One of the most intriguing developments of the new NBA labour agreement is its amnesty clause, which would allow a team to buyout a player and not take a cap hit so they have more space to add players on the free agent market.
According to a New York Times report, most teams will not be using such a clause for many reasons. For one, teams would still have to pay the full salary. It may not create room for some teams because they are already so far over the cap. Others would prefer to save the clause for the future as some teams may not be ready to give up on a player just yet.
There is an interesting twist in the works for this. In order to prevent the Miami Heat and Los Angeles Lakers from loading up on these veterans on the cheap, the CBA is said to contain a clause that would see teams below the salary cap bid on these players’ services before they hit the open market.
For example, if the Cleveland Cavaliers were to eat Baron Davis’ contract, a team could bid to take on Davis for $3 million and another could trump the bid for $4 million. As most of the league’s powerhouse teams are all well over the limit, they would have to wait and see if any of the potential free agents were to make it to the open market before they could stack their roster.
Now, with all that explained, these are some of the players that teams are considering or should consider using their amnesty clause on:
Atlanta Hawks: Marvin Williams
The Hawks are said to be shopping Josh Smith around and are definitely in dire need of salary cap relief as they have nine players on their roster totaling over $65 million. As Al Horford and Joe Johnson are untouchable, and with Smith on the block, Williams, who has failed to live up to his promise, is the most likely candidate to hit the bricks.
Boston Celtics: No one
The Celtics only have six players under contract for next season so they will be hoping that some of the amnesty players fall into their lap for cheap. After the season, they are expected to do a major rebuild as Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen are in the final year of their current contracts.
Chicago Bulls: Keith Bogans
The Bulls have no real plans to use the amnesty clause this fall however they will be looking for an upgrade at shooting guard before the season begins and may decide to create some wiggleroom by cutting Bogans.
Cleveland Cavaliers: Baron Davis
Think the Cavs will cut Davis and eat the remainder of his contract? He doesn’t. He thinks Cleveland will keep him around to mentor No. 1 pick Kyrie Irving. That has Bad Idea Jeans written all over it.
Dallas Mavericks: Rudy Fernandez
Newspapers in Spain are saying that Rudy Fernandez was planning to ask the Mavericks for a buyout as he wants to stay home and play for Real Madrid. However, According to Hoopshype, a reliable source says he wants to finish out his deal with Dallas which has just one season remaining.
Denver Nuggets: Al Harrington
Three former Nuggets are currently plying their trade in China where teams are not going to let players out of their contracts to return to the NBA. The Nuggets have plenty of cap space which means they should be in no hurry to cut anyone, however, Harrington’s contract is for another four years so they may want to dump him.
Detroit Pistons: Charlie Villanueva
With a poorly-constructed roster full of two-guards and forwards, the Pistons have a couple of players that they could cut loose. Ben Gordon and Richard Hamilton could both be on their way out as could Charlie V. All depends on if they feel they can trade any of these players rather than swallow a bad contract.
Golden State Warriors; Andris Biedrins
The Warriors are not expected to make any changes but if they do, Biedrins is the player expected to be headed for the exit door. At $9 million a season, he seems to be the prime candidate to be dumped. That being said, the Warriors have plenty of cap space so maybe they will hold off on using the amnesty clause for the time being.
Houston Rockets: Kevin Martin
I don’t really expect the Rockets to use the amnesty clause as they are in rebuild mode at the moment and there is no point in paying Martin not to play for them if they aren’t competitive. Plus GM Daryl Morey is said to be a big fan of Martin. That being said, the worse the team is, the better the draft pick will be.
Indiana Pacers: No one
The Pacers are well below the salary cap and may have a tough time reaching the salary floor if they were to cut anyone loose. The only big contract on the books is that of Danny Granger and he isn’t going anywhere.
LA Clippers: No one
It would be a stunning turn of events to see notoriously-cheap Clippers owner Donald Sterling allow his front office to pay someone not play for his team. Looking at the team’s roster, there’s no obvious candidate to be axed regardless.
Los Angeles Lakers: Luke Walton or Metta World Peace
The Lakers are a squad that is aging quickly and will not be able to get under the cap until Kobe Bryant retires. But they also don’t mind being over the cap either. They do need a fresh injection of talent on the perimeter and with Metta World Peace’s (Ron Artest) skills are in rapid decline, it would be hard to see them keep him around for the duration of his deal.
Memphis Grizzlies: No one
Oddly enough, the Grizzlies do not have any real bad contracts at the moment and much like the Pacers, they are well under the cap. Restricted free agent Marc Gasol will be costly to retain but even if they do, they will have some wiggle room to add more depth to their squad.
Miami Heat: Mike Miller
With so much salary tied up in three players, the Heat are having trouble filling in the roster around them. At just $5 million a season, Miller is not really going to save enough cash to make a difference. The Heat are not expected to do anything but if they make a move, it will be Miller.
Milwaukee Bucks: Keyon Dooling or Ersyan Ilyasova
The Bucks won’t be taking a huge financial hit if they cut Keyon Dooling or Ersyan Ilyasova, but they would free up a roster spot so they could try and shore up a backcourt that is lacking depth.
Minnesota Timberwolves: Darko Milicic
Glenn Miller is another owner that is not considered to be free-spending but this is an opportunity for the Timberwolves to shed a bad contract and make their roster more flexible. Milicic only gets paid around $5 million per season but he is tied up for another three years.
New Jersey Nets: Travis Outlaw
I believe this move is best summed up by Al Iannazzone of NorthJersey.com as he wrote, “With the amnesty clause, it’s safe to say the Travis Outlaw era (error) will end.”
New Orleans Hornets: Jarrett Jack
With the NBA firmly in control of the franchise right now, it would be hard to see this team blowing off a contract and asking other teams to absorb the deal. They also only have a roster of six players right now and until they decide whether or not they can keep Chris Paul, Jack is too valuable to cut.
New York Knicks: Renaldo Balkman or Ronny Turiaf
Now that they are finally clear of the collateral damage caused by the Isiah Thomas era, the Knicks are in fairly good shape financially. Look for Balkman to get axed as he rarely gets a chance to break a sweat or Ronny Turiaf, who puts in max effort, but would never be picked for anyone’s all-hands team.
Oklahoma City Thunder: Nate Robinson
The Thunder are the NBA’s model franchise at the moment but they too make a mistake on occasion (or at least take on another team’s error occasionally.) Cutting little Nate Robinson and his $4.5 million salary would free up some room to add another piece to an impressive-looking puzzle.
Orlando Magic: Gilbert Arenas
Just what the Orlando Magic have been waiting for. Gilbert Arenas is the poster boy for bad contracts in the NBA. He might be able to help a team as a role player but his body is no longer what it once was and the Wizards never should have signed him to this deal.
Philadephia 76ers: Hip Hop (The team’s mascot)
Yes, they have already cut loose their mascot. But someone else may follow. Elton Brand is their highest-paid player and deserves to be cut but a more likely candidate is Andres Nocioni as Brand would be much harder to replace.
Phoenix Suns: Josh Childress
It all comes down to whether or not the team believes 39-year-old Grant Hill will return for another season. If he does, the team really has no need for Childress. The way owner Robert Sarver runs the franchise, I would be stunned if he allowed his management to cut anyone loose.
Portland Trail Blazers: Brandon Roy
It’s a shame what has become of Brandon Roy. Great player, and by all accounts a solid citizen, his body was never meant for a long-term NBA career. If the Blazers do choose to let him go, a host of teams will be lining up to add him to their rosters.
Sacramento Kings: No one
The Kings are so far below the cap floor that it would be a huge surprise if they cut anyone. They will likely stash the clause for use at a later date.
San Antonio Spurs: Richard Jefferson
The Spurs might be too far over the cap for it to be worthwhile to do much of anything but Jefferson remains the most likely member of the team to be axed. When Tim Duncan’s current deal expires next summer, it might make more sense for the franchise to use the clause when they are ready to rebuild.
Toronto Raptors: No one
With plenty of cap room on hand, the Raptors are not expected to use the amnesty clause on anyone — especially with such a weak class of free agents being available. Jose Calderon and Amir Johnson seem like obvious candidates to be cut down the road.
Utah Jazz: No one
The Jazz are actually in one of the best salary cap situations around. No one on the current roster is under contract for more than the next two seasons so they will be able to reshape fairly quickly over a short period of time and have a couple of pieces to build around.
Washington Wizards: Rashard Lewis
Gilbert Arenas and Rashard Lewis changed uniforms last season as the Magic and Wizards looked to see if a change of scenery would rejuvenate their former stars. Lewis can stand right next to Arenas on the podium as the two biggest examples of poor NBA signings. This lockout won’t eliminate bad deals in the future but it sure will erase a couple of mistakes from the past.