Hornets
Jefferson was voted third team All-NBA last season, and for good reason. He has been a beast for the Hornets the last two seasons, averaging 20/10 a game since signing with them two offseasons ago. The problem with him, however, is that he turned 30 last month, making it very unlikely that if he gets a max, that there will be a fifth year attached to it. Gortat got a fifth year this last offseason at the age of 30, however, and Al Jefferson's agent might point to that deal in negotiations this summer.
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