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The Big D Breakdown · Cap watch

Cap Watch: Dallas Buys Room Now, Owes It Back in 2027

Payroll sits $2.5M under the tax line, but next summer's raises and unpaid draft debts loom larger.

$197.9MTeam Payrollover the cap, under the tax
$200.4MLuxury Tax Line$2.5M of room left
$42.4MIrving 2027-28 Optionplayer option, more raises follow
$209.0MFirst Apronnot in play yet
By the Mavericks Nightly Desk · Sunday, September 20

Dallas carries $197.9M in salary across 18 contracts, $2.5M under the $200.4M luxury tax line and comfortably below the $209.0M first apron. The bigger squeeze lands in 2027-28, when Kyrie Irving's $42.4M player option and raises for P.J. Washington, Daniel Gafford and Zaccharie Risacher hit together, while three future second-round picks are already owed to the Clippers and the Nets.

$197.9M: Team Payroll

The Room They're Sitting On

Dallas enters camp at $197.9M in salary against a $165.0M cap and a $200.4M tax line, leaving $2.5M of space before the first tax bill would kick in. Hoops Rumors reported the Mavericks are expected to sign Dwight Powell, a move that would chip into that cushion once it's official. Even with that addition, the $209.0M first apron and $221.7M second apron stay well out of reach for this group.

The 2027-28 Squeeze

Next summer brings real decisions. Irving holds a $42.4M player option, Washington's salary climbs to $21.4M, Gafford's rises to $18.1M and Risacher's jumps to $17.4M. Aldama's $17.0M turns into a team option the front office has to decide on too. Stack those numbers together and the payroll bill a year from now is already shaping up heavier than the one Dallas is carrying today.

Picks Already Spoken For

Dallas doesn't own a clean, unprotected first-round pick anywhere between 2027 and 2030 — the 2027 first is protected to Charlotte, and the 2028, 2029 and 2030 firsts are tied up in swaps. Add three second-rounders already promised away, the 2028 to the Clippers and both the 2029 and 2030 to the Nets, and the draft cupboard offers little extra leverage if this front office needs a trade chip later.

Are the Mavericks over the salary cap this season?

Yes. Dallas carries $197.9M in salary against a $165.0M cap, though that total sits $2.5M below the $200.4M luxury tax line.

What happens to Kyrie Irving's contract in 2027-28?

Irving holds a $42.4M player option for 2027-28, one of several raises — alongside Washington, Gafford and Risacher — that push Dallas's payroll higher than it sits right now.

By the Mavericks Nightly Desk, written from the club's data and the reports on file, with every name and number checked against them. How the desks work.

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