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What is the Draft Pick Penalty Rule for Second Apron Teams in NBA?

The NBA offseason throws at franchises a range of complexities as teams aim to improve their rosters without invoking the wrath of the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). A recent rule, introduced as part of the 2023 CBA, is the addition of a second salary threshold. It stands at around $11 million more than the first apron applicable to NBA franchises.

The new rules bring forth a range of financial restrictions on teams that exceed the second apron. This includes a draft pick penalty rule that can significantly impact how teams manage future picks.

In a nutshell, the second apron currently stands at around $190 million for teams for the 2024-24 season. Hence, teams that exceed this amount face a range of restrictions.

This includes the loss of the mid-level exception, various limitations on salary matching when it comes to trades, and other prohibitions related player salaries during trades.

While the new rules bring uniformity across the league to player salaries, there are a range of ways in which they restrict a team’s ability for future picks.

NBA teams face range of draft pick penalties if they exceed second apron

As far as the rules are concerned, there are three specific ways in which exceeding the second apron will impact teams draft picks:

1. Frozen First-Round Pick: If a team finishes with their salary cap exceeding the second apron, which is around $190 million for the upcoming season, their first-round pick in the seventh draft following the infringement will be frozen. This means that the pick cannot be traded.

Hence, if a team exceeds the $190 million mark for the upcoming season, they will not be able to trade their first-round pick for the 2032 NBA draft.

2. Unfreezing the Pick: Exceeding the second apron does not mean that there is nothing that can be done if an NBA franchise still wishes to trade their first-round pick for the 2032 NBA draft. If the team manages to stay below the second apron in at least three of the four subsequent seasons following the one in which the infringement occurred, the pick will become unfrozen and can be traded once again.

3. Moving Back in the First Round: Finally, if the team, after exceeding the second apron in 2024-25, continues to exceed the second apron in two of the four subsequent seasons, their frozen first-round pick will move to the end of the first round. This means that it will become the 30th pick, apart from remaining untradeable.

In a nutshell, the above restrictions apply for every team that finishes over the second apron in any season henceforth. Currently, both the Boston Celtics and the Phoenix Suns have exceeded the second apron for the 2024-25 season. Both teams are at risk of being exposed to the kind of restrictions mentioned above.

This is bound to have major impacts on the franchises in the coming time, and teams must carefully weigh the short-term benefits of exceeding the second-apron, with the potential long-term negatives.

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