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 ($178.1 million) or second ($188.9 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 (NTMLE), 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), among other 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 $172,779,070 -$5,352,930 First apron hard cap S&T (Cody Zeller)
Boston Celtics $196,574,991 $7,643,991 Above second apron None
Brooklyn Nets $172,907,259 -$5,224,741 First apron hard cap S&T (Shake Milton)
Charlotte Hornets $160,393,627 -$17,738,373 Under first apron; Second apron hard cap Cash out (DEN, SAS); S&T (Duane Washington Jr., DaQuan Jeffries, Charlie Brown Jr.)
Chicago Bulls $168,608,903 -$9,523,097 First apron hard cap NTMLE (Jalen Smith)
Cleveland Cavaliers $174,255,731 -$3,876,269 Under first apron None
Dallas Mavericks $177,605,780 -$526,220 First apron hard cap NTMLE (Naji Marshall)
Denver Nuggets $183,774,315 -$5,156,685 Second apron hard cap TMLE (Dario  Šarić)
Detroit Pistons $131,348,500 -$46,783,500 Under first apron None
Golden State Warriors $177,598,341 -$533,659 First apron hard cap NTMLE (De’Anthony Melton); S&T (Buddy Hield, Kyle Anderson)
Houston Rockets $162,887,067 -$15,244,933 First apron hard cap Preexisting TPE (Kevin Porter Jr. for Adrian Griffin)
Indiana Pacers $172,774,476 -$5,357,524 Under first apron; Second apron hard cap Cash out (SAS)
LA Clippers $173,279,115 -$4,852,885 First apron hard cap NTMLE (Derrick Jones Jr.)
Los Angeles Lakers $188,900,999 -$30,001 Under second apron None
Memphis Grizzlies $172,042,347 -$6,089,653 First apron hard cap NTMLE (Scottie Pippen Jr., Jay Huff)
Miami Heat $187,292,287 -$1,638,713 Under second apron None
Milwaukee Bucks $195,430,639 $6,499,639 Above second apron None
Minnesota Timberwolves $206,087,561 $17,156,561 Above second apron None
New Orleans Pelicans $174,325,935 -$3,806,065 First apron hard cap ETPE (Dejounte Murray)
New York Knicks $188,350,128 -$580,872 Second apron hard cap Aggregation (Mikal Bridges, Karl-Anthony Towns)
Oklahoma City Thunder $162,868,744 -$15,263,256 First apron hard cap ETPE (Alex Caruso)
Orlando Magic $152,959,238 -$25,172,762 Under first apron None
Philadelphia 76ers $182,962,623 -$5,968,377 Under second apron None
Phoenix Suns $220,403,340 $31,472,340 Above second apron None
Portland Trail Blazers $168,712,097 -$9,419,903 Under first apron None
Sacramento Kings $172,229,539 -$5,902,461 First apron hard cap ETPE (DeMar DeRozan); S&T (DeMar DeRozan)
San Antonio Spurs $155,702,677 -$22,429,323 Under first apron None
Toronto Raptors $167,664,115 -$10,467,885 First apron hard cap ETPE (Sasha Vezenkov)
Utah Jazz $144,262,915 -$33,869,085 First apron hard cap ETPE (Russell Westbrook)
Washington Wizards $166,485,871 -$11,646,129 First apron hard cap ETPE (Malcolm Brogdon); NTMLE (Saddiq Bey)

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 12/3/24)