The Orlando Magic are waiving 32-year-old center Timofey Mozgov, per Josh Robbins of The Athletic.
Furthermore, Mozgov's $16.7 million contract will be stretched over the next three years.
Orlando acquired the one-time NBA champion Mozgov in July 2018 in a three-team trade with the Charlotte Hornets and Chicago Bulls, which sent center Bismack Biyombo to the Hornets and point guard Jerian Grant to the Magic.
Mozgov never played a single minute for the Magic during the 2018-19, season. He had signed a lucrative four-year deal with the Los Angeles Lakers in the summer of 2016, which sent him on a wild goose chase and an oft-traded player between the Lakers, Brooklyn Nets, Hornets, Magic, and now a free agent.
Stretching Mozgov will likely provide the salary cap space necessary to re-sign restricted free-agent center Khem Birch, Robbins notes.
The resulting cap hits for Mozgov's stretched contracts look as so: $5.6 million in 2019-20, $5.6 million 2020-21 and $5.6 million in 2021-22.
Mozgov, a Russian native born in the then–Soviet Union, entered in league in 2010, signing a three-year deal with the New York Knicks. He would be traded to the Denver Nuggets in the Carmelo Anthony trade. Mozgov later found himself playing with LeBron James on the Cleveland Cavaliers and winning a title in 2016.
“Mozzy” has averaged 6.8 points and 4.9 rebounds in 18 minutes per game and 454 career appearances, shooting 53.5% from the field and 73.8% from the free throw line.
This offseason the Orlando Magic also re-signed one-time All-Star center Nikola Vucevic, who will apparently continue to lock down the man in the middle spot while last year's lottery pick, seven-footer Mo Bamba, develops his game.
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