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CBAFAQ says:

The principal terms of an offer sheet consist of the following. Any other terms of an offer are not considered to be principal terms, and the player's original team is not required to match:

The number of years
The base salary
The amount of any signing bonus or deferred compensation, including the payment schedule
Certain bonuses -- those considered to be "likely" for both teams (see question number 72), and those based on generally recognized league honors3
Any allowable amendments such as guarantees, Early Termination Options, and trade bonuses


Do team/player options fall under "allowable amendments"?

The CBA does not explicitly mention option years in that context. My guess is that the NBA would consider such to be included in "number of years."

From a practical point of view, a "team option" wouldn't make any difference. A team would never hesitate to match a team option, since that gives them added control, and they can always decline to exercise that option at a later date, if they feel the need.

DBoys wrote:From a practical point of view, a "team option" wouldn't make any difference. A team would never hesitate to match a team option, since that gives them added control, and they can always decline to exercise that option at a later date, if they feel the need.

But it definitely matters in case every proposed player option can be exchanged for a team option by the matching team!

Garf wrote:But it definitely matters in case every proposed player option can be exchanged for a team option by the matching team!

If an offer sheet contains a player option, the matching team cannot exchange it for a team option. The player's original team must match all the principal terms of the offer sheet, and a player option would be considered a principal term.

Dunkenstein wrote:player option would be considered a principal term.

Thanks, but you still haven't answered the original question. Apparently the CBA doesn't mention options as principal terms. So do they fall under "allowable amendments", "number of years", or anything else? Just trying to clarify some terms here.

From the definitions section of the CBA:
“Option” means an option in a Player Contract in favor of a Team or player to extend such Contract beyond its stated term. “Option Year” means the year that would be added to a Player Contract if an Option were exercised.

Therefore we can conclude (as DBoys has stated earlier) that options would fall under "number of years" in Larry's explanation of what make up the principal terms of an offer sheet.

It's important to understand the Larry's explanation of the CBA is his effort to make an exceedingly complicated document understandable to the average reader. So because he chooses to use certain terms in his FAQ when explaining such subjects as the principal terms of an offer sheet, Larry's words should not necessarily be taken as a verbatim translation of what is actually written in the CBA itself.

Dunkenstein wrote:...because he chooses to use certain terms in his FAQ when explaining such subjects as the principal terms of an offer sheet, Larry's words should not necessarily be taken as a verbatim translation of what is actually written in the CBA itself.

Although in this case, it pretty much was exactly that.

DBoys wrote:Although in this case, it pretty much was exactly that.

Yep, this not being explicitly stated in the CBA itself is exactly the part that surprised me.
Anyway, thanks for your help, guys!

PS
Now I understand much better why both Hibbert and Gordon have a PO. Also, IMHO Houston should have offered one to Gasol in 2011.

You will now find an updated FAQ to reflect the fact that that option years are considered a principal term and that ETOs are not (as they cannot exist in offer sheets).

answerthink wrote:You will now find an updated FAQ to reflect the fact that that option years are considered a principal term and that ETOs are not (as they cannot exist in offer sheets).

Respect! It looks like you know people who know people

I know things, and I know people who know things. So I can respectfully ask those people to correct and update those things if the situation calls for it.