Question on the MLE

[Chre]

My apologies if this should have been posted in a different forum, but nonetheless, here's my question.

Regarding the MLE, I understand that a team is only allowed to use it if the team is over the salary cap. And if they are over the luxury tax threshold, the team is responsible for a dollar to dollar tax on every player they sign.

What I am curious is if it matters when the team goes over the cap. Do you have to be over the cap when the off season begins? Or could you still use it if you were under the cap to begin the off season, and then after signing some players, you end up over the cap.

For example, let's say Team A begins the off season $12 million under the cap. They sign 2 players each for $6 million, totaling the $12 mil they had in cap space. It is my understanding that you can sign as many players as you need at the veteran minimum to fill out your roster. So let's say they sign two more players at the veteran minimum, that would in theory put them $1.5 mil over the cap would it not?

Now, could they now use the MLE?

I've tried looking this up on other sites, like Larry Coon's for example. And if this detail is explained there, I missed it.

A TP to anyone that can either answer that question for me, or link me to exactly where this is explained. Thanks.

[Chris]

Basically, teams have the choice of either using cap space, or the MLE in any given season (starting in July).  So if a team is under the cap going into the summer, or get under the cap during the summer, in order to use that cap space, they would have to essentially waive the rights to use the MLE in order to use that cap space.

The only scenario I can think of where a team could use both the MLE and cap space in the same season/offseason is if they are over the cap at the beginning of the free agent period, and use the MLE immediately.  Then later in the year, trade a high salary player to a team under the cap, getting them under the cap.  Then they could use the cap space.  But it can't be the other way around.

[Chre]

Perfect, thanks. TP hath been giveth.