Less than two weeks after being waived by the Sixers, German big man Tibor Pleiss has found a new home for the upcoming season. Pleiss will head to Turkey for the 2016/17 campaign, having signed a one-year contract with Galatasaray Odeabank Istanbul. The team issued a press release announcing the deal, with Pleiss confirming it on his Facebook page as well.
Pleiss, a former second-round pick who signed with the Jazz last summer, barely saw any action in his first and only NBA season, playing just 82 total minutes for Utah in 2015/16. The German big man was assigned to the D-League for a good chunk of the year, and he performed well for the Idaho Stampede, averaging 12.3 PPG and 10.4 RPG in 28 contests.
In August, the Jazz sent Pleiss to the Sixers in exchange for Kendall Marshall in a cost-cutting trade. Philadelphia, armed with a ton of cap room, had the flexibility to take on Pleiss’ $3MM guaranteed salary even though he wasn’t in the club’s plans, picking up a couple second-round picks in the process. The 76ers waived the 26-year-old less than a week after acquiring him.
Over the weekend, international basketball reporter David Pick indicated that the Nets had invited Pleiss to come to training camp with them, but that the free agent center turned down that offer, with an eye toward playing in Turkey. According to NetsDaily.com (via Twitter), Brooklyn had interest in bringing in Pleiss for a workout, and so did the Spurs, but he passed on both invitations.