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Mavs are expected to dump Finley
By Art Garcia
Star-Telegram Staff Writer
Barring the unexpected, Michael Finley's career with the Mavericks is effectively over. The financial implications of waiving the longest-tenured member of the team far outweigh keeping Finley, making his release "academic," according to a team source.
Finley is eligible to be waived under a one-time-only exception in the new collective-bargaining agreement recently agreed upon by the NBA and the players' association. Teams above the luxury tax threshold, such as the Mavs, are permitted to release one player this summer and avoid the luxury-tax penalty from that player's contract.
"Whatever decisions [we make] will be made in the best interest of the franchise," Mavs coach Avery Johnson said Sunday. "That's pretty much what we promised our players and our fans. The part of the business of losing anyone on our team isn't a good feeling, especially Finley."
A player released would still receive his full salary for the length of the contract and count against the salary cap, but that salary would not be used to calculate the luxury-tax penalty. In Finley's case, he's on the books for $51.8 million over the next three years.
"It's a process we're working through together," Mavs president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson said. "We're sharing information and trying to address all the different options. We'll be working along with Michael and his representatives to figure out a win-win situation."
Assuming the Mavs remain above the luxury-tax threshold -- a safe assumption -- Finley's deal would cost the Mavs up to $103.6 million. Waiving Finley would save Mavs owner Mark Cuban up to $51.8 million in luxury-tax payments.
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Do we go after finley for a backup?
By Art Garcia
Star-Telegram Staff Writer
Barring the unexpected, Michael Finley's career with the Mavericks is effectively over. The financial implications of waiving the longest-tenured member of the team far outweigh keeping Finley, making his release "academic," according to a team source.
Finley is eligible to be waived under a one-time-only exception in the new collective-bargaining agreement recently agreed upon by the NBA and the players' association. Teams above the luxury tax threshold, such as the Mavs, are permitted to release one player this summer and avoid the luxury-tax penalty from that player's contract.
"Whatever decisions [we make] will be made in the best interest of the franchise," Mavs coach Avery Johnson said Sunday. "That's pretty much what we promised our players and our fans. The part of the business of losing anyone on our team isn't a good feeling, especially Finley."
A player released would still receive his full salary for the length of the contract and count against the salary cap, but that salary would not be used to calculate the luxury-tax penalty. In Finley's case, he's on the books for $51.8 million over the next three years.
"It's a process we're working through together," Mavs president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson said. "We're sharing information and trying to address all the different options. We'll be working along with Michael and his representatives to figure out a win-win situation."
Assuming the Mavs remain above the luxury-tax threshold -- a safe assumption -- Finley's deal would cost the Mavs up to $103.6 million. Waiving Finley would save Mavs owner Mark Cuban up to $51.8 million in luxury-tax payments.
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Do we go after finley for a backup?
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