This is almost word-for-word how I feel about it, sans the punishment as I do not believe it will be that steep. I believe there will be a fake punishment, like when people trade a fake first to save face.
Ultimately, it's not in the league's interest to pursue this because the more it's publicized and the more they demonstrate that it was egregious, the more this raises question of it being a microcosm. It's better to convey how everything's above-board and this is just media misinformation and things taken out of context. Of course they won't come out and say that, but they'll give subtle framing to help nudge that idea along through unofficial channels, while "officially" taking the "disciplinary" approach with whatever fake punishment. But yes, if it were another franchise like us or Minnesota, the hammer comes down, a la flopping fines and... Reggie Evans.
Somewhere I had read what the current policy is on salary cap circumvention and first offense is quite mild. Obviously this is much more blatant and shady than what McHale and Minnesota did with Joe Smith, but they'll be able to hide behind the technical letter of the law and "hey, we did what it says." And probably the bigger issue with this is the precedent it sets, and those favored or protected franchises can move forward with BS (not just salary cap stuff) while other franchises have to have model behavior in an environment that disfavors them and will be happy to make an example of them.
It sucks when you're Reggie Evans.
