Article 11 FREE AGENCY

11.1 General Rules.

Subject to the provisions of Article VII, including, but not limited to, Article VII, Section 6(b): (a) a Free Agent (other than a Veteran Free Agent) is free at any time to negotiate and enter into a Player Contract with any Team; (b) a Veteran Free Agent is free at any time to negotiate and enter into a Player Contract with his Prior Team, and is free on or after the July 1 following the last Season covered by his Player Contract to negotiate and enter into a new Player Contract with any Team; (c) any Team may negotiate and sign a Player Contract with a Free Agent without any penalty or restriction. No compensation obligation of any kind to another Team, or right of first refusal of any kind, shall be applicable to any Free Agent.

11.2 No Individually-Negotiated Right of First Refusal.

  1. No Player Contract, or any Renegotiation, Extension, or amendment of a Player Contract, executed after the date of this Agreement, may include any individually negotiated right of first refusal or other limitation on player movement following the last Salary Cap Year covered by his Player Contract.
  2. No right of first refusal rule, practice, policy, regulation or agreement providing for a right of first refusal shall be applied to any player as a result of that player’s entry into a player contract with or the playing with any team in any professional basketball league other than the NBA.

11.3 Withholding Services.

A player who withholds playing services called for by a Player Contract for more than thirty (30) days after the start of the last Season covered by his Player Contract shall be deemed not to have “complet[ed] his Player Contract by rendering the playing services called for thereunder.” Accordingly, such a player shall not be a Veteran Free Agent and shall not be entitled to negotiate or sign a Player Contract with any other professional basketball team unless and until the Team for which the player last previously played expressly agrees otherwise.