Monday evening the NBA and NBPA announced they’ve reached an agreement in principle for plans to begin the 2020-2021 season.
The final measure will be a vote by the league’s Board of Governors.
Free Agency Details
Free agency negotiations will begin on November 20 at 6 pm ET and signings can start at 12:01 pm ET on November 22.
The salary cap will be set at $109.140 million and the Tax Level will be at $132.627 million. The release also states the salary cap and tax level will increase by a minimum of 3% and a maximum of 10% over the prior season.
How does this impact the Spurs?
According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com, the league might lift the moratorium and allow teams to begin trades and have contract opt-ins and outs to be decided before the November 18 NBA Draft.
This would add a new wrinkle to how teams operate in the offseason, since traditionally the draft takes place first, and then teams start seeing players opt-in and out of contracts.
For the Spurs, DeMar DeRozan has a player option to decide on, while the team can make Jakob Poeltl, Drew Eubanks, and Quinndary Weatherspoon restricted free agents by tendering each player a qualifying offer. Bryn Forbes and Marco Belinelli will become unrestricted free agents on November 20 and the team will have until specific dates to decide on whether to guarantee Trey Lyles and Chimezie Metu’s contracts. Once players can sign deals beginning November 22, the Spurs can also decide whether or not to sign Derrick White to a new extension.
With DeRozan’s $27 million player option being the biggest factor in seeing what the Spurs’ offseason cap sheet will look like, the Spurs will likely know whether he declines or exercises his player option prior to the draft.
Other moves with players like Poeltl, Lyles, and Eubanks could also take place before the Spurs make their draft selections on November 18.
Season Details
The season will be shortened to 72 games with the first games for the league beginning on December 22.
The full regular season schedule and broadcast schedule will be released at a later date.
Training camps are expected to open on December 1 according to ESPN.
