HoopsHype.com Rumors

The details, spelled out in an April 26 memo issued by National Basketball Players Association Executive Director Billy Hunter, marks the league’s push for a major overhaul of the NBA’s economic model and emphasizes to players an aggressive bid to significantly slash costs and shorten contracts. The memo was sent to all NBA players and was dated just days prior to the league delivering to the union a new labor proposal, which a source said still included the $45 million hard cap but added a phase-in of the cap over a few years. Union president Derek Fisher publicly dismissed the latest proposal as too similar to the original proposal. The memo’s most eye-popping element is the league’s proposed $45 million hard cap, which cuts the current $58 million soft cap by nearly 25 percent. Sporting News

CBA, Salary Cap, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Owners 

Hunter said in the memo that the NBA projects the $45 million hard cap number with a team’s total salary not to exceed the cap for any reason. The proposed hard cap as outlined by Hunter also would eliminate the current luxury tax provision, which penalizes teams with a dollar-for-dollar tax for the amount spent on player payroll exceeding the salary cap. The proposed hard cap is something the NBA has never had under collective bargaining, but it has become a critical element to owners. This initial proposal, and its steep cut in player cap space, demonstrates a strong commitment by the owners to dramatically curtail player payrolls while also supporting NBA Commissioner David Stern’s mantra of making the league more profitable. Sporting News

CBA, Salary Cap, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Owners 

The inclusion of non-guaranteed player contracts, while a negotiating point, also represents a radical shift for players who have long benefited from guaranteed deals. Taken together, Hunter felt compelled to send out the missive. “The nature of the owners’ demands is so onerous that I feel it is imperative to reinforce the message of our recent team meetings with this letter,” Hunter wrote in the memo. Sporting News

CBA, Salary Cap, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Owners 

The new agreement is expected to have some variation of the "Allan Houston Amnesty," which in the current CBA allowed for a team to cut a player without that salary counting against the luxury tax. Ironically the New York Knicks used this one-time cost saver on Jerome Williams instead of Houston. The players still get paid which is why it's favorable to the union. The owners gain flexibility and save money. It's a win-win. Word is there may be another amnesty clause (even possibly two) in the new deal, with the money not only coming off the tax but the cap as well. Notice all the trade proposals flying around the internet and radio? The Lakers should take on the contract of Gilbert Arenas to entice the Magic to deal Howard? An amnesty clause would change that significantly. HoopsWorld

CBA, Allan Houston, Salary Cap, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Owners 

There's a good chance Arenas may be waived via amnesty before next season, allowing for the Magic to save roughly $6-$19.2 million in tax in the first year, depending on the tax threshold, total salary for Orlando and the new CBA. Obviously rules on tax may change completely but the current owners' proposal has the existing system gradually evolve to a hard cap, phasing out luxury tax altogether. It remains to be seen how a compromise is reached but the point is the same on Arenas. Suddenly the Magic, without Arenas, have just $57 million committed to next season. Technically there's still the payment to be made to Arenas, so it doesn't solve everything but it puts Orlando in a different position financially. Given the chance, the preference for the Magic is to rebuild a contender around Howard rather than dealing him. HoopsWorld

Orlando Magic, Gilbert Arenas, CBA, Salary Cap, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Owners 

The proposal from NBA owners that the NBA Players Association rejected last week called for the implementation of a hard salary cap at a figure lower than the league's current cap, but not until the 2013-14 season, according to sources familiar with the offer. ESPN.com

CBA, Salary Cap, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Owners 

Sources told ESPN.com this week that the central change made by owners to past collective bargaining proposals called for easing in a more restrictive financial landscape over a three-season cycle as opposed to trying to impose a hard salary ceiling with immediate effect next season. The league, sources said, regards this as a major concession, since the next two seasons would employ a salary-cap system with luxury-tax penalties not unlike the system currently in place. Teams currently operate with a salary cap of $58 million per franchise, with a dollar-for-dollar luxury tax imposed for every dollar teams spend over the tax threshold of $70.3 million. ESPN.com

CBA, Salary Cap, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Owners 

Sources said the owners' latest proposal, however, does still call for immediate rollbacks of 15 percent, 20 percent or 25 percent to current contracts depending on salary levels, as part of the league's oft-stated desire to reduce payroll by roughly $800 million leaguewide on an annual basis. The NBA's ongoing push for such sharp salary reductions, sources said, is what caused the quick rejection from the players' side, with the union also still determined to oppose a hard cap. ESPN.com

CBA, Salary Cap, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Owners 

The NBA, sources said, likewise hopes to implement even lower salaries for rookies than they currently make based off the league's rookie scale The league also would like to propose new rules that make it hugely advantageous for marquee players to stay with the teams that draft them. ESPN.com

CBA, Salary Cap, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Owners 

In a surprising turn of events, there is a growing consensus that if there is a work stoppage in the NBA, it would not be a long one and that unless Billy Hunter tries to make this process personal, there appears to be some degree of willingness on the NBA Owner's part to make a reasonable deal. Several high profile agents have said they were doubtful that a lockout was inevitable and said they were hearing positive things from the process. During the last NBA Board of Governors meeting the NBA's Labor Committee was authorized to make a new proposal to the players and it's believed several of the points the NBA Players had material objections to are being removed from the discussion or modified in such a way as to make them more palatable to the players. HoopsWorld

CBA, Salary Cap, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, NBPA 

The NBA does want to reduce the amount of dollars paid to players, but is now open to a phased reduction in the percentage being given to the players and its believed a number of the salary cap exceptions that are commonplace are to be phased out completely over the course of the next agreement. The owners are said to be willing to commit to a larger overall salary cap number in exchange for changes in percentages given to players and how the salary cap figures are calculated. HoopsWorld

CBA, Salary Cap, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, NBPA 

Sources told CBSSports.com that high-ranking union officials have yet to analyze the documents, which will be added to a treasure trove of financial data the NBA has turned over to support its case for a massive reduction in player salaries and a hard salary cap to replace the current luxury tax-based system loaded with spending exceptions. Unlike the NFL in its labor fight with players, the NBA has been forthcoming with financial data, including audited tax returns from all 30 teams. CBSSports.com

CBA, Salary Cap, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, NBPA 

What provides the biggest concern is the idea that NFL owners and players couldn't figure out a way to divide $9 billion. The NBA's pie is smaller -- about $4 billion -- and owners aren't just looking to adjust the split between themselves and players. They're looking to change the system by which the players are paid by going to a hard salary cap. And they're looking at eliminating most, if not all, of the current exceptions to the cap that teams receive in order to re-sign their own players for more money or for capped-out teams to be able to add veterans at relatively low prices. "Those (NFL) owners are pushing with the money they're making," said a source involved in the NBA discussions over the weekend. "I think our guys will do the same. Maybe there will be some decisions made in this court that will harder or soften one side one way or the other." NBA.com

CBA, Salary Cap, Lockout 

The NBA's players and owners met during All-Star weekend in Los Angeles, and the tone was cordial afterwards. However, McGrady believes the public perception about the owners wanting an absolute, hard salary cap with no exceptions is false. "The proposal that they have out here for us, it's really bull," McGrady said. "Some of the owners, (Lakers owner) Jerry Buss, the big-market owners, they don't want a scale-down." Detroit News

Detroit Pistons, Los Angeles Lakers, CBA, Tracy McGrady, Jerry Buss, Salary Cap, Lockout, NBPA 

The divide between the big and small markets is similar to Major League Baseball, and things are teetering dangerously toward a league of haves and have-nots. "They're (big-market teams) not really losing money. I understand Milwaukee, Minnesota, they're losing money," McGrady said. "But that doesn't have anything to do with us — don't lowball us." Detroit News

Detroit Pistons, Los Angeles Lakers, CBA, Tracy McGrady, Jerry Buss, Salary Cap, Lockout, NBPA 

McGrady, like many players, has a problem with the NBA trying to take away what they've gained. The owners want a scale-back of $800 million, cutting salaries approximately by one-third. They also want to take away guaranteed contracts and trim the players' share of revenue, currently 57 percent. "We're gonna have to give up something to gain a little bit," McGrady said. "It's definitely not gonna be the way it is, I understand that. "But it can't sway that much into the owners' favor where we're losing out big time." Detroit News

Detroit Pistons, Los Angeles Lakers, CBA, Tracy McGrady, Jerry Buss, Salary Cap, Lockout, NBPA 

The seven teams on course to pay tax in the summer, barring unforeseen payroll reductions between now and June 30: 1. Lakers $20.07 million. 2. Magic $19.59 million. 3. Mavericks $16.33 million. 4. Celtics $6.37 million. 5. Jazz $4.96 million. 6. Blazers $3.79 million. 7. Rockets $452,254. Total: $71.56 million Per-team payout for teams under the $70.31 million tax threshold: $2.38 million ESPN.com

CBA, Salary Cap, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, NBPA 

Though the raw numbers sort of suggest otherwise, the Warriors, barring a dramatic salary-slashing move, are essentially capped out through next season, even with $17M in expiring deals slated to come off the books this summer. They’re at $65M on this year’s payroll. They’re way over, thanks to cap exceptions and re-signing veterans and all the sorts of payroll-inflating doo-dads that the owners now want to eliminate. (They can stay above the cap, but ONLY if they trade some salary for more salary. Salary-cap space is not the same as room under the luxury-tax line. Two entirely different things. (When you’re talking about signing major free agents, you have to free up salary-cap space. The Warriors will not have much or any next summer, unless they start giving away big contracts right now–if they can.) San Jose Mercury-News

Golden State Warriors, Free Agency, Trade, Salary Cap 

They’re capped out. I keep saying it. Some have questioned my thinking. Here’s why it’s true and why it’s important to know: * The GSWs have committed about $48M to eight players next season (Ellis, Biedrins, Lee, Curry, DWright, Amundson, Udoh and Bell. Lin’s deal, I believe, is partially guaranteed, but it’s not a big number either way, so I’m not counting it.) Add in the probable $3M first-year salary of a 2011 top-12 pick, and that pops the commitment to $51M for nine players. The Warriors will also have Reggie Williams due for a big salary bump (or, I guess, could sign-and-trade him for an other player making more money), which easily could take it to $55M for 10 players. And they will need 4 or 5 more players to fill out a roster. San Jose Mercury-News

Golden State Warriors, Free Agency, Trade, Salary Cap 

To get under the cap in a way that can land impact free agents free and clear, you have to be at least $10M under. Which will be almost impossible for the Warriors to do. In fact, I predict that they will do something with their expirings that will make it more likely that they will be$10M over for 2011-’12 going into the summer. This doesn’t mean the Warriors can’t do anything. You can always sign-and-trade, as they did with David Lee last summer. You can use whatever exceptions are left with the new CBA. You can trade straight up, contract for contract. But the Warriors will almost certainly not be able to offer large contracts to free agents in a way that will get them to sign straight up or to force their old teams into bad sign-and-trades (as Miami did with LeBron & Bosh). The Knicks will have that room—and had it last summer. The Kings will have that room. Oklahoma City, of all teams, will have plenty of room. The Warriors will not. San Jose Mercury-News

Golden State Warriors, Free Agency, Trade, Salary Cap