MONDAY, 9:34am: Philadelphia acquired Smith via waiver claim, doing so Saturday instead of Sunday, according to the RealGM transactions log.
SUNDAY, 4:56pm: The Sixers confirmed both moves via press release, referring to Smith’s acquisition as a signing. That makes sense given the timing, since Smith would have cleared waivers Saturday.
4:40pm: To make room for Smith, the Sixers have waived Malcolm Thomas, according to Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer (on Twitter).
Thomas signed a four-year, non-guaranteed deal for the minimum salary with Philly back in December. The deal was similar to the one he had just signed in October with the club, though that pact gave him a $474K partial guarantee.
Thomas, 26, appeared in 17 games for the Sixers this season, averaging 2.6 PPG and 3.3 RPG in 11.4 minutes per contest. Over parts of four seasons in the NBA, Thomas has appeared in a grand total of 40 games with averages of 1.9 PPG and 2.4 RPG.
4:24pm: The Sixers have claimed guard Ish Smith off waivers, a league source told Chris Haynes of Cleveland.com (via Twitter). The guard was waived by the Pelicans late last week.
Of course, Smith’s stay in New Orleans was incredibly short-lived. The Pelicans acquired Smith from the Thunder in one of the less-heralded deadline day trades. In the swap, New Orleans received Smith, the rights to Latavious Williams, cash considerations, and a 2016 protected second round choice. OKC made the deal to get their roster count to the league maximum of 15 players.
Smith appeared in 30 games this season for the Thunder, averaging 1.2 points, 0.9 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game. Since going undrafted out of Wake Forest back in 2010, Smith has appeared in 221 career games for the Suns, Magic, Rockets, Bucks and Grizzlies, averaging 2.7 points, 1.9 assists and 1.4 rebounds. His career slash line is .388/.216/.581.