There may be a lot of players to be had on the cheap during the NBA free agency period as some teams are expected to clear cap room by invoking the new CBA’s amnesty clause. This would allow each team to remove one burdensome contract from their salary cap and allows teams with cap room to bid on that player.
The highest bid gets the player according to the new CBA. So let’s take a look at some players who may end up being cap casualties as this new season begins.
There are ten teams currently over the cap who may invoke the amnesty clause just to get some cap relief. The Magic may be looking to get rid of Gilbert Arenas and the 3-year, $60 million cap number he carries. The Portland Trailblazers will probably take the opportunity to wipe Brandon Roy’s three years and $49.1 million off of their books.
The Dallas Mavericks have a lot of salaries coming off the books after this season but may still take the opportunity to rid themselves of either Shawn Marion or Brendan Haywood’s contracts. Especially if doing so will help them resign Tyson Chandler and Jose Barea.
The Chicago Bulls may want to jettison Carlos Boozer after his ineffective play during the playoffs and injury-marred season. Cutting him would clear his four years and $60.6 million off the books.
The Atlanta Hawks rewarded Joe Johnson with the biggest contract of last year’s free agent frenzy and he ended up having the worst season of his career. The five years and $107.3 million they owe him will put a stranglehold on their salary cap for years to come if they keep him.
Besides their “Big Three” the Miami Heat don’t have a lot of long-term contracts on the books but they may be looking to drop Mike Miller and the four years they owe him. He hasn’t played much since they signed him and just had surgery which will cause him to miss a significant chunk of this season.
There are about five teams sitting just barely under the projected salary cap who would like to give themselves a little more breathing room to make some moves. The Cleveland Cavaliers would probably jump at the chance to drop Baron Davis and the two years and $28.8 million they owe him.
The Utah Jazz are on the hook for $29 million over the next two years to Al Jefferson and the Philadelphia 76ers still owe Elton Brand a whopping $35 million over the next two years. The Milwaukee Bucks may also want to re-evaluate the four years and $26.3 million they owe Drew Gooden.
The bottom half of the teams in the league are all well under the cap but a few teams may still look to shed players for various reasons. The Phoenix Suns are rebuilding and would love to use the cap space they would get by releasing Josh Childress and the $27 million they owe him over the next four years.
Rip Hamilton has been a cancer in the locker room for the Detroit Pistons. They have been unsuccessful finding any trade suitors to take him off their hands so they may cut him and the $25.3 million they owe him over the next two years even though cutting Ben Gordon would give them a little more relief. Detroit still owes Gordon $37.2 million over the next three years.
Michael Jordan may continue the trend of slashing payroll in Charlotte. The biggest contract weighing the Bobcats down is Tyrus Thomas’s four-year, $33.4 million contract.
The New Orleans Hornets will be looking to sign free agents and may open up a little room by releasing Emeka Okafor and his three-year, $40.6 million contract. That money would go a long way in helping to lure Nene to the Bayou and bringing back David West.
Another team that may be looking to clear a little cap room is the New Jersey Nets. They are expected to be very aggressive players in the free agent market and are expected to drop the four years and 28 million they owe to Travis Outlaw.
One of the last teams I expect to take advantage of the amnesty clause is the Denver Nuggets. Although they have the lowest payroll in the league at $28.9 million, they may still look to rid themselves of the $27.5 million they owe Al Harrington over the next four years.
Teams don’t have to invoke the amnesty clause this year so some teams may hold onto it for a year or two before they use it. The only catch is they can’t use it on any player signed under the new CBA so if they don’t use it in the next couple of years they may not get a chance to use it.
With that said there will probably be a lot of names flooding the market over the next month or so. Teams can’t officially sign free agents until December 9th but there have been a lot of trade talks swirling around and teams have been targeting players they want to sign. You can expect a lot of wheeling and dealing as teams gear up for the shortened season.
Roosevelt Hall is an NBA Blogger for Pick And Fade. He can be contacted at RHall_TPFB@Yahoo.com. Follow him on Twitter @rhall_tpfb.
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