Westbrook trade talks complicated
As the Heat and Oklahoma City continue discussions on a Russell Westbrook trade, one issue that both sides need to navigate is competing financial interests.
The Thunder ideally would like to take back salaries less than the $38.2 million that Westbrook will earn this coming season because OKC doesn’t want to increase its luxury tax payments. That’s a big deal for OKC, which is $2.25 million above the $132.6 million tax threshold and is subject to the punitive repeater tax if it stays over that threshold.
But because the Heat is hard capped at $138.9 million after the Jimmy Butler trade and won’t have space to sign any more players after signing Tyler Herro on Wednesday, Miami cannot send out less money than it absorbs in a Westbrook trade. And the Heat needs to send out players earning at least a couple million dollars more than Westbrook’s $38.2 million if it’s a 3-for-1 trade.
Here’s why: Because the Heat likely will need to send OKC three players for Westbrook, Miami would be left with 12 players under contract if it’s a 3-for-1, instead of the 14 that will be under contract with Herro.
Teams must have at least 13 players under contract by the first game of the regular season, meaning Miami would somehow need to find a way to trim additional salary to add a very cheap 13th player by mid-October. It would be within league rules, for the Heat to have fewer than 13 players under contract before then. But it would violate NBA rules for the Heat to be over the $138.9 million hard cap at any point in the next year.
That’s why it would help if a third team would be involved in the trade, to absorb some Heat salaries without increasing OKC’s luxury tax payment. But it’s not essential.
As one hypothetical, if the Heat sent Goran Dragic, Meyers Leonard and Justise Winslow to the Thunder, their salaries would equal $43.5 million, giving the Heat some flexibility under the hard cap, even if OKC added a minimum player to the deal to accompany Westbrook to Miami. But that would increase OKC’s tax bill significantly.
Most teams carry 14 or 15 players. Although individual teams must carry a minimum of 13 (12 active plus one inactive) players, the NBA guarantees a league-wide average of at least 14 players per team.
HEAT SIGNS HERRO
Herro, who has thoroughly impressed the Heat in summer league, signed on Wednesday, meaning he’ll be under team control for five seasons.
Herro signed a four-year deal worth as much as
$17.2 million. If he signed up to 120 percent of what he was eligible to make, Herro would stand to make $3.64 million this season, $3.82 million in 2020-21, $4 million in 2021-22 and $5.7 million in 2022-23.
The third and fourth seasons are team options in rookie deals. By making Herro a qualifying offer, the Heat would keep him under control for a fifth season, with Herro eligible for restricted free agency after four seasons.
SUMMER LEAGUE
The Heat lost a summer league game for the first time after six wins, falling 90-87 to Minnesota. But Miami still has a good chance to advance to the Las Vegas tournament’s Round of Eight beginning Saturday, with that to be determined after games not involving the Heat on Thursday.
Heat guard Kendrick Nunn continued his exceptional summer league work, hitting his first seven shots and closing with 28 points, six rebounds and five assists. Herro added 15 points.