The NBA calendar is full of important dates from mid-December to mid-February. On December 15, the trade window unofficially opens, as the vast majority of players signed that offseason can be traded. On January 5, teams can sign 10-Day contract. This was tweaked this season, due to so many teams having players in the health and safety protocols.
January 7 is the final day to waive a player before all contracts become fully guaranteed on January 10. And of course, mid-February (February 10 this season) features the trade deadline.
In between looms January 15. This is an important date for a couple of reasons. It’s the last day teams can apply for a disabled player exception to replace players out for the rest of the season. It’s also usually the deadline to sign players to a Two-Way Contract. This season, because of the COVID related absences, Two-Way rules have been tweaked and there will be no deadline.
Most importantly: January 15 is the final big trade restriction date for offseason signees.
Unlike the December 15 restriction, when most free agents signed in the summer can be dealt, the January 15 trade restriction only applies to players who were re-signed in the offseason. And of that group, it only applies to select individuals.
When a player is re-signed using Bird or Early Bird rights to a contract that is 20% or greater than their previous deal AND their team is over the cap, those players can’t be traded until January 15. This is because those contracts tie to Base Year Compensation rules, which impact how a BYC player’s salary works in trade. In effect, it’s an additional blocker that keeps teams from re-signing and player and immediately trading them.
Once January 15 (or three months after the player re-signed) hits, that restriction is lifted and those players can be traded. Here’s a list of players who become trade eligible on January 15:
- Jarrett Allen – Cleveland Cavaliers
- Bruce Brown Jr – Brooklyn Nets
- John Collins – Atlanta Hawks
- Terence Davis – Sacramento Kings
- Hamidou Diallo – Detroit Pistons
- Josh Hart – New Orleans Pelicans
- Richaun Holmes – Sacramento Kings
- Talen Horton-Tucker – Los Angeles Lakers
- Reggie Jackson – LA Clippers
- Furkan Korkmaz – Philadelphia 76ers
- T.J. McConnell – Indiana Pacers
- Jordan McLaughlin – Minnesota Timberwolves
- David Nwaba – Houston Rockets
- Duncan Robinson – Miami Heat
- Derrick Rose – New York Knicks
- Cameron Payne – Phoenix Suns
- Norman Powell – Portland Trail Blazers
- Gary Trent Jr. – Toronto Raptors
- Jarred Vanderbilt – Minnesota Timberwolves
A handful of the players listed above have been prominently mentioned in trade rumors, including Hart, Holmes, Horton-Tucker and Powell. It’s important to keep in mind that you may hear their names mentioned in the rumor mill now, but it’s still a bit before those players can actually be moved.
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