THURSDAY, 12:18pm: The signing is official, the team announced via press release. It’s worth $21,621, provided the signing formally took place today, as the release indicates, and assuming he’s getting only the minimum salary, as is standard for deals this time of year.
WEDNESDAY, 12:23pm: The Sixers and Christian Wood have reached agreement on a deal that covers the rest of the season, league sources tell Shams Charania of The Vertical (Twitter link). The rookie power forward’s second 10-day contract with the team expired overnight. The new deal will cover only this season and won’t include any additional years, as is sometimes the case with midseason signees, Charania adds, but the Sixers will still have the ability to make Wood a restricted free agent and match offers for him this summer.
This will be the fourth contract Wood will have signed with Philadelphia within the past year. The Sixers initially signed him in September to a four-year deal with a $50K partial guarantee, but though he won a spot on the opening night roster, Philly dumped him in January to make way for Elton Brand as new chairman of basketball operations Jerry Colangelo brought an emphasis on veterans. Wood rejoined the team on a 10-day deal last month after the Sixers opened a roster spot through the JaKarr Sampson snafu, but the Sixers terminated that 10-day contract early so they could claim Sonny Weems off waivers. Philly backtracked on that decision nearly two weeks ago, releasing Weems and signing Wood to another 10-day pact.
Wood averaged a double-double last year at UNLV and was one of the most surprising draft snubs this past June. He appeared to secure a deal with the Rockets quickly after draft night, though that fizzled. He’s seen only 7.8 minutes per game in 16 appearances for Philadelphia and hasn’t played in the team’s last three games, but he’s averaged 17.3 points and 9.4 rebounds in 28.8 minutes per contest across 32 games with the Sixers D-League affiliate. The 20-year-old has spent time with the D-League Delaware 87ers both on assignment from the Sixers and under D-League contract.