The Lakers have begun making cuts from their offseason roster, announcing today in a press release that they’ve waived camp invitees Zach Auguste, Julian Jacobs, and Travis Wear. All three players will hit the free agent market, assuming they clear waivers later this week.
While Wear and Jacobs saw 11 total minutes in the Lakers’ four preseason games to date, Auguste didn’t see any action. None of the three players had a fully guaranteed salary, but Auguste did have a modest $60K guarantee on his deal, so that figure will remain on the team’s cap following his release.
After cutting Auguste, Jacobs, and Wear, the Lakers will have 17 players on their roster, including 14 on guaranteed contracts. Yi Jianlian, Thomas Robinson, and Metta World Peace appear to be vying for the 15th and final roster spot, with Yi likely holding the edge due to his guarantee ($250K) and his incentive-heavy, trade-friendly contract. Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders tweets that Yi will likely have to beat out Robinson, with World Peace a long shot to make the team.
As for the trio of players waived today, all three could eventually end up joining the Los Angeles D-Fenders, the Lakers’ D-League affiliate. Jacobs, in particular, is a candidate to join L.A.’s D-League squad, tweets Mike Bresnahan of Spectrum SportsNet.
TALK ABOT BLAKE GRIFFIN