The Oklahoma City Thunder have officially waived Meyers Leonard, according to The Athletic's Shams Charania.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have waived center Meyers Leonard, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) March 25, 2021
The move has been expected since OKC acquired Leonard on March 17 in a trade with the Miami Heat that sent Trevor Ariza to South Beach. Leonard's inclusion was necessary to make the salaries match. The Thunder also sent a 2027 second-round pick to the Heat.
In the wake of his acquisition, the Thunder announced that Leonard “will not be reporting to Oklahoma City and will not be an active member of the organization.”
OKC kept Leonard on the roster through Thursday's trade deadline, just in case they needed to include his $9.4 million salary in a deal. Once the deadline passed, Leonard's release became formalized.
Leonard is out for the season after undergoing surgery on his left shoulder in February. He was recently fined, suspended, and condemned for using an anti-Semitic slur on a Twitch live stream. (Leonard posted an apology for his offensive remarks).
The 29-year old's $10.2 million salary for next season is a team option, which was a lock to be declined. The Thunder will not be on the hook for any Leonard-related money in 2021-22.
Leonard's release will free a spot on the OKC roster, which will immediately be filled thanks to a two-for-one pre-deadline swap that sent veteran point guard George Hill to the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for Austin Rivers and Tony Bradley.
Entering Thursday's action, Oklahoma City is 19-25 and currently trails the Golden State Warriors by 3.0 games for the final spot in the play-in tournament.
Follow Us
Subscribe