What Is An NBA Trade Exception?

If you’re new to the NBA, you may be wondering what a trade exception is. In short, it’s a tool that teams can use to acquire players via trade without having to give up any players in return. Here’s a more detailed explanation of trade exceptions and how they work.

What is an NBA trade exception?

In the NBA, a trade exception is a tool that allows a team to acquire a player via trade, even if that team is over the salary cap. The thinking behind trade exceptions is that they provide a way for teams to improve their rosters without having to make significant changes to their existing salaries.

To be eligible for a trade exception, a team must first create one by trading away a player who makes more money than the player they’re trying to acquire. Once the trade is complete, the team will have what’s called “trade exception” space in their salary cap, which they can then use to take on another player via trade.

Trade exceptions can be used to acquire players in trades involving multiple teams, but they can only be used once and they expire after one year. Additionally, any player acquired via trade using a trade exception cannot be traded again for six months.

How is an NBA trade exception created?

An NBA trade exception is created when a team acquires a player in a trade and theplayer’s outgoing salary does not match the incoming salary. The team will create an “exception” equal to the difference in salary, which can be used to acquire another player without having to match incoming and outgoing salaries.

For example, if Team A acquires Player X from Team B, and Player X has a salary of $5 million while the player Team A is sending to Team B has a salary of $3 million, then Team A will create a $2 million trade exception. This exception can be used by Team A to acquire another player from any team without having to match salaries.

What are the benefits of an NBA trade exception?

An NBA trade exception is a tool that can be used by teams to acquire players without giving up any players or draft picks in return.

The benefits of an NBA trade exception are that it allows a team to:

– Acquire a player without giving up any players or draft picks in return
– Save on salary cap space by not having to take on the salary of the player they are acquiring

How long does an NBA trade exception last?

An NBA trade exception is a one-time, salary-cap exception that a team acquires when it trades away a player without receiving any players back in return. A trade exception can be used to sign a free agent or acquire a player via trade, but only for the one year following the date of the trade that created the exception.

Can an NBA trade exception be extended?

An NBA trade exception is a tool that allows a team to acquire a player via trade, even if that team is over the salary cap. In order to create a trade exception, a team must first trade away a player (or players) that make more money than the player they are trying to acquire. Once the trade is completed, the team acquiring the player will have a trade exception that lasts for one year and is worth the difference in salary between the two players.

For example, let’s say the Los Angeles Lakers want to trade for Carmelo Anthony of the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Lakers would need to send out players that make more than $27,540,000 (Anthony’s salary for the 2017-18 season), in order to create a trade exception big enough to absorb his contract. So, if Los Angeles traded away Luol Deng and Timofey Mozgov (whose salaries total $36,829,000), they would create a $9,289,000 trade exception. The Thunder would then have to agree to take on Deng and Mozgov’s contracts as part of the deal.

Once a team has created a trade exception, they can use it within one year to acquire another player (or players) without having to send any salary back in return. So, in our above example, the Lakers could use their $9.2 million Carmelo Anthony trade exception to acquire another player from any team in the league, as long as that player makes less than $9.2 million. If Los Angeles wanted to use their Carmelo Anthony trade exception to acquire Paul George from the Indiana Pacers (whose salary is $19,508,149), they would need to find another team willing to take on Deng and Mozgov’s contracts as part of the deal.

It’s also important to note that NBA trade exceptions can be extended by up to one year if the team desires. So, if Los Angeles wanted to keep their Carmelo Anthony trade exception alive for an additional year, they would need extend it before it expired (one year after the date of the originaltrade).

What happens if an NBA trade exception is not used?

If an NBA trade exception is not used within one year of the date it was created, it expires and cannot be used.

How can an NBA trade exception be used?

An NBA trade exception can be used in one of two ways: to acquire a player in a trade, or to sign a free agent.

If a team acquires a player via trade and they are over the salary cap, they may use their trade exception to absorb that player’s salary without having to give up any additional players or draft picks in return.

A team may also use their trade exception to sign a free agent, even if they are over the salary cap. In this case, the team can exceed the salary cap by the amount of their trade exception.

What are the limitations of an NBA trade exception?

An NBA trade exception expires two years after it is created, unless it is used in a trade. It cannot be combined with player salary in a trade. An NBA trade exception cannot be used to acquire a player via sign-and-trade. An NBA trade exception can only be used to acquire a player that makes up to 125% plus $100,000 of the salary of the player being traded away, or 100% of the salary of the player being traded away, whichever is greater. An NBA trade exception cannot be used on its own to sign a free agent; it can only be used as part of a sign-and-trade deal

What are some examples of recent NBA trade exceptions?

In order for a team to sign a free agent, they must have the salary cap space to do so. However, teams are allowed to exceed the salary cap to re-sign their own free agents, using what is called the “Bird Exception.” Named after Larry Bird, who was famously re-signed by the Boston Celtics despite being way over the salary cap, the Bird Exception allows teams to go over the salary cap to keep their own players.

Another well-known exception is the “Mid-Level Exception.” This exception allows teams that are over the salary cap to sign a free agent for up to four years at a maximum contract of $5 million per year.

The “Bi-Annual Exception” allows teams who are over the salary cap to sign a free agent for up to two years at a maximum contract of $2.1 million per year.

The “Trade Exception” is an exception that allows teams who are over the salary cap to acquire players in trades, without having to give up players of equal or greater value in return. The most recent famous example of this was when the Houston Rockets acquired Chris Paul from the Los Angeles Clippers in return for Patrick Beverley, Lou Williams, Sam Dekker, Montrezl Harrell, Darrun Hilliard, DeAndre Liggins, Kyle Wiltjer and a future first round draft pick.