Why Celtics will have more offseason options due to amended CBA agreement

The NBA and players’ union came to an agreement late Monday night on revised CBA terms for the 2020-21 season after weeks of negotiations. While some of the details have already been leaked for weeks (72-game regular season, flat salary cap at $109.1 million, luxury tax line at $132.6 million) there were more specifics that impact the Celtics’ planning for the upcoming season. Let’s go through a few of the more notable items and what they mean for Boston heading into the NBA Draft and free agency.

—The salary cap is guaranteed to go up by 3 percent per year for the next three years and could rise as high as $10 million per year during that span.
Analysis: This is slightly higher than previously reported estimates (2 percent rise) but likely terms that players negotiated into the deal to ensure there would be adequate money available for upcoming free agent classes on the open market. It’s also a sign perhaps the league feels better that they will be able to recover from some revenue shortfalls sooner rather than later with good news surfacing about a coronavirus vaccine trials this week leading to hope for 2021.

—Escrow withholding will be in the 10-to-20 percent for the next three seasons
Analysis: Normally this is just 10 percent so the league and players agreed on a wider range to ensure that revenue losses would be spread out over multiple years instead of players taking a bigger hit this season to their salaries when revenues are expected to be down the most (due to no/limited fans). From a Celtics perspective, this really only impacts someone like Gordon Hayward as he has no added financial motivation to opt-out now from $34.1 million if he wants to maximize his earnings.

—Reduced luxury tax bills for teams based on the decline in Basketball Related Income (revenue) projections
Analysis: This is more good news for the Celtics who are expecting to be a tax team. Essentially, what this means is if league-wide BRI (revenue) projections are down 30 percent from last season’s estimates, the Celtics (or any tax team) will see their luxury tax bill reduced by 30 percent. These terms should allow for more spending by bigger market teams that have had to adjust their planning for payroll amid an unexpected drop in the salary cap and luxury tax numbers from original midseason projections before the pandemic. The Celtics are currently one of four teams projected to be in the tax (Nets, Warriors, 76ers).

—ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski is reporting that it’s possible decisions on player options will be due before the 2020 NBA Draft on Nov. 18.
Analysis: That’s a very big deal for Boston since normally those decisions aren’t required from the players until a time window after the draft and before the start of free agency. However, if the Celtics know where they stand with Gordon Hayward ($34.1 million) and Enes Kanter ($5 million) heading into draft night, it gives them far greater flexibility in terms of trade options. Acquiring a bench veteran with first-round picks becomes a lot easier when Kanter’s salary can be used for salary matching purposes in a trade. Additionally, putting together a blockbuster deal becomes a lot more realistic if Hayward’s camp has told Boston he wants out (or has indicated no interest in staying long-term). With the odds increasing that Hayward opts into his player option, the Celtics can explore possibilities with using him combined with draft picks to see what kind of return they could fetch. Knowing what the future holds for Hayward and Kanter heading into draft night will also help the team make more informed draft picks to fill any necessary holes created.

—Free agency begins on Nov. 20 on Friday night (6 p.m. ET)
Analysis: Just a 42-hour turnaround from the end of the draft to the start of free agency in what stands to be one of the busiest NBA weeks in recent memory. The Celtics will have the taxpayer mid-level exception to spend ($5.7 million) in free agency along with the veteran’s minimum to spend if Hayward opts in. If he opts out, the Celtics will be out of the tax so their mid-level exception will jump up to $9.3 million.