THE EXPANSION DRAFT
Depending on how the NBA Finals shake out, the Charlotte Bobcats will hold their expansion draft on either June 22nd or June 23rd. This Expansion draft allows for The Cats to populate their initial roster with existing players left “unprotected†by teams. There are some interesting side notes to this process that make Charlotte worth watching. The Bobcats will have a limited salary cap in their first two seasons, but in the Expansion draft, they will be permitted to populate their roster without regards to the cap, meaning the Cats could take all of the high priced players teams left exposed. While no official list has been released detailing who the Cats could draft, it’s believed teams left most of their unfavorable contracts exposed, should the Cats select a high priced player, the team that loses the player will get a coveted “traded player exception†for the value of the contract they lose. Since the Cats will have no cap flexibility for two years anyway, any contract with two years or less becomes a serious consideration especially players like Jerry Stackhouse and Antoine Walker having been left unprotected. The Cats have said from Day 1 they hope to field a young energetic team that can compete, but with the ability to far exceed their league imposed salary cap limitations in the Expansion draft; the Cats could field a serious team. Here are some of the details of the Expansion Draft you should consider: The Bobcats will select a minimum of 14 players who are under contract or restricted free agents for the 2004-05 season. The Cats may select no more than one player from each team. The Cats can only select players that are left unprotected by a team. NBA teams may protect a maximum of eight players on its roster who are under contract or are restricted free agents at the conclusion of the 2003-04 season. Teams will designate the players on its roster who are eligible for selection by the Bobcats. Teams were required to designate at least one player on its roster to be eligible for selection by the Bobcats, even if the team does not have eight players under contract or as restricted free agents for the 2004-05 season. Any player under contract selected by the Bobcats will immediately be placed on the Bobcats roster. Any eligible restricted free agent selected by the Bobcats shall immediately become an unrestricted free agent. Teams will be permitted to enter into pre-Expansion Draft trades in which Charlotte agrees to select or not select certain unprotected players. Teams can offer cash compensation up to $3 million to influence a trade. Charlotte will be permitted to select players in the Expansion Draft without regard to the Salary Cap. After the Cats have made their selection, they will have to fit any remaining player transaction under the Salary Cap. The Cats will have a Salary Cap in its first season equal to 66% of the Salary Cap established for 2004-2005. The Cats will have a Salary Cap in its second season equal to75% of the Salary Cap established for 2005-2006. Charlotte will be permitted to sign any restricted free agent it selects in the Expansion Draft using the same “Bird,†“Early Bird†or “Non-Bird†Exception that the player’s prior team would have had. Contracts terminated by The Cats prior to the start of the 2004-05 season for lack of skill will be excluded from Charlotte’s Team Salary. A team with a Team Salary above the Salary Cap will receive a Trade Exception to replace a player (other than a restricted free agent) selected from its unprotected list. Teams will not be permitted to reacquire a player that it loses in the Expansion Draft prior to the expiration of one year from the date of the Expansion Draft, unless the player is waived and not claimed by any other team.
[size=8]
link to article[/size]
