ChuckBuck wrote:Can't sign him to max contract, only follow the guidelines for Early Bird Rights according to the new CBA. From ESPN:

Smith signed a two-year contract worth $2.8 million in the offsesaon. The second year has a player option and Smith is expected to decline it and test free agency.

The Knicks will have Smith's Early Bird Rights, meaning they can exceed the salary cap to re-sign the shooting guard if he decides to decline the 2013-14 option.

The Early Bird Rights allow the Knicks to pay Smith up to 175 percent of this season's salary, which is $2.8 million. That means the Knicks could offer him a contract for next season at about $5 million, and the agreement could be up to four years with standard raises.

If someone offers say $7mill or $8mill a year, we can't match, and he's probably gone.

callmened was asking about a max contract AFTER the $5M year next year.... which I think is a possibility.

Nalod wrote:So we can give him 5mm next year, still keep his bird rights?

yup, sign him to $5M and then sign him to whatever.

EARLY BIRD EXCEPTION -- This is a weaker form of the Larry Bird exception. It also allows teams to exceed the cap to re-sign their own free agents, but with more limited contracts than the Larry Bird exception. To qualify for this exception the player must play for two seasons without clearing waivers or changing teams as a free agent (see question number 32 for details and nuances to this rule). A team may use the Early Bird exception to re-sign its own free agent for up to 175% of his salary in the previous season2 (not over the maximum salary, of course) or 104.5% of the average salary in the previous season, whichever is greater (see question number 31 for the definition of "average salary"). Early Bird contracts must be at least two seasons in length, which prevents teams from using the Early Bird to sign a one-year contract, then signing the same player with the full Larry Bird exception the following season. Early Bird contracts can be up to four years in length, with raises up to 7.5% of the salary in the first season of the contract. Early Bird is also a component of the Veteran Free Agent exception, and qualifying players are called "Early Qualifying Veteran Free Agents" in the CBA.

If the player is a restricted free agent with two years of service and qualifies for the Early Bird exception, then the player's prior team may use the Early Bird exception to match an offer sheet he receives from another team (see question numbers 43 and 44). This is true even if the starting salary for the Early Bird exception is lower than the starting salary of an offer sheet, which is based on the Non-Taxpayer Mid-Level exception.

A team can renounce its Early Bird rights to a player, and instead re-sign him with the Non-Bird exception (see below). They might do this in order to sign the player to a one-year contract, instead of the minimum two years required by the Early Bird exception.

Starting January 10 of each season, this exception begins to reduce in value. See question number 26 for details.

He's not a restricted Free Agent, so he can't get a contract offer similar to Lin's. We can't sign him to a 1 yr deal, then Bird's Right him the next.

We have to sign him to a 2-4yr deal at 104.5% of whatever the "average salary" comes to be for the 2012-2013 season, which is estimated at this time to be approximately $5.275mil. If we sign him to a 2yr deal, then we can offer him a BR contract after it expires as he/we would have obtained full BRs, 4 season in total played with Knicks in succession.

I've yet to see anywhere, where Smith can get anything above this from any team. Dollars to Donuts he can't/won't make too much more than $5.275mil/yr anywhere.

Bonn1997 wrote:

ChuckBuck wrote:Can't sign him to max contract, only follow the guidelines for Early Bird Rights according to the new CBA. From ESPN:

Smith signed a two-year contract worth $2.8 million in the offsesaon. The second year has a player option and Smith is expected to decline it and test free agency.

The Knicks will have Smith's Early Bird Rights, meaning they can exceed the salary cap to re-sign the shooting guard if he decides to decline the 2013-14 option.

The Early Bird Rights allow the Knicks to pay Smith up to 175 percent of this season's salary, which is $2.8 million. That means the Knicks could offer him a contract for next season at about $5 million, and the agreement could be up to four years with standard raises.

If someone offers say $7mill or $8mill a year, we can't match, and he's probably gone.

Yeah, he'd have to be ridiculously humble to stay here for a 1 yr, $5 mil contract. He can probably get at least $25 mil and maybe more in guaranteed money this off-season. I don't care how much we pay him the next 2 years but I don't want him taking up a lot of cap space 3 years from now when our big 3 have already expired.

We over pay him after next year. He take the 5mm next year, then we shower him with cash to the delight of jewlers in NYC!

3G4G wrote:I'm pretty sure in order to sign a player to a Max Contract Bird's Rights is the prerequisite. Based on yrs in the league J.R. is entitled to a Max of 30% of cap, but no team has full BR's with him.....so I don't think he can make more than non-tax full MLE from anyone.

EARLY BIRD EXCEPTION -- This is a weaker form of the Larry Bird exception. It also allows teams to exceed the cap to re-sign their own free agents, but with more limited contracts than the Larry Bird exception. To qualify for this exception the player must play for two seasons without clearing waivers or changing teams as a free agent (see question number 32 for details and nuances to this rule). A team may use the Early Bird exception to re-sign its own free agent for up to 175% of his salary in the previous season2 (not over the maximum salary, of course) or 104.5% of the average salary in the previous season, whichever is greater (see question number 31 for the definition of "average salary"). Early Bird contracts must be at least two seasons in length, which prevents teams from using the Early Bird to sign a one-year contract, then signing the same player with the full Larry Bird exception the following season. Early Bird contracts can be up to four years in length, with raises up to 7.5% of the salary in the first season of the contract. Early Bird is also a component of the Veteran Free Agent exception, and qualifying players are called "Early Qualifying Veteran Free Agents" in the CBA.

If the player is a restricted free agent with two years of service and qualifies for the Early Bird exception, then the player's prior team may use the Early Bird exception to match an offer sheet he receives from another team (see question numbers 43 and 44). This is true even if the starting salary for the Early Bird exception is lower than the starting salary of an offer sheet, which is based on the Non-Taxpayer Mid-Level exception.

A team can renounce its Early Bird rights to a player, and instead re-sign him with the Non-Bird exception (see below). They might do this in order to sign the player to a one-year contract, instead of the minimum two years required by the Early Bird exception.

Starting January 10 of each season, this exception begins to reduce in value. See question number 26 for details.

He's not a restricted Free Agent, so he can't get a contract offer similar to Lin's. We can't sign him to a 1 yr deal, then Bird's Right him the next.

We have to sign him to a 2-4yr deal at 104.5% of whatever the "average salary" comes to be for the 2012-2013 season, which is estimated at this time to be approximately $5.275mil. If we sign him to a 2yr deal, then we can offer him a BR contract after it expires as he/we would have obtained full BRs, 4 season in total played with Knicks in succession.

I've yet to see anywhere, where Smith can get anything above this from any team. Dollars to Donuts he can't/won't make too much more than $5.275mil/yr anywhere.

It just says the contract has to be at least two years so technically it can be two years with a player option in year two. I think that is the loop hole people are expecting or guessing the Knicks could do.

33. Why a three-year wait before gaining Bird rights?

It closed a salary cap loophole. There used to be no waiting period, but this was abused by Portland with Chris Dudley and Phoenix with Danny Manning. Both teams signed these players to one-year deals at small salaries. The next year, Bird rights in hand, they signed new contracts far in excess of the cap. The three-year rule prevents these types of cap circumventions.

34. Does having Bird rights mean that free agents can be signed and not count against the cap?

With very few exceptions, all salaries are included in team salary. The Bird exception simply enables a team to exceed the cap to sign certain players. The player's new salary applies toward the team salary just like the salaries of the team's other players. So if a team is over the cap and uses the Bird exception to re-sign its own free agent, it will end up farther over the cap.

So basically if he plays with the Knicks one more season whether it be through the current contract or a new 1 year contract, we get JR's full Bird Rights and can pay JR Smith whatever he\Knicks wants.

Hopefully JR thinks big picture, longer term, but you can never predict the future as an athlete. It can all be gone in an instant, freak injury, etc. Guaranteed money and security usually trumps team loyalty, friendships, and camaraderie.

yellowboy90 wrote:

3G4G wrote:I'm pretty sure in order to sign a player to a Max Contract Bird's Rights is the prerequisite. Based on yrs in the league J.R. is entitled to a Max of 30% of cap, but no team has full BR's with him.....so I don't think he can make more than non-tax full MLE from anyone.

EARLY BIRD EXCEPTION -- This is a weaker form of the Larry Bird exception. It also allows teams to exceed the cap to re-sign their own free agents, but with more limited contracts than the Larry Bird exception. To qualify for this exception the player must play for two seasons without clearing waivers or changing teams as a free agent (see question number 32 for details and nuances to this rule). A team may use the Early Bird exception to re-sign its own free agent for up to 175% of his salary in the previous season2 (not over the maximum salary, of course) or 104.5% of the average salary in the previous season, whichever is greater (see question number 31 for the definition of "average salary"). Early Bird contracts must be at least two seasons in length, which prevents teams from using the Early Bird to sign a one-year contract, then signing the same player with the full Larry Bird exception the following season. Early Bird contracts can be up to four years in length, with raises up to 7.5% of the salary in the first season of the contract. Early Bird is also a component of the Veteran Free Agent exception, and qualifying players are called "Early Qualifying Veteran Free Agents" in the CBA.

If the player is a restricted free agent with two years of service and qualifies for the Early Bird exception, then the player's prior team may use the Early Bird exception to match an offer sheet he receives from another team (see question numbers 43 and 44). This is true even if the starting salary for the Early Bird exception is lower than the starting salary of an offer sheet, which is based on the Non-Taxpayer Mid-Level exception.

A team can renounce its Early Bird rights to a player, and instead re-sign him with the Non-Bird exception (see below). They might do this in order to sign the player to a one-year contract, instead of the minimum two years required by the Early Bird exception.

Starting January 10 of each season, this exception begins to reduce in value. See question number 26 for details.

He's not a restricted Free Agent, so he can't get a contract offer similar to Lin's. We can't sign him to a 1 yr deal, then Bird's Right him the next.

We have to sign him to a 2-4yr deal at 104.5% of whatever the "average salary" comes to be for the 2012-2013 season, which is estimated at this time to be approximately $5.275mil. If we sign him to a 2yr deal, then we can offer him a BR contract after it expires as he/we would have obtained full BRs, 4 season in total played with Knicks in succession.

I've yet to see anywhere, where Smith can get anything above this from any team. Dollars to Donuts he can't/won't make too much more than $5.275mil/yr anywhere.

It just says the contract has to be at least two years so technically it can be two years with a player option in year two. I think that is the loop hole people are expecting or guessing the Knicks could do.

Didn't see your post but yes it must be a 2 year contract. I doubt that they can do a player exception to circumvent as that would defeat the purpose of the stipulation.

ChuckBuck wrote:

Andrew wrote:Early Bird contracts must be at least 2 seasons in length, so he cannot be signed to a 1 year contract using this exception.

So if JR opts out, we can only offer a 2-4 year deal. Only way we can give him a max contract is if he doesn't exercise his player option, and plays out his existing deal for full Bird Rights next season.

or we can offer him a 2yr deal and give him a max then, it would line up with Amar'e/Chandler's/Melo's contracts assuming Melo doesn't opt out and none of them are extended.

Not sure I see J.R. playing 3 seasons well below market value when it sounded like we signed his bother this off-season for no apparent reason other than to give the Smith's extra cash.

CHRIS MORE THAN LIKELY HAD HIS PAYCHECK DIRECT DEPOSITED TO EARL'S BANK!!!!lol