Apron rules impacting teams' interest in trading for Cameron Johnson, Kyle Kuzma
The apron math will impact several oft-mentioned trade candidates around the NBA, such as Nets swingman Cam Johnson and Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma. That was another common warning I heard from league personnel at Showcase. The 28-year-old Johnson is now sniping 42.2% of his 3-point tries this season and has generated considerable trade interest from contenders and playoff hopefuls in need of a two-way wing. Any team who wants to acquire Johnson, though, knows that Johnson's trade number isn't merely his $22.5 million salary for this 2024-25 campaign. Apron-conscious clubs must also account for Johnson's $27 million “apron salary” that would appear on the books of any apron team because of the unlikely bonuses within his four-year, $94 million contract.
Source: marcstein.substack.com
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The same trickiness will come into play if Kuzma ultimately gets moved. Kuzma's apron salary comes in at $26.5 million thanks to his unlikely bonuses, compared to his $23.5 million cap hit for trade salary purposes ... and that's before also factoring in Kuzma's 15% trade kicker. For the latter, if Kuzma were to be dealt today, his apron salary would rise by another $2 million charged to the team trading him away. -via marcstein.substack.com / December 25, 2024
The rising belief leaguewide is that the Wizards are eager to find a trade partner for Kuzma at some point during the next six-plus weeks ... and that Kuzma would want to depart this time with the 4-22 Wizards scarcely even trying to be competitive heading into the loaded 2025 NBA Draft. The 29-year-old, of course, possesses no formal mechanism in his contract to block trades, but the Wizards unexpectedly let Kuzma make the call a year ago. The Mavericks pivoted swiftly and completed trades for Washington's Daniel Gafford and Charlotte's P.J. Washington instead and wound up making a run to the NBA Finals for just the third time in franchise history. -via marcstein.substack.com / December 23, 2024
There were some rival teams at Showcase wondering aloud whether the Mavericks, who are known to be exploring their options for potential frontcourt upgrades, might make another trade run at Kuzma this winter. But such a scenario was strongly dismissed to me. -via marcstein.substack.com / December 23, 2024
Cameron Johnson: There’s a handcuffing because of analytics. You might shoot a mid-range jumper and second-guess it, thinking, “This could get me in trouble.” That makes you more likely to miss. Yes, analytics play a role, but at its core, shooting threes is an effective way to win games. Media hype is in a different bubble than teams. Winning equals success. -via YouTube / December 22, 2024
Jazz defeat Nets 105-94. Lauri Markkanen leads the way with 21 points. Collin Sexton and Svi Mykhailiuk drop 18 points apiece. Cameron Johnson leads the way for Brooklyn with 18 points. -via HoopsHype / December 21, 2024
This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Apron rules impacting teams' interest in trading for Cameron Johnson, Kyle Kuzma
