Full Nassir Little contract details reveal Heat's salary cap magic

The Miami Heat are signing Nassir Little to a one-year deal, as first reported by TNT’s Chris Haynes. It’s a surprising move because of where the Heat are against the luxury tax, but it appears they have a plan.

Little, the 25th pick in the 2019 draft, has been a free agent since he was waived by the Phoenix Suns last month. The 24-year-old appeared in 45 games last season and averaged 3.4 points and 1.7 rebounds in 10.2 minutes per game. By the end of the season, he was no longer part of the nightly rotation.

At 6-foot-5 with high-end athleticism, Little has similar physical traits to Caleb Martin, who left for the Philadelphia 76ers in free agency. The Heat also have Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Haywood Highsmith to help replace Martin’s minutes.

Little worked out for several playoff teams earlier this month, including the Heat, Boston Celtics, Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings.

At that point, I wrote that it was unlikely the Heat would sign Little.

"The chances of Little earning a roster spot with the Heat seem slim. With 14 players on fully guaranteed contracts, the Heat have an open roster spot but would cross the second luxury tax apron line by adding a 15th player. The Heat still have open training camp spots and can swap out two-way contracts without impacting the salary cap, but it’s unclear if Little would be willing to accept such a deal."

The Heat's signing of Nassir Little won't take them into the second tax apron.

Little isn’t eligible for a two-way contract because of his years of service and this isn’t a training camp deal, according to multiple reports. Instead, Little will be the 15th man on the Heat’s roster after signing a partially guaranteed contract.

Now this is where things get complicated. According to multiple reports, the signing won’t take the Heat past the punitive second luxury tax apron.

The Heat were $1.6 million below the second apron before the signing. Little is eligible for a minimum salary starting at $2.4 million, which would normally take the Heat past the apron. However, because the deal isn’t fully guaranteed, the Heat remain a first-apron team.

Teams have until the end of the season to get under the second luxury tax, so as long as the Heat waive Little (or make another move to reduce payroll) before the end of the season, they can avoid the second tax apron. Here’s an explainer, courtesy of ESPN’s Bobby Marks.

It appears the Heat will waive Little or make another payroll-reducing move by Jan. 7 to avoid going into the second tax, which would prevent them from aggregating players in trades, along with other roster-building restrictions.

Heat GM Andy Elisburg is known for his cap wizardry and as many teams navigate the new salary-cap structure, he seems to have found something of a loophole. 

With this deal, Little will have a chance to improve as part of the Heat’s development program and compete for a role.