Ricky Rubio and the Cleveland Cavaliers have made NBA history with what is known as “dead money.”
The Cleveland franchise has become the first team to make use of the ‘delayed stretch’ provision, which is allowed under the new NBA collective bargaining agreement.
Lebron James trash talks and fights with a fan
Jason Simpson explains in ‘Cavaliers Nation’ that the Cavaliers had a salary cap hit of just under $1.3 million for Ricky Rubio this season.
By utilizing the ‘delayed stretch,’ the Cavs will now have Rubio on their books for just over $400,000 per year through 2027.
While the Cavaliers will still pay Ricky Rubio the same amount of money, they can now spread the payments over three years, giving them some additional salary cap flexibility this season.
Under the previous collective bargaining agreement, a team could only use the stretch provision at the time they waived a player.
In this case, the Cavs chose to extend Ricky Rubio‘s contract, even though he was cut in January, hence the term ‘delayed stretch.’
When and Why Did Ricky Rubio Leave the NBA?
In July 2022, Ricky Rubio signed a three-year, $18.4 million contract with Cleveland.
Rubio played 33 games for the Cavaliers during the 2022-2023 season, averaging 5.2 points and 3.5 assists, until he had his contract terminated by Cleveland on January 4, 2024.
The NBA’s First ‘Delayed Stretch’
“The NBA witnessed its first ‘delayed stretch’… a team can opt to stretch ‘dead money,'” tweeted Keith Smith of Spotrac.
The Cleveland Cavaliers took the $1.3 million in dead money from Ricky Rubio‘s contract and spread it over three years, turning it into $425,000 per season.
The Cavs are now around $10.6 million under the luxury tax threshold, not accounting for Isaac Okoro‘s Qualifying Offer (QO).
With Okoro‘s QO included, Cleveland is around $1.2 million above the luxury tax line for 13 players on standard contracts.
