Cavs future?

[cordobes]

It's close if they want to keep Gibson. Why on earth will they keep Gibson if that means they won't be bringing a Superstar FA is never explained. Unless people are assuming they can't simply dump Gibson's deal (worst case scenario, pairing it with a draft pick and some cash - but I don't think they'll need to do that).

[winsomme]

Whether you want to believe it or not Danny Ferry is specifically planing to have enough cap space to sign another max contract player after next year.  Debate in here all you want, but that is a fact.  Any move he makes will not jeopardize the plan for 2010.

he wouldn't have traded for Mo Williams if that was his intent.

Mo Williams is only making 10 million, you can still sign two max players with his contract on the books.

No they can't.  Lebron and whomever will have 17-18 million as the first year salary (30% of the cap).  That is 35 million or so from just those two players.  You add Williams (9.3 mill), Hickson (1.5 mill), and right now West, Jackson, and Boobie (9.5 mill combined) and they are right around the cap, of course that doesn't account for the fact that they don't have enough players so they have to add salary to account for the missing players from the roster.  In addition, that is assuming they renounce the rights of Big Z, Pavlovic (likely), Wallace (likely), and whomever they would sign this year assuming it is just a 1 year deal (Varejao for example).  Rescinding those rights essentially means all those guys are gone.  

When the Cavs traded for Mo Williams they gave up on the idea of signing Lebron and another max player as free agents.  That isn't to say they couldn't still get another very good player, he just won't be a max guy.  Perhaps Joe Johnson, Michael Redd, etc. would go there at a small discount to play with Lebron (Redd being older and an Ohio guy is very likely, assuming of course he opts out, which he may not given the size of his option).

It will be close, but I think they'll be able to do it.

Let's say Lebron signs for $18.5 million (his starting salary should be somewhere in that range; that may be a little on the high side.)

Let's also presume the salary cap stays relatively level the next two seasons, around $57 million.

Right now, counting Lebron, the Cavs would have exactly three guaranteed contracts on the roster:  Lebron ($18.5 million), Williams ($9.3 million), and Boobie ($4.02 million).  That's a total of $31.82 million.  Let's assume they invite Hickson back for $1.53 million.  That brings their payroll up to $33.35.

Delonte's deal is non-guaranteed, as is Darnell Jackson's.  It's unlikely Jackson will be back; who knows about Delonte.  Let's look at both scenarios.

If Delonte comes back, their payroll goes up to $37.85.  Additionally, they'd have a cap hold to fill out the other eight roster spots.  That cap hold is $473,604 for each player, or $3.79 million.  That brings total team salary up to $41.64 million.  Under a $58 million cap scenario, that would leave the team with roughly $16.36 million and since I've been rounding up, they may have a little more space than that). That's just below a max contract amount for players with 7+ years in the NBA..  The team should, however, be able to offer a max deal to somebody with 6 or fewer seasons.

If Delonte *doesn't* come back, we have no idea how much of his contract is guaranteed.  Let's assume that roughly 1/3 of it is (as with Pavlovic this season).  That means they'd subtract $3 million from their payroll, but would have to add an additional cap hold.  Their salary would be $39.11; under a $58 million cap, they'd have enough to offer a max deal ($18.89 million in space.)

Of course, the margin of error is small.  The above scenario means no free agents signings, no draft picks, etc., extending into 2010-11, and it also means renouncing any of their own free agents.

including Varejao....which would be a big hit to their team next season.

[cordobes]

Let's say Lebron signs for $18.5 million (his starting salary should be somewhere in that range; that may be a little on the high side.)

Let's also presume the salary cap stays relatively level the next two seasons, around $57 million.

How can they offer him a salary bigger than 30% of the cap?

If Delonte *doesn't* come back, we have no idea how much of his contract is guaranteed.  Let's assume that roughly 1/3 of it is (as with Pavlovic this season).

No need to assume that. It's only $500k guaranteed. But they can easily transform that into 0 (just like they can with Gibson).

[winsomme]

Let's say Lebron signs for $18.5 million (his starting salary should be somewhere in that range; that may be a little on the high side.)

Let's also presume the salary cap stays relatively level the next two seasons, around $57 million.

How can they offer him a salary bigger than 30% of the cap?

If Delonte *doesn't* come back, we have no idea how much of his contract is guaranteed.  Let's assume that roughly 1/3 of it is (as with Pavlovic this season).

No need to assume that. It's only $500k guaranteed. But they can easily transform that into 0 (just like they can with Gibson).

not "0" because there is a cap hold for every roster spot

[cordobes]

Let's say Lebron signs for $18.5 million (his starting salary should be somewhere in that range; that may be a little on the high side.)

Let's also presume the salary cap stays relatively level the next two seasons, around $57 million.

How can they offer him a salary bigger than 30% of the cap?

If Delonte *doesn't* come back, we have no idea how much of his contract is guaranteed.  Let's assume that roughly 1/3 of it is (as with Pavlovic this season).

No need to assume that. It's only $500k guaranteed. But they can easily transform that into 0 (just like they can with Gibson).

not "0" because there is a cap hold for every roster spot

Yeps, it's the minimum salary cap hold.

[Roy Hobbs]

Let's say Lebron signs for $18.5 million (his starting salary should be somewhere in that range; that may be a little on the high side.)

Let's also presume the salary cap stays relatively level the next two seasons, around $57 million.

How can they offer him a salary bigger than 30% of the cap?

You're right, sorry.  I was doing some fuzzy math there, and you're correct.  30% of a $58 million cap = $17.4 m, so that creates roughly $1 million more in cap space.  If revenues go up, though (as Stern has recently predicted), an $18.5 million deal may be possible by 2010.  (The cap would have to be around $62 million)

If Delonte *doesn't* come back, we have no idea how much of his contract is guaranteed.  Let's assume that roughly 1/3 of it is (as with Pavlovic this season).

No need to assume that. It's only $500k guaranteed. But they can easily transform that into 0 (just like they can with Gibson).
[/quote]

Is it?  Then all the better for the Cavs.

They'll still be faced with a pretty decimated team, but they'll have room to sign Lebron + another max player.

[MMacOH]

This where I waver with the Cavs in 2010.  Having 2 max contract players really crushes the rest of your squad.  You have to have excellent and cheap role players for this strategy to work