How Teams Are Using 2026/27 Mid-Level Exceptions

In addition to receiving nearly $165MM in cap room and being allowed to surpass that threshold in order to sign players using Bird Rights or the minimum salary exception, each NBA team also receives a mid-level exception. The value of this exception varies depending on a club’s total team salary.

A team that goes under the cap to use its available cap room, for instance, receives a form of the MLE known as the room exception. An over-the-cap team receives the full mid-level exception, unless that team is also over the first tax apron ($209,015,000), in which case it gets a modest “taxpayer” version of the MLE. A team whose salary is over the second tax apron ($221,686,000) isn’t permitted to use its mid-level at all.

We detailed the exact values of each form of mid-level exception earlier this offseason, but here’s a quick breakdown:

• Room exception: Can be used for contracts up to three years, with a starting salary worth up to $9,366,000.
• Full/non-taxpayer mid-level exception: Can be used for contracts up to four years, with a starting salary worth up to $15,044,000.
  • Note: Though its name suggests otherwise, using the non-taxpayer mid-level exception doesn’t mean a team can’t or won’t be above the luxury tax line ($200,428,000) at season’s end; it simply means the team’s total salary can’t surpass the first tax apron ($209,015,000).
• Taxpayer mid-level exception: Can be used for contracts up to two years, with a starting salary worth up to $6,064,000.

Now that most of the NBA’s teams have used up their cap space, it’s worth keeping an eye on which clubs still have part or all of their mid-level exceptions available, which we’ll do in the space below.

This list will be kept up to date throughout the 2026/27 league year, with new MLE deals added once those signings (or trades) are officially completed and we confirm the contract details.

Note: After the 2027 trade deadline, the value of the exceptions below will begin to prorate downward.
 

Here’s where things currently stand:

Mid-Level Exception:

Non-taxpayer: $15,044,000
 Taxpayer: $6,064,000

Teams marked with an asterisk (*) technically have access to the full non-taxpayer mid-level exception but aren’t currently in position to use the entire thing without surpassing the first tax apron.

Atlanta Hawks