NBA salary cap exercise: What player would every team amnesty?

Chicago Bulls – Otto Porter

So this is the first one where there is a little cheating on the rules because technically we do not know for sure that Otto Porter is not entering free agency this summer. He has a player option remaining on his contract that is not officially picked up. But with $28.5 million on that line let’s operate under the assumption that that is a foregone conclusion.

It made complete sense when the Washington Wizards re-signed Porter to this contract. He was a young player who seemed to be on the rise and they were building a young nucleus that they wanted to keep together. They were a perennial playoff team looking to soon take the next step. The season after he was signed he had his best year yet, averaging 14.7 points, 6.4 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.5 steals. While definitely overpaid it was worth paying a premium to keep their young core together as they hoped to jump into the Conference Finals at long last.

That next step never happened. In fact, that season mentioned turned out to be his peak and he was traded in the middle of the following season to Chicago. He started off strong in the remaining 15 games he suited up for the Bulls, averaged 17.5 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.7 assists. This gave the team false hope coming into the current season. His numbers would plummet and so would his efficiency. He would be limited by injuries all season and only appeared in 14 games this year.

Truth be told Porter is still a fine player and is worth the rotation spot that he will take up and could end up being better next year with health. That being said you can likely get that sort of production on the open market for half the price the Bulls would be spending. Cutting their hefty payroll next season by $28.5 million is a huge change and would allow them to continue to build around their young core.