The Pelicans have opened up a two-way roster spot by waiving Jalen Crutcher, according to NBA.com’s transaction log. Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link) first reported the news.
The 25-year-old point guard was promoted from the G League on Wednesday when New Orleans converted Brandon Boston Jr.‘s two-way deal into a two-year standard contract. The Pelicans have played twice since then, but Crutcher didn’t get into either game.
Crutcher was in training camp with New Orleans on an Exhibit 10 contract, but he was waived before the season began. He had been playing for the team’s G League affiliate in Birmingham, averaging 17.9 points, 6.8 assists and 3.5 rebounds per game.
Crutcher has been a fixture in the G League since he signed with Charlotte in 2021 after going undrafted out of Dayton. He has appeared in just one NBA game, seeing three minutes of action while on a 10-day contract with the Pelicans last season.
New Orleans will have three days to fill the newly created opening before the March 4 deadline to sign two-way players. Jamal Cain and Keion Brooks hold the team’s other two-way contracts.
They paid him until the end of the season just to have him around forn3 days??
Two-ways don’t count against the cap and are pretty inexpensive to begin with, so teams sometimes do stuff like this to reward players who have performed well for them in the G League. That extra bonus could be the difference between Crutcher sticking in the organization next season or deciding to go overseas to earn more money.