Yup, two guys you could totally see getting amnestied. In fact, it’s times like these I wish we could buy amnesty clauses.
Andrea Bargnani, Toronto Raptors: New GM Masai Ujiri wants Bargnani gone, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com, and a shy trade market could force him to consider alternative options for unloading the problematic forward. That Bargnani is owed $22.3 million over the next two years might make him an amnesty long shot, but given his pitiful play and lowly standing with the team, his release is at least conceivable. That would be a lot of money for the Raptors to concede just to rid themselves of a once-valuable player, but any decision to amnesty Bargnani would undoubtedly come as a comparative option to the luxury-tax bill Toronto would otherwise face with him on the books.
Linas Kleiza, Toronto Raptors: Another potential impediment to amnestying Bargnani is the presence of an even less useful player — this one in the final year of his deal. Kleiza is set to make $4.6 million next season, and he doesn’t seem very tradeable given his recent run of injuries and largely depressing play. If the Raptors can get something — anything — for Bargnani via trade, they may pursue that end and save their one use of the amnesty provision for Kleiza.
