Basketball:

2024/25 NBA Disabled Player Exceptions

A disabled player exception can be granted when an NBA team has a player go down with an injury deemed to be season-ending. The exception gives the club some additional spending flexibility to add a single-season replacement in the trade market or in free agency

We go into more detail on who qualifies for disabled player exceptions, what they’re worth, and how exactly they work in our glossary entry on the subject. But essentially, a DPE allows a team to sign a player to a one-year contract, trade for a player in the final year of his contract, or place a waiver claim on a player in the final year of his contract. The exceptions are worth either half the injured player’s salary or the amount of the non-taxpayer mid-level exception (whichever amount is less).

Because the rules related to disable player exceptions are somewhat restrictive and the exceptions themselves generally aren’t worth a lot, they often expire without being used. Still, it’s worth keeping an eye on which disabled player exceptions have been granted, just in case.

We’ll use this space to break down the teams with disabled player exceptions available for the 2024/25 league year, updating it as the season progresses if more teams are granted DPEs and/or to indicate which ones have been used.

Teams have until January 15 to apply for a disabled player exception and until March 10 to actually use them.

Here’s the list so far:


Available disabled player exceptions:

Hendricks sustained a non-contact fractured right fibula and dislocated ankle in just the third game of his second NBA season on October 28 and underwent season-ending surgery in early November. The Jazz applied for and were granted a disabled player exception worth half of his $5.8MM+ salary.

The Jazz are operating far below the luxury tax line, giving them plenty of flexibility to potentially use this exception, but they also still have their full room exception, which is worth nearly $8MM and can be used to add a player via either trade or free agency.

That room exception is more likely to come in handy than the disabled player exception, but there are some trade scenarios in which the DPE would be useful. For instance, if the Bucks wanted to salary-dump MarJon Beauchamp‘s $2.73MM expiring contract to reduce their projected tax bill, the Jazz could take him into their disabled player exception, preserving their full room exception.

Holmes’ rookie season came to an end before it began, as he suffered a torn Achilles tendon in his very first Summer League game in July. As a rookie selected relatively late in the first round (No. 22 overall), Holmes is earning a modest first-year salary of about $3.07MM, so Denver’s disabled player exception is even more modest.

While the Nuggets’ disabled player exception probably won’t do much for them on the trade market, it could have some value in the buyout market. By late February or early March, the prorated minimum salary for a veteran free agent will be well below $1,532,820, so Denver could use their DPE to offer a top target more than the vet’s minimum in an effort to beat out rival suitors.

For now though, the Nuggets have a full 15-man roster, so it remains to be seen whether they’ll be in position to be a player on the buyout market at all.


Possible disabled player exception requests:

The following players have suffered injuries that have either been ruled season-ending or are considered potentially season-ending. There have been no reports yet that their teams have requested or been granted disabled player exceptions, but these situations are worth keeping an eye on:

  • Charlotte Hornets:
  • Golden State Warriors:
  • Indiana Pacers:

Nikola Topic (Thunder) and Saddiq Bey (Wizards) are recovering from ACL surgeries that may keep them out for the entire 2024/25 season, but their injuries were known before their respective teams acquired them, so they aren’t eligible for disabled player exceptions.


Source link

Related Articles

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Back to top button