Hawks, Ersan Ilyasova Finalize Buyout

5:50pm: Ilyasova plans to sign a veteran’s minimum contract with the Sixers for the rest of the season once he clears waivers, Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports tweets.

3:05pm: The Hawks have officially waived Ilyasova, per a team release. He’s on track to clear waivers on Wednesday, at which point he’d be free to sign with the Sixers.

2:42pm: The Hawks and veteran forward Ersan Ilyasova have finalized their buyout agreement, reports Michael Cunningham of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Twitter link). The team is expected to formally announce Ilyasova’s release soon.

We first heard last Friday that the Hawks were nearing a buyout for Ilyasova. While it took a few days for the two sides to make the agreement official, it was always expected to happen. In fact, Ilyasova has already worked on lining up a new team for after he clears waivers — a Sunday report indicated that he intends to return to the Sixers.

Ilyasova, 30, has had a solid year with the Hawks, averaging 10.9 PPG and 5.5 RPG in 46 contests (25.5 MPG). The stretch four has a shooting line of .459/.359/.800. All of those numbers are in the general ballpark of his career averages.

After they waive Ilyasova, the Hawks will be left with just 13 players on their NBA roster, meaning they’ll once again have to get back up to 14 players, the league-mandated minimum. Atlanta left itself with 13 players after buying out Marco Belinelli earlier this month, and eventually signed Antonius Cleveland to a 10-day contract to get back to 14.

As for the Sixers, Belinelli ended up on their roster after being bought out by the Hawks, filling their final open roster spot. Philadelphia will have to cut a player to officially sign Ilyasova.