The Jazz have removed three players from their preseason roster, announcing today in a press release that they’ve waived swingman Romeo Langford, guard Michael Devoe, and forward Keshawn Justice.
All three moves had been anticipated. Langford, Devoe, and Justice were on Exhibit 10 contracts, which will put them in line for bonuses worth up to $75K if they spend at least 60 days with Utah’s G League affiliate, the Salt Lake City Stars. They’re not obligated to head to the NBAGL now that they’ve been cut – they could find an opportunity elsewhere they like more – but it appears that’s the plan for all three.
Langford, who will turn 24 next Wednesday, was drafted 14th overall by the Celtics in 2019 when current Jazz CEO Danny Ainge was Boston’s head of basketball operations. He has shown some promise as a defender but hasn’t displayed much of an offensive game since entering the NBA, averaging 4.6 points per night on .430/.288/.659 shooting in 141 career games (16.1 MPG).
Devoe played for the Ontario Clippers in the G League last season after going undrafted out of Georgia Tech. He put up modest stats in his rookie season (6.7 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 20.8 minutes over 29 regular season games), but he had a strong Summer League showing for Portland, averaging 18.8 points, 3.3 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.3 steals in just 23.9 minutes per game (four games).
Justice went undrafted in June after five seasons at Santa Clara. As a “super senior” in 2022/23, the 23-year-old averaged 13.3 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.5 rebounds in 33 games for the Broncos (34.9 minutes). He played for the Jazz’s Summer League squad, averaging 10.2 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.2 steals in five games (23.4 minutes).
The Jazz now have 18 players under contract. Utah’s roster looks ready for the regular season, though the club could still shuffle players in and out of its three open roster spots for G League purposes.
Where for art thou Romeo?
China
I thought Romeo would at least be a rotational player in the league.
Defense means nothing in today’s NBA. Only shoot threes
The injuries certainly haven’t helped. If he could actually be trusted to stay healthy enough to see the court on a regular basis, I could see him sticking around. But that’s a big if.
The Jazz, and most teams, do this every year. They sign then waive a bunch of players. It’s a way to give them money ahead of time to then sign with their G-League team.
It’s also actually a way they show that they like to see more of them, just not on the regular roster yet. They’re all still young so they can still improve quite a bit.