How are minimum-salary players handled in trades?
The “Minimum Salary exception” allows teams to acquire minimum-salary players without regard to salary matching under the Traded Player exception (see question number 68). For example, a team over the cap can trade a second round draft pick to another team in exchange for a minimum-salary player, even a 10-year veteran earning over $1 million. To qualify, the player can be signed for no more than two seasons, can be paid no more than the then-minimum salary in any season, and can have no unlikely bonuses. When a team acquires multiple players in the same trade, it essentially ignores the incoming salary for all minimum-salary players, as they fall under the Minimum Salary exception. For example, a team is over the cap and trades a $5 million player, receiving in return a $6 million player and two players earning $1 million each on minimum-salary contracts. The team trading the $5 million player can accept only $6.35 million in return (125% plus $100,000 of $5 million), and the three in
