Trail Blazers Receive Disabled Player Exception

The Portland Trail Blazers have been given some relief despite their injurious circumstances.

After a horrific injury to Trail Blazers’ small forward Rodney Hood ‑‑ the starter suffered a torn Achilles tendon a few weeks ago versus the Los Angeles Lakers on Dec. 6 ‑‑ the Northwest Division team will be granted a 2.859M disabled player exception, according to NBC Sports Northwest’s Dwight Jaynes.

Essentially what this means is the team can use half his salary to find a replacement player. And this money can be used for a one-year contract as well as an expiring contract that fits into the slot.

Still, with Portland having the highest payroll in the league, it wouldn’t be shocking if the Trail Blazers take their time with using the exception, as the organization will face huge tax penalties if the payroll is increased.

The 2.859M can be used in the buyout market, bidding against other teams that target specific players for the minimum salary.

From the Portland perspective, this is a huge deal as Hood was a very good player for their team. Averaging 11.4 points and 3.4 rebounds, the NBA small forward had a solid midrange game and was capable of driving all the way to the rim or even hit a 3 from anywhere on the court.

The team very much didn’t need Hood to go down, as the struggling 11-16 team weeks ago added soon-to-be Hall of Famer Carmelo Anthony, who before a month ago, didn’t play in the league in over a year.

Even with this addition, the team is in danger of missing the playoffs for the first time since the 2012-2013 season.

Written by Robert Magobet