Bobcats Waive Patrick O’Bryant
The Bobcats have waived center Patrick O’Bryant, the team announced via press release. The former ninth overall pick was in camp with Charlotte on a non-guaranteed deal. The release, sent via email, states that the club now has 16 players on its roster, but the 16 guys listed on the roster that appears on the team’s website include O’Bryant, so the team seems to be down to 15 players.
O’Bryant washed out of the league after four seasons, the first two of which he spent with the Warriors, the team that used its 2006 lottery pick on him. The 7-footer appeared in a total of just 90 NBA regular season games, averaging 2.1 points in 5.8 minutes per contest. He was well-traveled after the Raptors let him go in 2010, playing in Puerto Rico, Greece, Lithuania and the D-League before finally getting another chance this month in Charlotte. Though he grabbed five rebounds in his one-game, six-minute preseason stint, it wasn’t enough to make the Bobcats opening-night roster.
The ‘Cats could open the season with the 15 players they have, but they could also make two more cuts. Jeff Adrien and James Southerland figure to be the most likely to go, since neither of them has a guarantee on his deal. Jannero Pargo‘s contract is partially guaranteed for $300K.
Bobcats Release Abdul Gaddy, Troy Daniels
The Bobcats released a pair of camp invitees today, according to Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer, who tweets that Abdul Gaddy and Troy Daniels have been waived. The pair of cuts reduces Charlotte’s roster count to 16 players.
Both Gaddy and Daniels went undrafted in June before playing for the Bobcats’ Summer League squad in July. Gaddy, out of Washington, and Daniels, a VCU product, were both believed to be on fully non-guaranteed contracts, so Charlotte won’t be on the hook for their salaries.
Assuming the Bobcats’ 12 fully guaranteed players and Jannero Pargo ($300K guaranteed) make the roster, that leaves up to two potential openings for Patrick O’Bryant, James Southerland, and Jeff Adrien. O’Bryant, a 7’0″ center, may have seen his chances at a roster spot increase today when the team announced Brendan Haywood would be sidelined for the next 12 weeks after being diagnosed with a stress fracture in his left foot that will require surgery.
Patrick O’Bryant To Camp With Bobcats
The Bobcats have added another experienced NBA veteran to their training camp mix this fall. Sources close to the situation tell Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld (on Twitter) that Patrick O'Bryant will be in camp with Charlotte.
O'Bryant made it known back in July that he was seeking an NBA opportunity but he wasn't getting any bites at that stage of the offseason. The ninth overall pick in the 2006 Draft, who last appeared in the NBA with the Raptors in 2009/10, was only getting interest from overseas teams at the time. Now, he'll at least have a puncher's chance of getting a job in the Association this year.
The 27-year-old spent last season with Lithuania's Lietuvos Rytas. In parts of four NBA seasons, the big man averaged 2.1 PPG and 1.4 RPG for the Warriors, Celtics, and Raptors.
Odds & Ends: World Peace, Jennings, Barbosa
- Brandon Jennings is no lock to return to the Bucks, tweets Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times, who says the team is still looking at other point guards.
- The Mavs won't comment on a Brazilian report that the team has been in contact with free agent Leandro Barbosa, notes Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News.
- The Rockets have drawn mention as one of the front-runners for Marcus Camby this week, and agent Rick Kaplan confirms to Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston that the team is a leading candidate, referring to Houston as Camby's "adopted hometown" (All Twitter links).
- Patrick O'Bryant, the ninth overall pick in the 2006 draft, is hoping to return to the NBA, but he's only drawn interest from foreign clubs so far the summer, reports Shams Charania of RealGM.com. O'Bryant last appeared in the Association with the Raptors in 2008/09.
- Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov will likely lose upwards of $50MM this year as he presides over an NBA-record expenditure on the team's roster, writes Kurt Badenhausen of Forbes.com (hat tip to Nets Daily).
- Shaun Powell of Sports on Earth previews next year's star-laden free agent class, arguing that no team has greater stakes on the outcome of the summer of 2014 than the Lakers do.
- Mark Madsen earned a quick promotion after the Lakers hired him in May to coach their D-League team. The Lakers today officially named Madsen and Larry Lewis as assistants on coach Mike D'Antoni's staff.
Odds & Ends: Lazenby, O’Bryant, Hibbert
- There is no timetable for Clippers guard/forward Grant Hill's return to action (he has been out after suffering a bone bruise in his right knee on October 14th), although an MRI on Friday revealed that his condition hadn't worsened (Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times reports).
- Kent Youngblood of the Star Tribune mentions that Timberwolves guard Alexey Shved is starting to become more comfortable playing in the NBA: "It's so different here from Europe, it takes time…I feel pretty good. Now I'm starting to know what I can do."
- Eric Patten of NBA.com makes note of DeAndre Jordan's development and it has been an important cog in the Clippers' offense.
- Greg Stiemsma credits Al Jefferson and Kevin Garnett as two players who have helped with his development as an NBA player, writes Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune.
- Although Timberwolves guard Brandon Roy was removed from the lineup tonight because of knee soreness, coach Rick Adelman says that he won't be overly concerned for now and hopes that it's just a minor setback (Scott Powers of ESPN Chicago reports).
- Former Warriors lottery-pick Patrick O'Bryant is headed abroad, as Sportando.net reports that he has been officially signed by Tiburones de Vargas of the National Basketball League of Venezuela.