Mavericks Waive Sean Williams
The Mavericks have requested waivers on Sean Williams, according to a team release. The move reduces the team's roster to 14 players.
Williams, 25, signed with the Mavs prior to the season on a two-year contract worth the minimum salary. While Dallas will be on the hook for the rest of his salary for this season, the second year of the deal was nonguaranteed.
Williams was up and down between the Mavericks and the team's D-League affiliate in Austin this season. The former 17th overall pick averaged 3.6 PPG and 1.6 RPG in eight contests for the Mavs, and 14.7 PPG, 8.5 RPG, and 2.5 BPG in 24 games for the D-League's Texas Legends.
With an empty roster spot, the Mavs could be eyeing a replacement for Williams. They reportedly had interest in Ryan Hollins, though it appears Hollins will sign with the Celtics.
Thunder Sign Derek Fisher
6:40pm: The signing is official, the team has announced. Forward Ryan Reid has been waived to clear a roster spot for Fisher.
4:13pm: Derek Fisher and the Thunder have agreed to terms on a contract that will bring the point guard to Oklahoma City for the rest of the season, reports ESPN.com's Marc Stein. Fisher is due to clear waivers within an hour, at which point the two sides are expected to finalize the deal.
According to Stein, Oklahoma City's financial flexibility was a factor in giving them the edge over the Heat for Fisher's services. The Thunder still have a good portion of their mid-level exception remaining, and can offer Fisher part of that amount. The Heat could only have offered the 37-year-old a pro-rated portion of the veteran's minimum.
Fisher joins the Thunder after having been traded by the Lakers and then bought out by the Rockets. In 43 games for the Lakers this season, he averaged 5.9 PPG and 3.3 APG in 25.6 MPG, but became expendable when Los Angeles acquired Ramon Sessions.
The Thunder are scheduled to travel to the Staples Center to face the Lakers on March 29th and April 22nd, so Fisher will get multiple opportunities to face his former team, even if the two clubs don't meet in the postseason.
Blazers Claim J.J. Hickson Off Waivers
5:44pm: The Oregonian's Joe Freeman claims (via Twitter) that the Blazers will waive Mehmet Okur to clear a roster spot for Hickson. The forward is in the final year of his contract and is making $2.3MM this season, meaning he fits into the trade exception the Blazers acquired from Houston in the Marcus Camby trade last week. Hickson will be a restricted free agent this summer.
5:15pm: SI.com's Sam Amick tweets that the Trail Blazers have been awarded free agent forward J.J. Hickson through the waiver process.
Hickson, who was bought out by the Kings on Monday, was previously expected to sign with the Warriors provided he cleared waivers.
The Blazers have a full 15-man roster, meaning they will have to cut a player to make room for Hickson.
Heat Sign Ronny Turiaf
Ronny Turiaf has signed with the Heat, team owner Micky Arison confirmed today (via Twitter). The deal will be for the league minimum and will include a player option as an "insurance policy" for next season, tweets SI.com's Sam Amick.
The Nuggets acquired Turiaf in the trade that sent Nene to Washington and JaVale McGee to Denver. Since Turiaf was included in the deal primarily for salary-matching purposes, he was waived by the Nuggets this weekend, and reportedly drew interest from more than ten teams upon his release.
Turiaf, 29, only appeared in four games for the Wizards this season due to a broken hand, but appears to be healthy enough to return to the floor. He'll join a Heat team that has had to rely on bigs like Dexter Pittman and Mickell Gladness this season. Miami has an open roster spot and won't need to make a corresponding move.
Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports first reported that Turiaf and the Heat were finalizing terms on a contract.
Kings Sign Terrence Williams To 10-Day Contract
The Kings have officially signed Terrence Williams to a 10-day contract, the team announced today. Williams was waived by the Rockets last Friday.
Williams chose to sign in Sacramento because he prefers the opportunity to play rather than sit on a contender's bench, says J. Michael Falgoust of USA Today (via Twitter). Falgoust adds that Keith Smart's open-court style also appeals to the former lottery pick (Twitter link).
Williams, 24, was drafted by the Nets in 2009 and traded to the Rockets last season. In his three seasons, the former Louisville Cardinal has averaged 7.4 PPG and 3.9 RPG in 111 career games (20.1 MPG).
The Kings already had an open roster spot, and cleared another by buying out J.J. Hickson, so they won't need to make a move to clear room for Williams. SI.com's Sam Amick first tweeted that the Kings would sign the ex-Rocket.
Bobcats Buy Out Boris Diaw
The Bobcats and Boris Diaw have agreed on a buyout for the remainder of his contract, according to Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer. The Bobcats confirmed in a press release that they have officially waived Diaw, so he should clear waivers on Friday.
Diaw was in the final season of a five-year, $45MM contract, having exercised his player option for this season. By buying him out of the deal, the Bobcats will save a little of his $9MM cap figure for 2011/12.
Diaw's averages of 7.4 PPG and 10.9 PER are his worst since 2004/05, while his .410 FG% is a career low. The 29-year-old didn't exactly see eye-to-eye with coach Paul Silas and has drawn criticism for his conditioning throughout the season. His agent had contacted the Bobcats about the possibility of a buyout prior to the trade deadline, and when Charlotte couldn't find a deal by last Thursday, a buyout seemed inevitable.
The move reduces the Bobcats' roster to 14 players, and will allow Diaw to maintain playoff eligibility if and when he signs elsewhere.
Cavaliers Waive Ryan Hollins
8:16 pm: The decision to part ways was mutual, writes Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal. Lloyd also characterizes the move as a buyout, meaning Hollins was motivated enough to leave the team that he was willing to give back a part of his $2.48MM salary.
11:56am: The Cavaliers have placed Ryan Hollins on waivers, the team announced today. The move reduces Cleveland's roster to 14 players.
The Cavs have been busy since Thursday's trade deadline, adding guards Donald Sloan and Manny Harris on rest-of-season contracts, and waiving Jason Kapono. The Hollins move is a little surprising — although the 27-year-old wasn't a key contributor for Cleveland, he was averaging 15+ MPG this season, and has a cap figure of $2.48MM in the final season of a three-year contract.
Hollins will join J.J. Hickson and Ronny Turiaf on the big man market as a potential target for contenders. Though he's shown flashes of promise in the past, the 7'0" center struggled this season, averaging 3.7 PPG, 2.3 RPG, and just 7.0 PER in his 24 games.
Cleveland will look for another big man to fill out its roster, according to the Plain Dealer (Twitter link).
Sixers Waive Andres Nocioni
The 76ers have officially waived Andres Nocioni, the team announced in a press release. Philadelphia had allowed Nocioni to explore other opportunites in anticipation of a possible contract buyout.
"We want to sincerely thank Andres for his contributions to our team and maintaining a true level of professionalism throughout his time here," Sixers president of basketball operations Rod Thorn said. "We wish him the best of luck as he pursues future opportunities."
Nocioni was in the fifth year of a six-year contract, earning $6.65MM this season. The team held a $7.5MM option for 2012/13 which it didn't intend to exercise. Nocioni's production declined over the course of the contract, to the point where he only appeared in 56 minutes over 11 games this season, scoring a total of 17 points.
Agent Claudio Villanueva told Noticias de Alava before the move that he thought there was a good chance his client would return to Europe when he and the Sixers officially parted ways (via Sportando).
Grizzlies Sign Gilbert Arenas
The Grizzles have officially signed Gilbert Arenas, reports TNT's David Aldridge (on Twitter). Arenas agreed to a one-year deal for the veteran's minimum salary with Memphis, and had been scheduled to take his physical today.
Arenas worked out for both the Grizzlies and Lakers this season, in the hopes of returning to the NBA. The 30-year-old continues to be paid by the Magic, who amnestied him in December with three years and $62MM+ remaining on his contract. Though Arenas posted 22.6 PPG and 18.7 PER for the Wizards just two seasons ago, his numbers took a huge hit last year, falling to 10.8 PPG and 10.8 PER in 70 games with Washington and Orlando.
The Grizzlies figure to have Arenas work off the bench behind Mike Conley at the point. The team won't need to make a corresponding move, as it had two open roster spots available.
Hornets Claim Chris Johnson Off Waivers
The Hornets have claimed Chris Johnson off waivers from the Trail Blazers, the team announced today in a press release. Portland waived Johnson along with Greg Oden last week to make room for the players they acquired in separate trades with the Rockets and Nets.
New Orleans is over the salary cap, but was able to claim Johnson because he's on a minimum-salary contract. The Hornets will take on the big man's $762,195 cap figure, taking it off the Blazers' books. Because the Hornets had a pair of open roster spots, following the expiration of Jeff Foote's 10-day contract, they won't have to make a corresponding move to clear room for Johnson.
Johnson, 26, signed 10-day contracts with the Blazers and Celtics last season before agreeing to a contract for the rest of last season and this season with Portland. In 20 games for the Blazers this year, the former LSU Tiger averaged 1.6 points and 0.9 rebounds in just 4.7 minutes per contest.