The Nets have signed Earl Clark to a 10-day contract, the team announced via press release. The 27-year-old had been a free agent following a stint with China’s Shandong Lions. Brooklyn had an open roster spot, so there’s no need for a corresponding move.
The five-year veteran is poised to see his first action of the regular season with the Nets after failing to make it to opening night with either the Grizzlies, who signed him to a non-guaranteed contract for training camp, or the Rockets, who grabbed him off waivers in late October. Houston released him just a few days later.
The combo forward spent a brief time in the D-League with the affiliate of the Rockets, racking up 26.2 points and 8.0 rebounds in 34.3 minutes over six appearances. The Lakers appeared poised to sign him in late November, but they never did, and by the middle of December he was off to China, where the former 14th overall pick once more shined against weaker competition. He put up 26.4 PPG and 10.3 RPG in 32.6 MPG with impressive 44.7% three-point shooting for Shandong.
Clark struggled to find NBA work this season, little more than a year removed from having signed a two-year, $8.5MM deal with the Cavs after a strong season as a member of the Lakers. The Cavs traded him to the Sixers midway through year one of that contract, which was non-guaranteed for year two. That saved the Sixers some cash when they waived him right after the trade. He inked a pair of 10-day contracts soon thereafter with the Knicks, and it was on those brief deals that he saw his last official NBA action.
The Nets, fighting for a playoff berth, will be without Thaddeus Young tonight against the Cavs. There’s a distinct possibility that the injury led directly to the signing. Young is at shootaround this morning and it wouldn’t be surprising to see him get into the game, tweets Tim Bontemps of the New York Post.