How good would the C's front court be if they got Milsap/Jefferson and Dieng?

[mmmmm]

We are over the LT apron.  We can't add salary except via exception (and even then only via minimum contract or the lesser MLE).  A trade is not an exception. 

Why can't the Celtics add salary?

Is this one of the changes in the new CBA? That they can't add salary to their payroll in a trade once they are over the luxury tax?

Just as using the full MLE locks you in at the apron so does participating in a sign and trade to acquire a player.

In traditional trade scenario's I believe tax teams just have to have tigher salary matches than non-taxpaying teams.

That was for this past season though, right?

I thought it resets in the summer and Ainge can go over the apron once again if he wishes to do so. Or have I got that wrong?

Yes you're right.

•Starting in 2013-14, teams cannot receive a player in a sign-and-trade transaction (see question number 89) if their team salary is above the apron at the conclusion of the trade.

So it sounds like the sign and trade can't have us go above the apron, but subsequent moves can push us above after the sign and trade is done. I can't find any language in the Coon FAQ that says the apron is a hard cap after a sign and trade like it is after the full MLE is used.

If you do participate in a sign and trade you lose access to the taxpayer's MLE though.

Starting in 2013-14, it cannot be used if the team has received a player that season in a sign-and-trade transaction (see question number 89).

Okay, I think I got it now. Thank you very much for your help. It is hard to keep track - and remember - all of these new CBA changes. 

So the Celtics can complete a sign and trade if they are not above the apron at the conclusion of the trade. Boston has something like $73 million on the books heading into next season not including the China guys. Add the first round pick at $1.75 million or so and Boston is over the apron if the cap stays steady and the apron remains at $74 million.

So realistically the Celtics would need to do a salary dump to free up enough cap space to make a sign and trade happen. Something like Courtney Lee to the Minnesota T'Wolves for a trade exception. Then they could take on a few million in a sign and trade. So add the removal of Courtney Lee to the cost of any sign and trade package.

Yeah, that's why i put the caveat, "unless we do some _other_ major transaction first." in my original comment.

As detailed in the comments here:

http://www.celticsblog.com/2013/6/4/4394314/projected-nba-salary-cap-and-tax-threshold-established

we are probably sitting a few million over the luxury tax apron ($75.6M) for 2013-14, when you add it all up.

A key statement from Coon's FAQ, Q#23, when he discusses additional restrictions on teams that are above the luxury tax apron:

"Taxpaying teams can acquire less salary in a simultaneous trade"

I.E. - you can't bring back more salary than you send out if you end up above the apron after the trade.

To get us _below_ the apron, we have to bring back a smaller salary than we send out, keeping in mind that, even if we send multiple players out (per the suggested deals above) we STILL have to fill roster and there will be cap holds for the empty slots.

Basically, the proposed deal to get Millsap for multiple players just doesn't work unless we get some other sort of salary relief first (or Millsap decides to take a pay cut to play for us).

[bfrombleacher]

I think the trade can happen, but we would need to add a 1st rounder to the deal.

How good we are depends on who we get. Milsap I think fits better. Jefferson is a great post player, but he would bog down our offense and significantly hurt our defense. As for Dieng, I'm not sure he's worth using our pick on. I would do Bradley, Bass, china 3 and a pick for Milsap though. Bradley's "talent' is waaaaaayyyyyy overated on these boards.

Depends where you look. People always pick and choose when they say this kind of stuff.

Basically, the proposed deal to get Millsap for multiple players just doesn't work unless we get some other sort of salary relief first (or Millsap decides to take a pay cut to play for us).

TP for the knowledge.

Big Al seems to like the C's. It's possible he'd take a pay cut.