Front-Office Insider: Guide to March 1

With the trade deadline passed, attention now shifts to March 1, which is the last day a player who is waived is eligible for the playoffs. The Vertical Front-Office Insider Bobby Marks examines the buyout process, how it affects teams and which teams are eligible to claim players.

THE KEY DATE
Players who are waived after March 1 are not eligible for the playoffs. Teams can sign players who are released after this date but are not allowed to use them in the postseason.

Players who are in the NBA Development League or coming back from Europe are eligible for the playoffs if they are signed after March 1.

The rule only applies to players on NBA teams.

THE BUYOUT

Several factors play into why a player looks for buyout. They can range from playing time to looking for a chance to play for a team in the postseason. A player is often bought out when he is playing for a team heading to the lottery.

In the David Lee situation, his agent, Mark Bartelstein, and the Boston Celtics worked out an arrangement in which Lee’s contract would be amended and reduced. Before coming to such arrangement, Bartelstein would need to find a team for Lee to sign with once waived. Enter the Dallas Mavericks.

Besides amending the contract to reduce payment, the team and player can also alter language in regards to a set-off, which can reduce a team's financial responsibility with a new team ready to sign the player.

It is negligent for an agent to work on a buyout for a player without having a destination team to sign with. A player should never leave money on the table without a team waiting on deck to sign him.

That is the main difference between a buyout vs. a straight waiver.

When a player is waived, like Anderson Varejao, the player receives full compensation of what is guaranteed on his contract. The contract is not amended or reduced.

WAIVER CLAIM PROCESS
Players who are bought out of their contracts must go through a 48-hour waiver period. In the case of Steve Novak of Denver, the Nuggets sent notification to the NBA requesting waivers.

The league, at 5 p.m. of the day when notification is received, sent an email to all 30 teams letting each team know Novak had been waived.

The waiver claim order is based on the standings. However, a team must either have cap space or an available exception to claim a player. The only exception is if a minimum player on a one- or two-year contract is waived.

Though teams such as Golden State or Cleveland have available exceptions to claim players, there is a significant financial penalty because both teams are in the luxury tax.

Miami would be affected by claiming a player. The Heat went from paying the tax to being under the threshold after the trade deadline. Claiming a player would take them back into the tax.

With Monday's voided trade, Houston lost its ability to claim a player. The Rockets are not allowed to claim a player based on the hard cap. Houston is only $525,000 below the tax apron.

Teams can also claim a player on the last year of his contract if they have a disabled player exception.

EFFECT ON THE SALARY CAP
If a player is claimed during the 48-hour window, the team that waived him will be off the hook financially as well as for the salary cap.

Last season, Philadelphia claimed Thomas Robinson, whom the Nuggets had waived. The $3.6 million cap hit went on the 76ers’ cap sheet, but Philadelphia was only responsible for paying Robinson what was owed for the remainder of the season.

If a player goes unclaimed then the amount of the buyout will stay on the cap. For example, J.J. Hickson of the Nuggets was not claimed, so Denver is responsible for the amount owed on his buyout and must absorb the cap hit.

Caron Butler’s potential buyout with Sacramento would be handled differently because he has a player option for next season. If Butler were to eliminate his option, the cap hit for the current season would be the salary already paid to him, and the remaining balance of what is owed would hit the Kings' cap in 2016-17.

For a player on the last year of his contract, the team cannot stretch out his payments. The stretch provision is available only during the summer.

NEW CONTRACT
Once the player clears waivers, he is eligible to sign with any team. In the case of Varejao, however, Cleveland would not be eligible to sign him. League rules stipulate that a team cannot re-acquire a player who was traded during the cap year. Varejao would be eligible to sign with Cleveland in July.

A player’s new contract can be structured in different ways. For Novak, for instance, the Bucks signed him for the rest of the season to a minimum contract. The minimum salary is pro-rated based on how many days are left in the season. The Bucks waived Chris Copeland to sign Novak.

The Mavericks signed Lee with the pro-rated room mid-level exception worth $2.1 million. The room mid-level, originally $2.8 million, started to pro-rate in early January.

TEAMS ELIGIBLE TO CLAIM
TE= Trade exception
DPE= Disabled player exception
CS= Cap space

TEAMS WITH PRO-RATED EXCEPTIONS
*Philadelphia
L.A. Lakers
Phoenix
Minnesota
Milwaukee
Sacramento
*Orlando
Detroit
*Utah
*Portland
Charlotte
Chicago
Indiana
Atlanta
Miami
Boston
Oklahoma City
Golden State
*Teams would have to use cap space first before exception is available

TEAMS WITH OPEN ROSTER SPOTS
Philadelphia
*Phoenix
Brooklyn
Denver
*New York
*Detroit
*Charlotte
Atlanta
Miami
Boston
*L.A. Clippers
Cleveland
Oklahoma City
Orlando
*Teams have a player on a 10-day contract.

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