NBA Reportedly Warns Teams Against Talking About Restricted Free-Agent Contracts
NBA team owners and general managers will likely remain mum this summer when it comes to talking about their biggest restricted free agents. According to ESPN.com's Marc Stein, the league implemented a new set of rules prohibiting team personnel from making any comments regarding offer sheets and whether or not they'll match the deal.
Stein highlighted how Bob Myers, general manager of the Golden State Warriors, responded to a question regarding Draymond Green's future. Rather than affirming the reigning champions would match any offer sheet Green receives from another team, Myers backed away from the topic.
"I can't comment, per league rules, on that specific question," he said.
Stein then explained:
"ESPN.com has learned that the NBA, as far back as November, issued a memo to all teams warning them that the National Basketball Players Association has officially taken the position that the well-worn "we'll match any offer" reflex strategy and its corresponding intent to discourage interest in a particular RFA is a circumvention of the salary cap.
The league's memo, sources said, took the rare step of further cautioning teams that, while the NBA itself doesn't concur with the NBPA's view, league officials see enough potential merit in the union's stance to advise those who persist with match-any-offer chatter that they could be opening themselves up to legal action.
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You can see both sides of the issue.
It's almost a guarantee that marquee restricted free agents like Green, Kawhi Leonard, Jimmy Butler and Tristan Thompson will receive offer sheets despite the expectation they'll all remain with their current teams.
Myers could've said it would be completely pointless for any team to try to sign Green because the Warriors are going to match any amount offered. And somebody likely would've tried to call his bluff.
The counterargument would be that having an owner/general manager publicly state that a team will match an offer sheet could lessen interest in a player, especially if he's not considered a top option.
What's the point in targeting a free agent whom you have little chance of landing? Pro Basketball Talk's Sean Highkin used the example of Eric Bledsoe from last offseason to drive that point home:
"Under normal circumstances, Eric Bledsoe would have been one of the most sought-after free agents on the market last summer, but teams were so convinced that the Suns would match their offer sheets that they showed no appetite whatsoever for going after him.
Bledsoe dangled in restricted free agency until almost the start of training camp, when he finally agreed to a five-year, $70 million deal to stay with the Suns.
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In the end, though, it's unlikely that the league-wide embargo on discussing restricted free agents will have any sort of noticeable impact on free agency.
