One of the goals of the NBA’s latest Collective Bargaining Agreement is to curb spending. The higher a team’s payroll, the fewer tools they have.
The NBA has a soft cap, which allows teams to spend without limit, provided they have the tools (more formally, “exceptions”) to do so. But certain exceptions will trigger hard spending limits at the first ($172.3 million) or second ($182.8 million) aprons. Once a team chooses to have a hard cap, it cannot, under any circumstance, climb above it. Similarly, if a team is above an apron, it cannot use an exception that would trigger that spending limit.
The first apron is triggered by the use of the Non-Taxpayer Mid-Level Exception (NTME), Bi-Annual Exception (BAE) or from acquiring a player via sign-and-trade (S&T). The second apron is triggered by using the Taxpayer Mid-Level Exception (TMLE). Additionally, teams above the apron cannot use the Expanded Traded Player Exception (ETPE) that allows for salary matching above 110 percent (through the 2023-24 regular season, then reduces to no more than 100 percent). Future seasons will have additional triggers.
The following lists each team, their apron payroll (which includes all player incentives), their apron status and the tools used to trigger a hard cap, if applicable:
| Team | Apron Payroll |
Over/Under |
Level |
Trigger |
| Atlanta Hawks | $160,389,798 | -$11,956,202 | Under first apron | None |
| Boston Celtics | $188,580,284 | $5,786,284 | Above second apron | None |
| Brooklyn Nets | $157,049,836 | -$15,296,164 | First apron hard cap | NTMLE (Jalen Wilson) |
| Charlotte Hornets | $137,432,473 | -$34,913,527 | First apron hard cap | ETPE (Kyle Lowry) |
| Chicago Bulls | $166,766,186 | -$5,579,814 | First apron hard cap | NTMLE (Jevon Carter, Onuralp Bitim) |
| Cleveland Cavaliers | $164,302,696 | -$8,043,304 | First apron hard cap | S&T/ETPE (Max Strus); NTMLE (Georges Niang, Craig Porter Jr.) |
| Dallas Mavericks | $166,131,111 | -$6,214,889 | First apron hard cap | NTMLE (Seth Curry, Dante Exum, AJ Lawson); S&T (Grant Williams); ETPE (Grant Williams, PJ Washington, Daniel Gafford) |
| Denver Nuggets | $178,090,198 | -$4,703,802 | Second apron hard cap | TMLE (Reggie Jackson) |
| Detroit Pistons | $136,678,542 | -$35,667,458 | First apron hard cap | ETPE (Mike Muscala, Simone Fontecchio, Malachi Flynn, Evan Fournier, Quentin Grimes) |
| Golden State Warriors | $207,881,159 | $25,087,159 | Above second apron | None |
| Houston Rockets | $147,902,009 | -$24,443,991 | First apron hard cap | S&T (Dillon Brooks) |
| Indiana Pacers | $146,777,509 | -$25,568,491 | First apron hard cap | ETPE (Pascal Siakam) |
| LA Clippers | $200,060,815 | $17,266,815 | Above second apron | None |
| Los Angeles Lakers | $168,958,985 | -$3,387,015 | First apron hard cap | NTMLE (Gabe Vincent, Spencer Dinwiddie), BAE (Taurean Prince) |
| Memphis Grizzlies | $164,135,142 | -$8,210,858 | First apron hard cap | NTMLE (Bismack Biyombo, GG Jackson Jr., Vince Williams Jr.) |
| Miami Heat | $177,631,706 | -$5,162,294 | Under second apron | None |
| Milwaukee Bucks | $184,505,021 | $1,711,021 | Above second apron | None |
| Minnesota Timberwolves | $166,028,789 | -$6,317,211 | First apron hard cap | NTMLE (Shake Milton, Troy Brown Jr.); ETPE (Monte Morris) |
| New Orleans Pelicans | $165,041,149 | -$7,304,894 | First apron hard cap | NTMLE (EJ Liddell, Matt Ryan) |
| New York Knicks | $165,041,106 | -$7,304,894 | First apron hard cap | NTMLE (Donte DiVincenzo); ETPE (Precious Achiuwa, Malachi Flynn, Bojan Bogdanović, Alec Burks) |
| Oklahoma City Thunder | $161,525,279 | -$10,820,721 | First apron hard cap | ETPE (Rudy Gay, TyTy Washington Jr., Usman Garuba, Gordon Hayward) |
| Orlando Magic | $134,564,229 | -$37,781,771 | Under first apron | None |
| Philadelphia 76ers | $166,801,353 | -$5,544,647 | First apron hard cap | ETPE (Buddy Hield); NTMLE (Kyle Lowry, Ricky Council IV) |
| Phoenix Suns | $192,181,329 | $9,387,329 | Above second apron | None |
| Portland Trail Blazers | $165,411,796 | -$6,934,204 | First apron hard cap | ETPE (Deandre Ayton) |
| Sacramento Kings | $151,276,215 | -$21,069,785 | Under first apron | None |
| San Antonio Spurs | $142,984,525 | -$29,361,475 | First apron hard cap | ETPE (Marcus Morris Sr.) |
| Toronto Raptors | $164,117,779 | -$8,228,221 | First apron hard cap | NTMLE (Dennis Schröder), BAE (Jalen McDaniels); ETPE (Kelly Olynyk Jr.) |
| Utah Jazz | $132,624,633 | -$39,721,367 | First apron hard cap | ETPE (Otto Porter Jr.) |
| Washington Wizards | $155,424,663 | -$16,921,337 | First apron hard cap | ETPE (Marvin Bagley III); NTMLE (Jared Butler) |
Check back for updates as teams make transactions throughout the year.
Email Eric Pincus at eric.pincus@gmail.com and follow him on X/Twitter @EricPincus.
(Updated on 5/20/24)
Leave A Comment