The NBA has delivered teams a new salary cap projection of $101 million for next season - a number that has dropped about $2 million from the last projection in October - sources told The Vertical's Adrian Wojnarowski.
The tax level will rise to $121 million as a result, reports Wojnarowski.
This year's salary cap was set at $94.1 million, with a tax level of $113 million. Before this season began, the league had projected the 2017-18 cap to be at $103 million, although it's not uncommon for the figures to fluctuate somewhat.
The new collective bargaining agreement between owners and players takes effect July 1. Next season also marks year two of the riches reaped from the league's $24-billion TV contract with TNT and ABC/ESPN.
The rising high water mark will push up the value of max contracts this summer, but the most significant wrinkle of the new CBA are the new "supermax" deals that a handful of elite free agents - such as Stephen Curry - would be able to sign with their original teams, paying them up to 35 percent of the cap.
While still far off, the 2018-19 cap and tax is expected to be in $102 million and $124 million, according to USA Today's Jeff Zilgitt.
