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How lucky is Keith Bogans? Very, very lucky

By Net Income
USA TODAY Sports

At some point in the negotiations that led up to the Celtics trade, Boston demanded the Nets take on Jason Terry's contract. (Some reports indicated the Nets had a choice of Terry or Courtney Lee). So the trade had to reworked a bit.

As Mark Deeks reports on ShamSport...

"Brooklyn could afford it and were prepared to pay it, but, in light of all their recent roster turnover, they didn't have the necessarily medium-size expiring contracts that are so useful in trade scenarios that would have facilitated it. In order to provide the necessary salary to match, then, they had to sign and trade someone. Into the breach steps (Keith) Bogans, who will now earn $5,058,198 in 2013-14"

How'd that happen? Bogans had never made more than $2.6 million in his career and he wasn't likely to more than the $1.4 million vets minimum this year. Well, it turns out that the Nets knew what they were doing when they brought Bogans back a year ago. Not only did they a productive season from the 32-year-old. They got a trade chip.

Under the CBA, Bogans got Early Bird Rights by being a member of the Nets for two straight years. "And with early Bird rights," Deeks writes, "You can re-sign your own free agents to a contract starting at the value of that season's Mid-Level exception." In this case, that meant the Nets could sign and trade Bogans to the Celtics. (Teams over the luxury tax can sign and trade their own free agents, just no accept players in an S&T.)

Bogans, asked to comment on it all at today's Celtic press conference, merely smiled and said, "no comment."

That's the short version. Deeks has the long one. Could the Nets do that again next year? Absolutely.

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