How the Celtics avoided a bigger luxury tax hit by trading Abdel Nader to the Thunder

The Celtics had planned on waiving Abdel Nader this past weekend but they found another way to cut ties with him on Monday night. The team announced they had dealt the small forward to the Oklahoma City Thunder with cash for Rodney Purvis in a deal primarily motivated by money savings for both sides.

BSJ Analysis

Nader's contract was guaranteed for $450,000 of his $1.4-million salary for this season prior to August 1st, so the Celtics were going to be on the hook for that total if they waived him outright. Instead of taking that loss (and additional luxury tax penalty that came with it), Boston's front office found a team willing to take on Nader in the Thunder.

The move benefits both teams for a couple of reasons.

Let's start with the impact from Boston's standpoint. They acquired Purvis for Nader, a player who will never suit up for Boston this season. The value of the UConn product being involved in this deal is the fact that his contract is non-guaranteed. The Celtics can waive him without his deal counting against the cap or luxury tax, which wasn't the case for Nader (due to his $450,000 guarantee).

The move helps the Celtics inch closer to the luxury tax line, leaving them just $2.5 million above it for the time being. Since every dollar spent over the tax line cost Celtics' ownership $1.50, keeping Nader's small cap hit off the books saves Boston around $675,000 in tax penalties. There is no simple way for the Celtics to get under the tax now without trading away a rotation piece for a return with less salary, but it does make it a bit easier for the Celtics to eventually sneak under the tax line by the end of next season.

So what do the Thunder get out of the deal? The Celtics sent over some cash, likely to cover some of Nader's guaranteed money. They also might like Nader as cheap end-of-the-bench depth. Oklahoma City needs to carry 14 players on their roster, so Nader could take one of those slots with a smaller luxury tax hit compared to a veteran free agent due to his salary. That helps the Thunder a good amount since they are tens of millions of dollars into the luxury tax for now.

All in all, the Celtics got creative here to save themselves some cash and Nader may have found himself a home for next season.