NBA training camp usually begins in late September or early October, but several teams still have work to do before they are fully ready for the 2025\u201326 season.<\/p>\n
The majority of teams are done with their rosters and are preparing for training camp. The final month before camp often determines which fringe players stick around and which veterans find a home if they are still in free agency.<\/p>\n
Teams like the Brooklyn Nets, Charlotte Hornets, Milwaukee Bucks, and Utah Jazz must cut one to three players before finalizing their rosters for the season. Each situation is unique, but the Nets and Hornets seem to have their work cut out for them in September and October.<\/p>\n
Time to Get Busy in Brooklyn:<\/p>\n
Brooklyn stands as the lone NBA team with remaining cap space. They have not yet crossed the minimum salary threshold, which requires teams to spend at least 90 percent of the salary cap, and they still need to finalize the contracts of Ziaire Williams<\/a> and Day\u2019Ron Sharpe<\/a>.<\/p>\n Haywood Highsmith is on an expiring $5.6M contract.<\/p>\n Including the $12.1M Cam Thomas free agent hold, Brooklyn is $22M below the salary cap.<\/p>\n They have until Oct. 21 to reach 90% of the salary cap.<\/p>\n \u2014 Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) August 15, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n After acquiring Haywood Highsmith<\/a> from the Miami Heat, they have between $14 million and $22 million in available space, depending on the Williams and Sharpe deals. If they fail to reach the minimum salary threshold, they lose the league\u2019s luxury tax distribution, which goes to non-taxpaying teams. ESPN\u2019s Bobby Marks confirmed this in a conversation we had on Twitter\/X.<\/p>\n Roster Maneuvering<\/p>\n Along with the cap space issues, Brooklyn\u2019s roster is far from finalized. Once the Nets sign Williams and Sharpe, they will have 17 players on the active roster. With Cam Thomas<\/a> taking his $6 million qualifying offer<\/a>, the roster grew to 18 players. The easiest way to fix the overload is to cut players with non-guaranteed or partially guaranteed contracts.<\/p>\n Drew Timme<\/a> and Tyrese Martin<\/a> have non-guaranteed deals. Keon Johnson<\/a> has $271,614 guaranteed, and Jalen Wilson<\/a> has $88,075 guaranteed. Timme, Martin, and Johnson appear to be the likely candidates for the Nets to waive, since Wilson was drafted by Brooklyn and has shown more upside.<\/p>\n Cleaning up the Charlotte Hornets:<\/p>\n The Hornets currently have 18 players on their roster, three over the NBA limit of 15.<\/p>\n Charlotte holds non-guaranteed contracts with DaQuan Jeffries<\/a> and Moussa Diabate<\/a>. The Hornets should keep Diabate, who has shown real promise as a versatile big man capable of contributing in a starting role. His non-guaranteed contract is more like a guaranteed contract because of the Hornets\u2019 lack of center depth and how impactful he has been.<\/p>\n \ud83c\udf99\ufe0f @FredKatz<\/a>: “\u2026they have Moussa Diabate, who, honestly, I’m kind of obsessed with watching because he is the most fun.”<\/p>\n “He’s not the best rebounder in the league, but he’s the most fun rebounder in the league because he’s completely and utterly unhinged. He just absolutely\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/GB9RitHnQL<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 r\/CharlotteHornets on Reddit (@HornetsReddit) August 1, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n Jeffries looks like the odd man out for the Hornets; he came over in the Karl-Anthony Towns<\/a> sign-and-trade with the New York Knicks last offseason. Pat Connaughton<\/a>, acquired in exchange for Vasilije Micic<\/a> earlier in the offseason, faces uncertainty; however, his long-time relationship<\/a> with head coach Charles Lee<\/a>, who was an assistant with the Bucks, could help secure his spot.<\/p>\n Charlotte will likely need to make a trade to trim their roster because they have 16 guaranteed contracts. Josh Green<\/a> and Nick Smith Jr.<\/a> stand out as the most realistic trade chips, given the team\u2019s guard-heavy depth chart. A two-for-one or three-for-one deal would make sense, but if the Hornets cannot find a trade partner, waiving Smith Jr. and Connaughton appear to be the most likely outcomes.<\/p>\n Cutting One More Player:<\/p>\n The Milwaukee Bucks and Utah Jazz each have 16 players on their rosters.<\/p>\n Milwaukee recently signed Thanasis Antetokounmpo<\/a> to a one-year league-minimum deal. Because of this move, the Bucks must waive or trade a player to finalize the signing. Not long ago, Amir Coffey<\/a> also joined the Bucks on a training camp deal. If Milwaukee wants to add him to the roster, the team would need to part with another player.<\/p>\n I’m interested to see how Milwaukee handles their roster. They have 15 players on standard contracts already. Andre Jackson Jr’s deal is $800K guaranteed and becomes fully guaranteed opening night. Amir Coffey is on a camp deal.<\/p>\n To keep both Coffey and Thanasis Antetokounmpo,\u2026<\/p>\n \u2014 Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) August 31, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n The Bucks could cut former second-round pick Andre Jackson Jr.<\/a>, who has a partially guaranteed contract worth $800,000. His deal started as non-guaranteed, but the Bucks later extended his guarantee date, giving him the option to partially guarantee some money for 2025-26.<\/p>\n Housekeeping in Utah<\/p>\n The Utah Jazz also need to get their roster to 15 players. They have a couple of options. <\/p>\n One option is to waive KJ Martin<\/a>, who is on a non-guaranteed contract. Another option is to work out a buyout with recently acquired Kevin Love<\/a>. The buyout situation with Love is tricky. Why would Utah give him money if he does not have a clear future in the league at his age? Love could refuse a buyout and wait for the Jazz to eventually waive him instead.<\/p>\n