Latest news with #Gozlan
USA Today
2 days ago
- Business
- USA Today
Why the Boston Celtics may try to get under the tax this season
It was perhaps the biggest open secret in the NBA that the Boston Celtics were looking to get under the collective bargaining agreement (CBA)'s second apron at the start of the 2025 offseason, with the storied ball club staring down what would have been historic payroll and tax bills of over a half-billion dollars. With star Boston forward Jayson Tatum likely out for all of the 2025-26 regular season with a torn Achilles tendon, there was little to justify such an expense, particularly given the St. Louis native's injury came in a loss to the New York Knicks in the 2025 NBA Eastern Conference Semifinals second round. Now, after having dealt away Jrue Holiday for Anfernee Simons and Kristaps Porzingis for Georges Niang (and Niang for a returning netting no impact on the cap in two way wing RJ Luis Jr.), letting Luke Kornet and Al Horford (presumably) walk in free agency, and cutting 2025 G League Most Valuable Player JD Davison, the Celtics are well under the second apron. From the sounds of recent reports, Boston is still looking to move on from Simons as well, which resonates with the analysis of Third Apron cap expert Yossi Gozlan. "While the Celtics have reduced their tax penalty to a reasonable amount, they're likely not done. They are just $4 million above the first apron," writes Gozlan. "Getting below it would free them of several roster-building restrictions." "For example, they'd be able to take in more salaries than they're sending out in a trade and open up to $14.1 million non-tax mid-level exception," he adds. "More importantly, the Celtics are $12.1 million above the $187.9 million luxury tax line, which is impressive considering they started the season over $40 million above that threshold. They appear set on avoiding the luxury tax altogether." "Their savings are likely the result, rather than a way to open up more spending," notes Gozlan, who points to Boston being a repeater tax club, or "teams that are taxpayers in three of the last four seasons." With the CBA set to be particularly punitive to such teams, getting under the tax this season and next seems wise. While the Tatum injury gives cover to what would be likely be an unpopular path, it seems unlikely teams will welcome not just the high tax bills such status invites, but also the team building barriers making building contending rosters especially onerous. Listen to "Havlicek Stole the Pod" on: Spotify: iTunes: YouTube:
USA Today
3 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
How Nets can increase cap space if Cam Thomas accepts his QO
The Brooklyn Nets and guard Cam Thomas have not exactly been in a rush to continue their partnership after Thomas became a restricted free-agent this summer. For a variety of reasons, Thomas remains unsigned and it seems like he will have a tough decision to make soon enough. Brooklyn could potentially benefit if Thomas decides to accept his $5.99 million qualifying offer (QO). "Thomas and the Nets are reportedly very far apart in negotiations. This has led to speculation that he may accept his qualifying offer," NBA cap expert Yossi Gozlan wrote of Thomas and the Nets, via his Third Apron Substack. Gozlan was referring to the notion that Thomas could accept his QO this season in order to be an unrestricted free-agent next offseason, allowing him to sign with whatever team he chooses. "If he accepts it, and the Nets re-sign (center Day'Ron) Sharpe and (forward Ziaire) Williams with cap space, they would have roughly $22 million in remaining space," Gozlan continued. "This would mean the Nets need to increase their payroll to get within the $15.46 million maximum before the season begins. They would probably need to increase it by roughly $11-12 million when factoring in cutting some of their non-guaranteed players to get within the 15-player roster maximum." As of this writing, the Nets have $19.9 million left in cap space and that is factoring 18 players on the roster while excluding players like forward Ricky Council IV and forward Fanbo Zeng. More to the point, Brooklyn's cap space also includes the $12.1 million cap hold on Thomas so if he were to sign his QO, that should open up close to $6 million in space. As Gozlan noted, the amount of cap space the Nets would have could change depending on how they re-sign Sharpe and Williams which they have until September 15 to make a decision on. Either way, Thomas has a tough decision to make given how his offseason negotiations with Brooklyn have progressed, but if he were to sign his qualifying offer, the Nets could benefit from it by being careful with their cap sheet.
USA Today
28-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
What are the Boston Celtics' options for addressing their cap crunch?
What are the Boston Celtics' options for addressing their cap crunch? What are the Boston Celtics' options for addressing their cap crunch ahead of a season that will see star forward Jayson Tatum out injured for much if not all of the campaign? The Third Apron cap guru Yossi Gozlan recently broke down the range of options available to the Celtics in a recent episode of his Substack newsletter, focusing not only on the labyrinthine financial concerns Boston's front office will need to consider moving forward, but also the fact that the team is looking to contend as long as they have Tatum on the roster (save, of course, for next season). Fans of the team might not want to hear it, but there is at least a case to be made for a full teardown of the roster -- including Taco Jay -- given the harsh realities of the new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) and the repeater tax penalties and second apron team building restrictions. But as Gozlan notes, it is not the only path, nor may it be the more likely path for the Celtics to take as they look to add to their league-leading title collection. So is Tatum safe for now? For one thing, Tatum is injured, which makes his trade value understandably depressed, and perhaps below what any acceptable return could net given what he might be able to put on the court once healthy. It would also be an ask on the other side of the deal, given most other teams who would be in the market for a player like Tatum would need to have a situation where a gap year would not be an obstacle for their goals as well. "Tatum is unlikely to be traded even if another team trades a haul of veterans, established young players, and draft picks while he's injured," suggested The Third Apron analyst, and we concur. What about Jaylen Brown? Trading away Brown and getting a return for the Georgia native at least close to what he can provide -- even considering his knee injury -- would be a hard needle to thread, but not impossible if a team were willing to overpay in more than one sense given the size of Brown's 35% max deal. While the Cal alum might be earning close to what he would get on a truly open market, the league's financial rules make having a player like him on your roster a challenge to balance with having enough depth -- as Boston knows well at the moment. "If the Celtics wanted to capitalize on him, now would be a good time to get value from a team linked to Giannis Antetokounmpo but strikes out on him," writes Gozlan. " ... They'll certainly listen to offers for him, but they seem likely to keep him." And Derrick White? Similar to Brown, replacing his value for what would come back would be a hard move to pull off, but also not out of the question, and with a cheaper deal, a bit less far-fetched if also unlikely. "They'll need him, especially if they trade Jrue Holiday, like many around the league anticipate," suggests Gozlan. So who does that leave who might be on the move besides Holiday? Check out the rest of this latest edition of The Third Apron to find out.
