Do the Clippers Have the MLE?

[loflin3hree5ive]

Now that they've signed Baron Davis, do the Clippers still have a MLE, LLE or bi-annual exception?

[FGump]

They haven't signed B Davis. At best they have a verbal commitment.

But in order to do a free agent signing for an amount bigger than the MLE, if they aren't doing a sign-and-trade, then yes they would have to renounce their cap exceptions and be under the cap far enough to fit in that salary.

[loflin3hree5ive]

Excuse me, verbal agreement. Thanks for the info.

[Dunkenstein]

Now that they've signed Baron Davis, do the Clippers still have a MLE, LLE or bi-annual exception?

FYI, the bi-annual exception is the official name of what some refer to as the LLE.

[LarryCoon]

To provide a more thorough answer to the original question, the sequence of events will probably go like this:

1. Clippers exit the July Moratorium with a team salary over the cap, and with the MLE and BAE.

2. Clippers re-sign Brand to a lower salary. His free agent amount is replaced by his actual salary on the Clips' cap.

3. Clippers renounce Maggette, Livingston, and whatever other detritus they need to jettison in order to create cap room to sign Davis. At this point they also lose their MLE and BAE, because they've gone far enough under the cap to create actual cap room.

4. Clippers sign Davis as a free agent, taking them back to the salary cap (plus $100K). At this point they do NOT recover their MLE or BAE -- once they're gone, they're gone for the year.