State of the Cap: Overview

Salary Cap Grading Criteria:

The following factors were used when determining a grade for each team's State of the Cap:

How many bad contracts does the team have? An overpaid player with a long-term contract is a strike against the team. Conversely, an underpaid player will factor favorably towards the team.

How far over/under the salary cap is the team? Are they over by a little? A lot? Do they have an abundance of cap room?

How successful is the team? Is the team winning or losing despite being over the cap?

How quickly and easily can the team change their fortunes? Is the team in debt for decades or is there a salary dump after next season that gets them in the clear? Do they have any prospects that could blossom and improve the team?

The grades are a reflection on the general state of the team in regards to their salary cap and performance. A team like the Charlotte Bobcats is going to rate highly because of their low player salaries and collection of young talent, despite their poor record. A team like Indiana, even though they had a better record than the Bobcats, will rate much lower because of their poor cap situation and poor team performance considering the players on their roster.