The money on this deal just doesn't work. First thing first you'd need to sign Hayward (creating space by declining all nonguaranteed deals and moving a salary that is as high as Smart's or higher - due to the later trade needing tons of salary, Smart is the best choice for this). Then you need to come up with salary to match Melo+Porzingis in a deal. Given that they make ~$30 million combined, you're looking at ~$24 million on outgoing salary. AB+Crowder gets you to $15.6 million. We would still need to add another $8.4 million. The only way to do that is either including Horford (in which case you can take AB/Crowder out of the deal), or including 2 of IT/Brown/Tatum (in addition to AB+Crowder)
So while it's technically possible, the only way to do this deal is to way overpay for Porzingis and absolutely gut our team. So, no, taking on Melo would not make Porzingis cheaper to acquire (unless we don't sign a FA and can absorb Melo into cap space)
Porzingis and Melo combined makes a little less than 29$ mill. Crowder and Bradley makes 15$, plus Smart $4 mill and Zeller $8 mill that makes 27$. Add in Demetrius and Mickey that's make $29. That's a match.
That's not how it works. Zeller and Mickey would need to be renounced and you are leaving off Carmelo's trade kicker which I mentioned in my post on the 1st page. You only need to match salaries to 125%, though, so not all hope is lost...but it is mostly lost.
Renounce to sign Hayward or make the trade?
To sign Hayward. A Melo/Porzingis trade would have to come later since we are barely able to match as it is. If/when we sign Hayward, our depth chart will have gotten a lot younger. That is why it will be important to use the room exception, vet min contracts wisely.
Salary for next year with Zeller and co & Olynyk qualifying offer is $72 mill. If we don't extend him it dips at 68, salary cap is 99 mill and Gordon Max is 30 mill. Can make the trade but won't be able to sign the rook and Zizic unless Hayward takes a pay cut. How that trade kicker work?
I think Zizic is with our team next year under any circumstance (as well, as Tatum, of course). It would certainly be delightful if Hayward would come even at a minimal discount, but we can't count on that.
Melo's salary next year is $26.24M and the total trade kicker is $8.1M, but it can be spread out over two seasons if Melo agrees in writing to become a free agent in 2019.
Okay thanks for explaining. Is there a possibility to create a small TPE say by sending them Crowder first for an heavily protected second round pick then absorb Zingis salary with the TPE?
Theoretically, yes, but that would make the deal harder to put together, not easier
How?
If Crowder's salary is used to create a trade exception and bring in Porzingis, then you get $4.5 million in for the $7.8 million you sent out. If you use him in a big deal for Melo and Porzingis, you can use 125% of his salary, getting you $9.7 million in for the $7.8 million out. It makes the salary matching easier.
And before you ask, no, we cannot trade him for a trade exception instead of trading Smart (as the salary clearing transaction to sign Hayward), and then use the trade exception on Porzingis. In order to clear the cap space for signing Hayward, that trade exception would need to be renounced