Logo of the NBA. /CFP
The NBA on Friday told teams that the salary cap and luxury tax line may grow higher than expected for the 2023-24 season.
Teams will operate under a salary cap of $123.655 million and a tax level of $150.267 million in the 2022-23 season. In the next campaign the two numbers will grow by 8.4 and 7.8 percent respectively, reaching $134 million for the salary cap and $162 million for the luxury tax line.
Usually when the salary cap grows like this, many teams will try to clear as much space as possible so they can sign star free agents during the offseason to assemble a competitive squad. At the moment, the following players will either become unrestricted free agents or be able to opt out their contract in summer 2023:
Kyrie Irving of the Brooklyn Nets looks on in Game 4 of the NBA Eastern Conference first-round playoffs against the Boston Celtics at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, April 25, 2022. /CFP
Christian Wood of the Dallas Mavericks, Andrew Wiggins of the Golden State Warriors, Russell Westbrook of the Los Angeles Lakers, John Wall of the Los Angeles Clippers, Kemba Walker of the Detroit Pistons, Nikola Vucevic of the Chicago Bulls, Myles Turner of the Indiana Pacers, Gary Trent Jr. of the Toronto Raptors, D'Angelo Russell of the Minnesota Timberwolves, Kristaps Porzingis of the Washington Wizards, Khris Middleton of the Milwaukee Bucks, Kyrie Irving of the Brooklyn Nets, James Harden of the Philadelphia 76ers, Jerami Grant of the Portland Trail Blazers, and Bojan Bogdanovic of the Utah Jazz.
These are all good players but most of them are not cornerstone material for championship contenders. Meanwhile, there is another significant reason both teams and players will be thinking again before inking long-term big contracts in summer 2023. The new TV deal that the NBA has signed will go into effect in summer 2025 and it's a nine-year, $75 billion deal.
Back in summer 2016 when the current TV deal kicked in, the NBA saw the salary cap jump dramatically from $70 million to $94.143 million. It led to a series of bad contracts and the birth of the Warriors super team.
Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics dribbles in Game 6 of the NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, June 16, 2022. /CFP
When the salary cap is expected to reach $171 million in summer 2025, the following players may hit the free agency market:
Jimmy Butler of the Miami Heat, LeBron James and Anthony Davis of the Los Angeles Lakers, Paul George and Kawhi Leonard of the Los Angeles Clippers, Rudy Gobert of the Minnesota Timberwolves, Ben Simmons of the Brooklyn Nets, Jrue Holiday of the Milwaukee Bucks, Donovan Mitchell of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Jason Tatum of the Boston Celtics, Brandon Ingram of the New Orleans Pelicans, Jamal Murray of the Denver Nuggets, Chris Paul of the Phoenix Suns and Jalen Brunson of the New York Knicks.
Compared with the list for summer 2023, this is a talent pool in which any team should seek a franchise player to build their squad around.