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Aschburner: New Amnesty Rule In Effect

(WSCR) The new NBA collective bargaining agreement means more than just basketball's return to Chicago.

With the new CBA in place, one unique rule is now is in effect: the amnesty rule, which allows teams to essentially cut one player (with pay) so the remaining money on their contract no longer affects the salary cap.

"The general rule is that someone who is on your current roster, who was signed before the lockout began, is eligible to be amnestied," Steve Aschburner of NBA.com told The McNeil and Spiegel Show. "That means they would come off your salary cap number -- they would come off any tax liability. You still have to pay them, but you'd be paying them as if they're just not part of the basketball team anymore."

LISTEN: Steve Aschburner on The Boers and Bernstein Show

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For the rest of this interview and other 670 The Score interviews click here.

While the deal may be attractive to some fans who would like to see underachieving players out of the picture, Aschburner said it's unlikely many teams will actually take advantage of the new rule.

"I think the majority of NBA teams will not use that," he said. "For one thing, if it doesn't get you below the salary cap, then it's of limited value. Another thing, for general managers, that's a very bold admission that they made a mistake on somebody. General managers are not prone to want to admit that either."

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