The Amnesty Rule

[ManUp]

This rule is absolutely useless to the Celtics. Maybe if Pierce wants to retire earlier, but doesn't want to leave cash on the table or Rondo suffers some kind of career wrecking injury, God forbid. Otherwise we gain nothing from it outside of free-agents that other teams were dying to get rid of. Oh yeah and it adds more competition in the 2012 free agency free for all.

[BASS_THUMPER]

getting rid of players that make the dollas but dont produce?


that would really bring a players game down...rare to see a playa get cut from a team and shine else where...

only one that comes to mind for me is a walker...when he went to alanta..he balled..other than that i dont know..

well as i think..t allen..

[rocknrollforyoursoul]

LA Lakers = Luke Walton

No. No, no, no. Even if the C's were in desperate need of a small forward and Luke Walton was literally the only one available, on the whole planet, I would not take him. When it comes to that group of players who shouldn't have been in the league more than a couple years yet somehow, amazingly, managed to stick around, this guy is at the top of the list. Living near L.A. and working (until recently) in a newspaper sports department, I've seen nearly every Lakers game over the past four seasons, including nearly every Luke Walton appearance, and this guy is just death to a team (when he's not injured, that is).

[StartOrien]

Link

Either way, the Wizards should be in very good financial position, no matter what the two sides decide with the next salary cap. If the players agree to a 50-50 split of revenues, the salary cap would likely be close to $51 million, with a luxury tax level set for about $62 million. So keeping Lewis for another year wouldn’t hurt the team financially and waiving him could actually create more problems: if the Wizards’ payroll drops below $30 million, the team would be forced to pay other players — possibly for more years — in order to meet a potential minimum salary.

Wizards owner Ted Leonsis is going to have to pay Lewis at least $32 million no matter what. So, would he rather pay Lewis to play for him or simply pay him to leave to join the contending team of his choice? Lewis was plagued by injuries last season and won’t ever return to his all-star form of three seasons ago. But he is healthy again, still has some game left, and could provide a veteran presence for a team that otherwise has Andray Blatche – or Young, if he comes back – as the oldest player on the roster.

And, if you haven’t noticed, this is not necessarily the best summer to have a lot of salary cap space, with a less-than stellar free agent class featuring unrestricted free agents Tyson Chandler, Nene, David West, Caron Butler, Tayshaun Prince and Jamal Crawford and restricted free agents Marc Gasol, Jeff Green, Thaddeus Young and Rodney Stuckey. No need for the Wizards to overpay for somebody who isn’t going to put them over the hump and possibly place the franchise in the same troubles that forced other owners to push for this current lockout

The writer makes a good point - the Wizards have almost nothing to gain by waiving Rashard Lewis this season. Well so long as the rule stays as expected and allows the owners to use the amnesty at any point during this CBA.

There is absolutely nothing there in free agency that is worth a major splash for them. They'll just ending up spending money on mediocre talent who'll give comparable or worse production than Rashard Lewis and raise the Wizards' short term (and possibly long term) payroll.

Nearly all the major free agent wings are older players (Prince, Caron, Battier, J-Rich). Jamal Crawford, Delonte West and JJ Barea are the best guards. They are not going to invest in a center until they wait out another year or two on JaVale McGee and find out what he has to offer. There isn't much more there at the four either. Kenyon Martin and Kirilenko are too old.

Carl Landry. Wilson Chandler. That is the Wizards best use of their new-found cap space if they waived Rashard Lewis and they would have to spend some serious money because they'd be well below the minimum cap threshold (about $35mil versus $43.5mil). And both of those guys would want long term deals.

It's a lousy free agent class and particularly poor for Washington. I think the writer is on the right track. Better to keep Rashard Lewis for one more season and use the amnesty on him then.

I would think that this actually applies to most teams. Wouldn't it be much smarter for the Cavs to have a season of Baron AND THEN use the amnesty clause?

If you've got to pay the contract, with a market this poor, aren't you just better off taking a year of service.

[Who]

Link

Either way, the Wizards should be in very good financial position, no matter what the two sides decide with the next salary cap. If the players agree to a 50-50 split of revenues, the salary cap would likely be close to $51 million, with a luxury tax level set for about $62 million. So keeping Lewis for another year wouldn’t hurt the team financially and waiving him could actually create more problems: if the Wizards’ payroll drops below $30 million, the team would be forced to pay other players — possibly for more years — in order to meet a potential minimum salary.

Wizards owner Ted Leonsis is going to have to pay Lewis at least $32 million no matter what. So, would he rather pay Lewis to play for him or simply pay him to leave to join the contending team of his choice? Lewis was plagued by injuries last season and won’t ever return to his all-star form of three seasons ago. But he is healthy again, still has some game left, and could provide a veteran presence for a team that otherwise has Andray Blatche – or Young, if he comes back – as the oldest player on the roster.

And, if you haven’t noticed, this is not necessarily the best summer to have a lot of salary cap space, with a less-than stellar free agent class featuring unrestricted free agents Tyson Chandler, Nene, David West, Caron Butler, Tayshaun Prince and Jamal Crawford and restricted free agents Marc Gasol, Jeff Green, Thaddeus Young and Rodney Stuckey. No need for the Wizards to overpay for somebody who isn’t going to put them over the hump and possibly place the franchise in the same troubles that forced other owners to push for this current lockout

The writer makes a good point - the Wizards have almost nothing to gain by waiving Rashard Lewis this season. Well so long as the rule stays as expected and allows the owners to use the amnesty at any point during this CBA.

There is absolutely nothing there in free agency that is worth a major splash for them. They'll just ending up spending money on mediocre talent who'll give comparable or worse production than Rashard Lewis and raise the Wizards' short term (and possibly long term) payroll.

Nearly all the major free agent wings are older players (Prince, Caron, Battier, J-Rich). Jamal Crawford, Delonte West and JJ Barea are the best guards. They are not going to invest in a center until they wait out another year or two on JaVale McGee and find out what he has to offer. There isn't much more there at the four either. Kenyon Martin and Kirilenko are too old.

Carl Landry. Wilson Chandler. That is the Wizards best use of their new-found cap space if they waived Rashard Lewis and they would have to spend some serious money because they'd be well below the minimum cap threshold (about $35mil versus $43.5mil). And both of those guys would want long term deals.

It's a lousy free agent class and particularly poor for Washington. I think the writer is on the right track. Better to keep Rashard Lewis for one more season and use the amnesty on him then.

I would think that this actually applies to most teams. Wouldn't it be much smarter for the Cavs to have a season of Baron AND THEN use the amnesty clause?

If you've got to pay the contract, with a market this poor, aren't you just better off taking a year of service.

Yeah, I agree.

The only position that has good quality and young(ish) talent available is the center position. Marc Gasol, Nene, Tyson Chandler, a high risk Greg Oden and an up and comer in DeAndre Jordan. Oh and one power forward in David West.

Pretty much everyone else is an MLE talent and/or older veteran.

Unless you are looking for a center, there isn't enough value out there in free agency to use their amnesty on a productive player this summer ... in an effort to create additional cap space.

Wouldn't it be much smarter for the Cavs to have a season of Baron AND THEN use the amnesty clause?

In terms of Baron Davis, I think it could go either way due to Kyrie Irving.

Whether they want to keep Baron around as a mentor or clear the way for Irving to take over the team right away. Especially since they have a quality backup PG in Ramon Sessions and a high quality third stringer in Daniel Gibson there too.

I think the Cavs best lineups will likely be with Baron Davis and Kyrie Irving sharing the backcourt ... given how pathetic their wing situation is.

If I was Cleveland, I'd keep Baron around for another year.

[Chris]

Link

Either way, the Wizards should be in very good financial position, no matter what the two sides decide with the next salary cap. If the players agree to a 50-50 split of revenues, the salary cap would likely be close to $51 million, with a luxury tax level set for about $62 million. So keeping Lewis for another year wouldn’t hurt the team financially and waiving him could actually create more problems: if the Wizards’ payroll drops below $30 million, the team would be forced to pay other players — possibly for more years — in order to meet a potential minimum salary.

Wizards owner Ted Leonsis is going to have to pay Lewis at least $32 million no matter what. So, would he rather pay Lewis to play for him or simply pay him to leave to join the contending team of his choice? Lewis was plagued by injuries last season and won’t ever return to his all-star form of three seasons ago. But he is healthy again, still has some game left, and could provide a veteran presence for a team that otherwise has Andray Blatche – or Young, if he comes back – as the oldest player on the roster.

And, if you haven’t noticed, this is not necessarily the best summer to have a lot of salary cap space, with a less-than stellar free agent class featuring unrestricted free agents Tyson Chandler, Nene, David West, Caron Butler, Tayshaun Prince and Jamal Crawford and restricted free agents Marc Gasol, Jeff Green, Thaddeus Young and Rodney Stuckey. No need for the Wizards to overpay for somebody who isn’t going to put them over the hump and possibly place the franchise in the same troubles that forced other owners to push for this current lockout

The writer makes a good point - the Wizards have almost nothing to gain by waiving Rashard Lewis this season. Well so long as the rule stays as expected and allows the owners to use the amnesty at any point during this CBA.

There is absolutely nothing there in free agency that is worth a major splash for them. They'll just ending up spending money on mediocre talent who'll give comparable or worse production than Rashard Lewis and raise the Wizards' short term (and possibly long term) payroll.

Nearly all the major free agent wings are older players (Prince, Caron, Battier, J-Rich). Jamal Crawford, Delonte West and JJ Barea are the best guards. They are not going to invest in a center until they wait out another year or two on JaVale McGee and find out what he has to offer. There isn't much more there at the four either. Kenyon Martin and Kirilenko are too old.

Carl Landry. Wilson Chandler. That is the Wizards best use of their new-found cap space if they waived Rashard Lewis and they would have to spend some serious money because they'd be well below the minimum cap threshold (about $35mil versus $43.5mil). And both of those guys would want long term deals.

It's a lousy free agent class and particularly poor for Washington. I think the writer is on the right track. Better to keep Rashard Lewis for one more season and use the amnesty on him then.

I would think that this actually applies to most teams. Wouldn't it be much smarter for the Cavs to have a season of Baron AND THEN use the amnesty clause?

If you've got to pay the contract, with a market this poor, aren't you just better off taking a year of service.

Yeah, I agree.

The only position that has good quality and young(ish) talent available is the center position. Marc Gasol, Nene, Tyson Chandler, a high risk Greg Oden and an up and comer in DeAndre Jordan. Oh and one power forward in David West.

Pretty much everyone else is an MLE talent and/or older veteran.

Unless you are looking for a center, there isn't enough value out there in free agency to use their amnesty on a productive player this summer ... in an effort to create additional cap space.

Wouldn't it be much smarter for the Cavs to have a season of Baron AND THEN use the amnesty clause?

In terms of Baron Davis, I think it could go either way due to Kyrie Irving.

Whether they want to keep Baron around as a mentor or clear the way for Irving to take over the team right away. Especially since they have a quality backup PG in Ramon Sessions and a high quality third stringer in Daniel Gibson there too.

I think the Cavs best lineups will likely be with Baron Davis and Kyrie Irving sharing the backcourt ... given how pathetic their wing situation is.

If I was Cleveland, I'd keep Baron around for another year.

While I agree to a point, the decision with Baron would come down to 1 thing.  Does he want to be there.  If he is motivated to be a good teammate, and take Irving under his wing, then sure, give him another year.  But, if he is going to show up out of shape, and not be a good example, then they are better off just letting him go.

[StartOrien]

While I agree to a point, the decision with Baron would come down to 1 thing.  Does he want to be there.  If he is motivated to be a good teammate, and take Irving under his wing, then sure, give him another year.  But, if he is going to show up out of shape, and not be a good example, then they are better off just letting him go.

That's a good point, and w/ the amnesty clause he may have the motivation he needs to stay... unmotivated.

[Kane3387]

While I agree to a point, the decision with Baron would come down to 1 thing.  Does he want to be there.  If he is motivated to be a good teammate, and take Irving under his wing, then sure, give him another year.  But, if he is going to show up out of shape, and not be a good example, then they are better off just letting him go.

That's a good point, and w/ the amnesty clause he may have the motivation he needs to stay... unmotivated.

LOL nice

[Chris]

While I agree to a point, the decision with Baron would come down to 1 thing.  Does he want to be there.  If he is motivated to be a good teammate, and take Irving under his wing, then sure, give him another year.  But, if he is going to show up out of shape, and not be a good example, then they are better off just letting him go.

That's a good point, and w/ the amnesty clause he may have the motivation he needs to stay... unmotivated.

Well, you never know though.  Maybe he would embrace the chance to take the kid under his wing, while also trying to prove that he deserves another big contract.

[StartOrien]

While I agree to a point, the decision with Baron would come down to 1 thing.  Does he want to be there.  If he is motivated to be a good teammate, and take Irving under his wing, then sure, give him another year.  But, if he is going to show up out of shape, and not be a good example, then they are better off just letting him go.

That's a good point, and w/ the amnesty clause he may have the motivation he needs to stay... unmotivated.

Well, you never know though.  Maybe he would embrace the chance to take the kid under his wing, while also trying to prove that he deserves another big contract.

Oh definitely. I think chances are he'll play hard. But if I'm a Cav fan I'm definitely worried that he does sort of have incentive to not play hard.

[Kane3387]

I mentioned this in another post, but there will be payers that are amnestied. Some of them will be able to contribute and be solid rotation players likely to accept a vet. min. deal because they are already getting paid.

This is another way DA can fill out the roster since the Celtics will be limited in bringing in guys who didn't play for the team last year. All we need is one of these guys to be a productive player for us and it could go along way in resting guys out for games, shortening minutes, and having a fresher team for the playoffs.

[Kane3387]

Adrian Wojnarowski: Amnesty clause is in deal, just matter of form it takes. Last proposal allowed teams to use it on a current contract at anytime during CBA. Twitter

[CoachBo]

I think people are going to be surprised at some of the people who get hit with the amnesty deal.

[LooseCannon]

I think people are going to be surprised at some of the people who get hit with the amnesty deal.

I'm expecting at least 75% of them play less than 100 games after getting amnestied. If the Celtics end up signing a player waived under the amnesty clause, it will probably be gambling on a veteran who is a bigger injury risk than Jermaine O'Neal.

[CoachBo]

To a large extent, but some bad signings of younger players are going to be amnestied, as well.