The Sixer Sense
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How Sixers can add LeBron, Kawhi and re-sign J.J. Redick

By Luke Swiatek

PHILADELPHIA, PA - NOVEMBER 27: JJ Redick #17 of the Philadelphia 76ers drives to the basket against LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers at the Wells Fargo Center on November 27, 2017 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - NOVEMBER 27: JJ Redick #17 of the Philadelphia 76ers drives to the basket against LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers at the Wells Fargo Center on November 27, 2017 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /
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PHILADELPHIA, PA – APRIL 6: JJ Redick #17 of the Philadelphia 76ers reacts along with the fans after making a three point basket against the Cleveland Cavaliers at the Wells Fargo Center on April 6, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** JJ Redick
PHILADELPHIA, PA – APRIL 6: JJ Redick #17 of the Philadelphia 76ers reacts along with the fans after making a three point basket against the Cleveland Cavaliers at the Wells Fargo Center on April 6, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** JJ Redick /

Domino 4: Re-sign Redick

Alright, that was a bit of a misleading transition: I don’t actually expect the 76ers to use the $3.5 million in cap space in any conventional way. If they want to use that to sign a decent backup (Marco or Ersan maybe?), that’s fine by me.

$3.5 million is not enough to resign Redick, but it doesn’t need to be. Based on how much cap space the Philadelphia 76ers will be using, they will be eligible to use the Non-Taxpayer Mid-Level Exception (and I spent a lot of time on the CBA FAQ, I know it works).

For those that don’t know, the NTMLE allows a team to go over the cap to sign players, so long as the salaries are within the value of the exception and do not exceed the “apron” ($4 million over the luxury tax line, which was roughly $124 million last year).

The 76ers should be nowhere near the apron this year, and will have the full value of the NTMLE at their disposal. Last year, the full value of the exception was roughly $8.4 million.

You may recall that the Houston Rockets signed P.J. Tucker to a four-year, $32 million deal last year despite being over the cap; they used the NTMLE, and since the $8 million he earned in the first year of the deal fit under the total value of the exception, it was legal.

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Another bonus to the exception is that it can be used every year. For example, the Rockets could sign Nerlens Noel for a deal where he earns $5.5 million in the first year, and sign Gerald Green to a deal where he earns $2.8 million in the first year of the deal. (FYI, I just chose random players, I haven’t heard any “Nerlens to Houston” rumors).

Anyway, since the sum of the contracts is less than the total exception, it’s totally legal, even though they still have a deal from last year’s exception still on their roster in P.J. Tucker.

Anyway, I’m assuming there will be slight inflation on the exception this year (there usually is slight inflation on everything, from exceptions to rookie scale contracts to max contracts). To simplify things, let’s say the new value will be $8.67 million.

If we use the full exception on Redick and made the deal three years, that works out to a total of $26 million.

That might seem kind of cheap to some (he made $23 million last year!) or kind of pricey to some (he’s already 34!). But I think he was overpaid on the first deal with the implication that he would sign for less later on.

Keep in mind also that he wanted to sign with the Rockets last season, but they would only offer a three-year deal when he wanted a four-year deal. It seems like 37 is his planned retirement age, so this deal would take him right there.

When taken in conjunction with his salary for the past year, it would work out to a four-year, $49 million deal. Sounds fair to me.

A three-year, $26 million deal is also comparable to the three-year, $22 million deal that Kyle Korver signed heading into his age 36 season. Korver is probably a better player, but he was also older, and of course there’s always inflation.

The deal also keeps Redick from having to move again, and allows him to stay close to his family who lives in Brooklyn. It just makes sense for all parties.