The Kings plan on making a waiver claim on Omri Casspi, whom the Pelicans released today, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Casspi would go to the team with the worst record from last season if multiple teams submit claims, so the Bucks, Sixers, Magic, Celtics, Jazz and Lakers could all prevent him from ending up in Sacramento. Casspi’s contract is for only the minimum salary, so teams could use the minimum-salary exception to accommodate their claims.
Casspi has expressed interest in a return to Sacramento, where he spent his first two, and most productive two, years of his NBA career. Stein reported that the Pelicans were likely to waive the 26-year-old even before the trade that brought him from Houston became official, and agent Dan Fegan had already begun reaching out to other teams, as Casspi told Ailene Voisin of The Sacramento Bee.
Any team that claims Casspi would have until the end of August 5th to turn around and waive him again before his non-guaranteed salary became fully guaranteed. It’s unlikely any team would make such a move, but the option of doing so would nonetheless provide a degree of flexibility. That might be enough to persuade another team to submit a claim and keep him from Sacramento.
Do you know if Orlando falls back to 30 since they already made a claim on Willie Green this summer?
I don’t think so. The Bucks also claimed a player this summer, nabbing Kendall Marshall, but as far as I know they’re still at the front of the line.
–Chuck
No thanks don’t want this guy back
I don’t understand why anyone uses Ailene Voisin as a source of information. Her inept writing aside, she has a giant schoolgirl crush on Casspi and would probably love to continue writing flowery prose about him.