2009 Salaries and Raw Cap Space

[shrink]

With the lottery over and our pick's cap holds assigned, we have a better feel for how much we'll be under the salary cap next season.

Al Jefferson $12,000,000
Mike Miller $9,880,957
Brian Cardinal $6,750,000
Ryan Gomes $4,017,500
Kevin Love $3,401,040
Corey Brewer $2,916,120
Randy Foye $3,575,761
Mark Madsen $2,840,000
Craig Smith $2,300,000
Sebastian Telfair $2,500,000
Bobby Brown $736,420 (assuming he picks up his player option)
2009 #6 Pick? $2,474,400
2009 #18 Pick $1,198,900
2009 #28 Pick $836,300

TOTAL $55,427,398

While the 2009-10 salary cap has not been named yet, last year's salary cap was set at $58,680,000, and it shouldn't change much this year (though next season may be a different story!). Using the same number produces a $3,252,602 of raw 2009 cap space.

It should be noted that if we wish to trade it, we need to renounce our exceptions (MLE, BAE) and the rights we have on players like Sprewell. This space is of no special value for signing free agents, because other teams can sign a free agent for the full MLE (around $5.6 mil) even if they are over the cap or lux.

[john2jer]

So really, it might have been a SMALL blessing to drop down a spot in the draft because realistically our guy still has a good chance of being there, and it saved us a couple bucks. More room to trade for future assets, and realistically, I can't think of too many players that are worth the MLE, unless we make a run at Chris Anderson or Marcin Gortat.

[invno1]

Shrink, If timberwolves just take the picks and dont do anything with the Cap....what does it look like next year?

[invno1]

What would it take to get Gortat? If Timberwolves can build a foundation, A free agent would sign. Thats why I ask Shrink say Timberwolves do a good job in this draft and next year look to add a super star, what kinda money are you looking at?

[shrink]

What would it take to get Gortat? If Timberwolves can build a foundation, A free agent would sign. Thats why I ask Shrink say Timberwolves do a good job in this draft and next year look to add a super star, what kinda money are you looking at?

It's just huge.

Right now, our only 2010 commitments are

$13,000,000 Al Jefferson
$2,700,000 Telfair (assuming he picks up his player option)
$3,638,280 Kevin Love (can't imagine we'd dump him)
$1,000,000 Ryan Gomes (guaranteed if we bought him out - otherwise $4,385,000)
$2,660,000 Pick #6
$1,288,800 Pick #18
$899,000 Pick #28
$3,000,000 Estimate of 2010 pick
-----------------------------
$28,18608 Guaranteed Salary

If the 2010 cap is at, say $55, we'd have about $27 mil

Of course, there are other places we may spend:

$3,703,472 Corey Brewer
$3,385,000 Ryan gomes - Additional payments
$$$$$$$$$ Randy Foye
$$$$$$$$$ Any Free agents we may sign before then

$30 mil is huge, and a may have tremendous trade value. NYK wants space to sign a max deal free agents? How much would they give for the space to sign two? It will probably be used in small pieces, to finish up other team's max offers, like we did with a TPE to get Carney and the UTA 1st. I have always said new teams will appear that will want to dump their vet star and rebuild -- we provide instant rebuilding. Guys like Okafor or Bogut may become available in that manner.

Anyway, after years of being on the weak side of trade negotiations (except for KG), MIN will be bringing a giant asset to the table. Next season will be fun, if we don't dribble it away on just "good" players (I'm looking at you, Kirk Hinrich!)

[MN Die Hard]

So since we're under the cap we cannot use the MLE is that right? If so, we have that $3.25 million in cap space available, which shink identified, rather than $5 - $6 million if we had the MLE. Is that right? I must be missing something because if this is right then we are actually penalized for being under the cap.

[john2jer]

No, EVERYONE has the MLE to use. It's just that if you're under the cap, you have to waive your right to use it to spend your cap space. When you have only $3mil in cap space, it makes more sense to use the MLE if you're looking to add talent. If you have $20mil in cap space, it makes more sense to waive the MLE. It all depends on your goals.

[shrink]

That's right. Maybe I can explain it a different way.

You guys understand we have cap holds for the amount of a pick before we sign him. The NBA rules use these cap holds instead of the actual time of the contracts to try to come at a fairer view of what a total salary is. The rules try to prevent a team from doing one that works under the salary contract rules, and the next day signing the contracts on their picks and re-signing their free agents.

Imagine that the MLE has a cap hold on it. Until we say we aren't going to use it, it has the potential to push us over the cap. That's why we need to renounce it (and the rights to players like Sprewell) even though they don't cost us any real money. They exist now as potential money that could put us over the cap.

[Howler21]

I think it is pretty safe to assume that we won't have that 28th pick come draft time so that will knock off about a mil.

[Esohny]

Gortat could be interesting...

[Klomp]

Wasn't there something about the salary cap dropping?

[john2jer]

The belief is this year it'll be roughly the same, it's 2010 when it could drop significantly.

[casey]

Wasn't there something about the salary cap dropping?

That's what Stern said a while ago, but then later he said he expected it to be about the same.

[Esohny]

Wasn't there something about the salary cap dropping?

That's what Stern said a while ago, but then later he said he expected it to be about the same.

Of course, he also says that the draft lottery isn't fixed, NBA refs are competent, and that allowing the OKC owners to extort Seattle before absconding with the sonics was legitimate. Do we trust his word?