Dahntay Jones to Nets: Latest Contract Details, Comments and Reaction
Looking to add veteran talent that won't increase their tax bill, the Brooklyn Nets have signed veteran swingman Dahntay Jones to a non-guaranteed contract.
Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports reported the news. Jones will compete for one of the Nets' final roster spots among a mix of veterans and young players signed this summer on non-guaranteed deals. Quincy Miller, Willie Reed, Donald Sloan, Markel Brown and Ryan Boatright are also signed to similar contracts, per Basketball Insiders.
The Nets currently have 12 players with guaranteed deals, one under the NBA minimum. Brooklyn can have a maximum of 16 players under the roster, though it's unlikely it will given its precarious position on the luxury tax.
At the moment, the Nets have $81.31 million in guaranteed salaries for 2015-16. The NBA's tax line is $84.74 million. Though that gives them a little more than $3 million to play with, it's obvious the front office has a goal of staying below that threshold.
The Nets have paid league-record taxes over the last two seasons with nothing to show for it and are subject to onerous repeater tax payments. Given the fact that this team has little chance of even having home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs, it makes perfect sense to begin a roster transition. While not the best basketball move, outright waiving Deron Williams and stretching his contract cuts tax costs and will give the team more cap room heading into 2016.
With the team now in need of help all around the roster, though, guys like Jones are going to have to fill up the bench. The 34-year-old spent last season with the Clippers, averaging 0.6 points and 0.3 rebounds per game while barely eclipsing 100 minutes played. He mostly provided veteran leadership and occasional floor spacing, which is all you could expect from a career role player who had been more than a year removed from NBA action.
The odds of Jones making the Nets roster depend on their organizational philosophy. It would seem reasonable that Brooklyn would rather have guys like Brown, Reed and Boatright around as young, developmental talent. D-League stashing is available, but there is little about Jones' game that stands out as vital to an already veteran-laden team.
Either way, he's a camp body who may wind up being more if he's able to show more than he did last season in Los Angeles.
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