At that point, they will face heavy restrictions, when trading players. Above, Bobby notes the biggest ones. They can’t aggregate salaries and can’t take back even one cent more in any trade, than they are sending out. That’s what makes Kevin Durant a great example.
He’s super expensive next season… but not quite as expensive as KAT. still, a trade can’t happen because neither team can aggregate contracts, meaning it would have to be an exact match in a one-for-one deal, which is almost 100% impossible.
Here are the teams that are projected by Spotrac.com to be 1st or 2nd apron luxury tax teams next season, essentially acting as a 10-team no-trade list for the Timberwolves. The luxury tax threshold is projected to be $171.3 million.
’24 Proj. Luxury Tax Teams Proj. Salary
Suns $203M
Timberwolves $193M
Celtics $192M
Nuggets $188M
Bucks $183M
Heat $182M
Lakers $179M
Grizzlies $175M
Mavericks $174M
Warriors $174M
— LUXURY TAX LINE — $171.3 MILLION
Clippers $170M
Kings $168M
Blazers $167M
Another trade example that has been floated out there a lot has been Towns for Trey Young. Bobby says no, that Atlanta is an apron team next season too. Spotrac says he is mistaking. As you can see above, they do not have the Hawks listed as a projected apron team, at $163 million in player salary.
An example Marks gives of a team Minnesota could trade with is the Oklahoma City Thunder, mentioned Lou Dort as a hypothetical player they could deal if they were interested in taking on Towns.
There’s a reason why the NBA does this. Every year that you are an apron team, the luxury tax penalties get worse. By the time you are looking at your third or fourth year over the apron, it becomes nearly impossible to justify staying there. Not only are you being fined 10’s of millions of dollars, possibly even over $100 million, but you’re being hit even harder from a roster building standpoint.
In the end, it’s these reasons and more that Bobby Marks believes (as others do) that the Minnesota Timberwolves will be running it back with their core group of guys this next season. Maybe they believe in them, but if nothing else, because they don’t have a lot of other options.
