If the goal of this offseason is to find a way — through cap hell — into finding an extra and meaningful piece to add to the core, signing Derrick Rose to a minimum contract and waiving Cole Aldrich were two steps in the right direction for the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Many fans fall on the darker side of the Rose Spectrum — and boy oh boy is there a spectrum — so to sign the 29-year-old to any contract comes as a disappointment to a contingent of Wolves followers. But the reality, however, is that bringing back Rose was the plan all along.
Tom Thibodeau’s connection and affinity for Rose made the two parties going separate ways this summer highly unlikely. If it was a near-given that Rose was returning, his return on a minimum contract is a win, even for those harsh on the Spectrum.
Through his signing at the minimum, the only real asset sacrificed — from a roster construction standpoint — is one of 15 roster spots. None of the mid-level exception was used, there is no adverse effect on the luxury tax and Thibodeau was already going to need to sign a minimum contract player — and probably more than one.
Rose Contract Details, New Salary Cap Figures
Officially, Rose’s contract will pay him $2.394 million for next season. While this is a slight boost up from the pro-rated $2.1 million he earned in Minnesota a year ago, it is still a minimum deal. This is because — lost in the hubbub of the first day of free agency — the exact parameters of a higher than projected 2018-19 salary cap became finalized July 1.
The cap increased up from $99.093 million to $101.869 million. This 2.8 percent increase also becomes applied to minimum salaries. For Rose, now a 10-year veteran, his minimum salary slot increases not from his nine-year vet minimum number ($2.1 million) but from 2017-18 10-year vet minimum of $2.328 million.
However, it is important to note with Rose’s contract, for bookkeeping purposes, his salary will be $1.512 million. The league — not Glen Taylor — pays the difference wherever a player falls dependent on years of service.
In Rose’s case, it’s a boost of $881,273.
The hiked salary cap is important to the Wolves for reasons beyond the semantics of Rose’s salary. Initially projected to be $101 million, the spike of $869,000 is helpful for teams — like the Wolves — that are approaching the luxury tax.
With a cap spike comes a luxury tax raise and thus a jump for what is called the “hard cap.” These are the two most important financial numbers of the summer for the Wolves. The luxury tax line is now $123.733 million — after some projections had it as low as $122 million — and the hard cap (a punitive ceiling of spending) is always $6 million above the tax line.
(Note: The hard cap is only triggered if the Wolves use the midlevel exception.)
Due to daunting financial forecasts that have the Wolves tracking to spend well into the tax beginning next season — after Jimmy Butler and Karl-Anthony Towns likely sign massive deals — it is very important to dodge the tax this season.
Currently, the Wolves have $114.125 million of team salary committed for $2018-19.
(Note: Nemanja Bjelica and Keita Bates-Diop have not been signed.)
Cole Aldrich Waived, Creating Space To Use Mid-level Exception
While signing Rose for the minimum was a coup, other moves likely need be made to duck that tax line. One of those long-expected moves was the waiving of Cole Aldrich.
By waiving Aldrich’s $7 million contract, only $2.056 million — the guaranteed portion of the deal — remains on the Wolves’ books. However, Aldrich’s number on the books can be further cut down by using the Stretch Provision. Stretching Aldrich would spread out his salary over three seasons. For this season, his hit against the books would drop to $685k — dropping total team salary to $112.754 million ($11 million below the luxury tax).
If this path is taken, the “full MLE” ($8.64 million) is in play — while still staying below the tax line. Some of that MLE may be directed towards Keita Bates-Diop receiving a longer-term deal than the traditional two-year rookie minimum contract. But even if KBD gets a small part of that pizza, there would still be around $8 million to be offered in annual salary to an attractive free-agent wing candidate — a ton of money in this market environment.
A few of the midlevel-caliber wings have already re-signed with their previous teams: Will Barton, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Rudy Gay, Joe Harris. And a couple have moved to new sites: Marco Belinelli (SAS), Doug McDermott (IND), Glenn Robinson III (DET). But there are plenty of impactful wings looking for a deal within the range the Wolves can offer while still staying under the tax line.
Still Available Wings:
- Kyle Anderson (RFA)
- Avery Bradley
- Vince Carter
- Wayne Ellington
- Tyreke Evans
- Rodney Hood (RFA)
- Marcus Smart (RFA)
Thibodeau may not opt to hand all that money out in one place and instead split the pizza up between multiple free-agent candidates. But the bigger point, and the win of early free agency, is having the opportunity to do so. Moving on from Aldrich and bringing back Rose at the minimum are two strides towards a leap for a team that needs more bench production.
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