NBA sets 2013-14 salary cap, luxury tax figures

Adam Silver (left) will take over for David Stern (right) as NBA commissioner during the 2013-14 season. (Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

The NBA announced Tuesday that the 2013-14 salary cap will be $58.7 million, the luxury tax line will be $71.7 million and the salary cap floor will be $52.8 million.

The numbers are up slightly from the 2012-13 figures. Last season, the salary cap was set at $58 million and the luxury tax line was set at $70.3 million. Six teams exceeded the luxury tax line in 2012-13: the Lakers, Heat, Nets, Knicks, Bulls and Celtics.

Additionally, the 2013-14 non-taxpayer mid-level exception will be $5.2 million, the taxpayer mid-level exception will be $3.2 million and the mid-level for a team with room under the cap will be $2.7 million.

The new figures will go into effect at 12:01 a.m. ET Wednesday once the NBA's free agency moratorium is officially lifted. Teams have been able to talk to and negotiate contracts with players since July 1 but will not be able to officially consummate those deals until Wednesday.

The 2013-14 season also marks the beginning of the NBA's new, harsher luxury tax system, which includes graduated tax levels for teams that exceed the luxury tax line. In previous years, there was a simple dollar-for-dollar tax on salaries above the line. Here are the new, graduated brackets.

• Portion of team salary $0-$4.99 million over tax level:          $1.50 for $1
• Portion of team salary $5-$9.99 million over tax level:          $1.75 for $1
• Portion of team salary $10-$14.99 million over tax level:      $2.50 for $1
• Portion of team salary $15-$19.99 million over tax level:      $3.25 for $1
• Rates increase by $0.50 for each additional $5 million of team salary above the tax level.

NBA commissioner David Stern and deputy commissioner Adam Silver negotiated the new luxury tax system during the most recent round of collective bargaining agreement negotiations in 2011. Both the salary tax floor and the more punitive luxury tax system were implemented with the stated goal of increasing competitive balance.