…and it’s quite a bit higher than originally projected.

The New York Knicks and other teams hoarding salary-cap space got some good news Friday when they were told at the league’s Board of Governors meeting that the projected 2010-11 salary cap will be $56.1 million.

That figure was $2 million to $3 million more than most teams had been expecting, and for the Knicks it ensures they have enough cap space this summer to sign two maximum-salary free agents.

Other teams that will be positively affected by Friday’s news include the Nets, Heat, Wizards, Bulls, Clippers and Timberwolves.

The NBA warned that the cap number might be as low as $50 million to $53 million, so this is good news for all the teams looking to cash in their cap space for a good free agent or two this summer. Check that — since they’re all way under the cap, it really doesn’t matter to those teams. It’s great news for the players, who will now find that there are now nine teams with at least $14 million in cap space heading into this summer. In essence, that’s an extra $22.5 million for just those nine teams. That list includes three playoff teams — Miami ($43.6 M, assuming Wade opts out), Chicago ($20.5 M) and Oklahoma City ($14.0 M).

This news may not matter much to big name free agents like LeBron or Dwyane Wade, who are going to get max contracts no matter where they go, but second-tier players like David Lee or Rudy Gay should definitely benefit from the extra available money that will be thrown around.

Photo from fOTOGLIF