All of you who are saying the luxury tax is no big deal. All of you are dead wrong. Let's get this straight...
First OKC is a small market team... high popularity but small market. The TV contracts they get are compared to say the Lakers are 10 fold worse. So clearly OKC can't go that high into the tax.

Second, under the new CBA, which starts being enforced this year, the cap is going to be enforced heavier. This season you still pay a $1 to $1 tax. Starting next season if you are a repeat offender (which OKC will be) the tax jumps to $1.5 to $1. If that extends another year you pay $3 to every $1. And so on from there.

So just projecting this out, if OKC does in fact match a max deal for Harden (which some idiotic team will pay him) their salary just with KD, Russel, Harden, and Perk will be about $60 mil. Mind you they still need to fill 9 other spots which they will pay $1-$3 mil per spot if they want to have a decent team besides 3 guys. The cap for this year is $58 mil and descending. This means in the end OKC will pay about $10 mil in tax this season with 4 guys and 9 guys on vet. minimum (not happening).

By year 3 OKC will be paying over $30 mil in tax. And keep in mind KD needs to be re-upped for a bigger contract (will be about $21-$25 mil.). And the year after Russell needs re-upped (will be about $18-$20 mil.) Plus the tax multiplies higher and higher each year.

What I'm saying is that teams like OKC are going to need to start watching their spending. And its not just OKC. If D12 re-ups for a max this year, the Lakers will be paying over $40 MILLION by year 2 in tax! Now they have massive TV contracts so thats justified but OKC cannot afford the same thing. Harden will not re-up with OKC and if he does they will be a shi**y team with 3 dudes and scrubs or go bankrupt.