Nets' seemingly harmless decision dampers ability to trade Cameron Johnson

Simple incentives can create serious hurdles for teams concerned with the apron.

Nets forward Cameron Johnson is attracting more suitors than any other player on the market ahead of the Feb. 6 trade deadline, but $4.5 million in unlikely bonuses tied to his contract (bringing his total apron hit to $27 million) could stall some negotiations across the league. Although not a massive difference at first glance, it makes a three-team trade necessary in many scenarios involving Johnson, as more than half of the league is hard-capped at either the first ($178,132,000) or second ($188,931,000) apron. 

The NBA Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) in 2011 introduced the first apron, above the luxury tax, in an attempt to address competitive and financial concerns by penalizing high-spending franchises. Those restrictions were later revised and expanded in the 2023 CBA with the addition of the second apron, significantly impacting how front offices are able to utilize exceptions, draft assets, sign-and-trades, buyouts and more.

Finalizing deals in the NBA is hard enough as it is without adding extra variables into the fold, and while that doesn’t make a Johnson trade any less inevitable, it’s not as easy as some rumors may lead you to believe. General manager Sean Marks is clearly hunting cap space, young talent and first-round picks, so teams will have to think outside the box if they expect to pry this breakout contributor from the Nets for a playoff push or title contention.

Johnson is sidelined momentarily due to a right ankle sprain suffered in an upset win over Milwaukee on Jan. 2, which Brooklyn says will be reevaluated prior to the team’s West Coast road trip that runs Jan. 10-19 against the Nuggets, Jazz, Trail Blazers, Clippers, Lakers and Thunder. The 28-year-old, six-year veteran looks better than ever this season, averaging a career-best 19.5 points per game and converting on 43.6 percent of his three-point attempts.

Oklahoma City, Sacramento, Memphis and Indiana, among multiple others, have been discussed as potential trade destinations. Brooklyn is willing to part ways with Johnson, who has two years and $43 million remaining on his deal beyond 2024-25, but only if it gets the organization closer to its ultimate goal of acquiring a star player this summer.

Considering what Marks is steadily accumulating for a massive 2025 offseason, the Nets can essentially chase any player that ends up on the trading block or decides to test free agency.