How much of a $2M signing bonus is accelerated if a player is released on April 2 of Year 3 of a 4-year deal?

When a player is signed to a contract that includes a signing bonus, that bonus is typically prorated over the life of the contract for salary cap purposes. In this case, a $2 million signing bonus for a 4-year deal would mean that $500,000 of the bonus is allocated to each year of the contract ($2 million divided by 4 years).

If the player is released during the third year of the deal, the prorated portion of the signing bonus for the years that have already been completed must be accounted for. By the end of Year 2, $1 million ($500,000 for Year 1 and $500,000 for Year 2) of the signing bonus has already been counted against the salary cap.

Upon the player's release on April 2 of Year 3, the remaining prorated amount for Year 3, which is another $500,000, will also accelerate onto the salary cap. Therefore, the total amount of the signing bonus that accelerates due to the release is the $1 million already counted plus the $500,000 for Year 3, totaling $1 million.

This aligns with the correct answer, which indicates that $1 million of the signing bonus is accelerated when the