As I understand it, Lin & Asik's contracts have a 5-5-15 salary structure. A huge chunk of salary is essentially withheld until the final year. However, for salary cap purposes the contracts' impact will be 8.3/8.3/8.3. But what would happen if these guys are traded this summer? Will the receiving team be responsible for $20M of each $25M contract? How would these contracts impact their new teams' salary cap? If the new teams take a 8.3/8.3 hit, then those numbers wouldn't match the $20M in actual money they paid. If the new teams take a 5/15 cap hit, then those numbers wouldn't balance with their trading partner's cap relief (Rockets' 8.3/8.3). Anyone know for sure how all this works?
Cap hit is the same, 8.3 each year, even if traded. The actual payments are 5/5/15. If they are traded to a new team the new team would owe them $15 million the final year, but it would only count 8.3 against the cap.
It's been answered a few times on the board, but the cap hit is $8.3M each year for whoever has Lin's contract. In actual salary due, any team that trades for him will pay $5M and $15M the next two years.
Thanks for the quick answer guys. I figured this has been discussed already in one of the many, many Lin threads. I just didn't want to wade through hundreds of angry rhetoric that are inherent in most Lin threads. If the Rockets ever intend to trade one these guys, I guess the best time would be this summer. The Rockets can include $3M cash in the trade. In effect, the receiving team will be responsible for only $17M of the remaining contract. That would at least closely match the actual 8.3/8.3 cap hit they'll take. But if the Rockets wait until next summer to do a trade, the $3M cash isn't nearly enough to remove the poison pill.
I actually thought that backloaded part was only pertaining to the party who currently had a player under contract, so Knicks / Bulls were the only ones who had to pay 5/5/15. How in the world are we going to have cap space next year if both of these guys cost 30 million together??
It would have been worst for the Knicks/Bulls due to the luxury tax penalties. They only had the right to match, but not offer above the 5. The 15 million in the 3rd year would have counted towards the overall team salary cap. There was a loophole that the Rockets took advantage of due to being under the cap.
Because people can't seem to understand that the Cap salary is not the same as Salary that the players are actually paid.
