The Cleveland Cavaliers have waived Deandre Liggins and they opened a roster spot with this move. Liggins appeared in 61 games this season and averaged 2.4 points and 1.7 rebounds per game. The Cavaliers haven't used him a lot and he played 12.3 minutes on average, with most of those minutes coming from blowout games. Considering he was waived today, the shooting guard won't be allowed to sign with a playoff team this season.
The Cavaliers decided to waive Liggins mostly because they want a free roster spot they could use to sign a Free Agent. The playoffs start in less than a week and the Cavaliers are making their final roster moves before they enter the most important part of the season.
Liggins had no place in Cleveland
DeAndre Liggins started in 19 games for the Cleveland Cavaliers this season, replacing the injured J.R. Smith. Liggins had his opportunity to show the Cavaliers what he is capable of, but he didn't do much as he averaged only 4.7 points and 2.2 rebounds in nearly 22 minutes per game. Even though his defense was solid, he'd become a liability as his offense was poor.
"Liggs gave us a lot. I think when J.R. Smith went down we inserted him into the starting lineup to change our defense to get Kyrie off the ball and to pick up full court, be aggressive defensively -- he was really good for us. Hopefully he gets a chance to go somewhere else and get an opportunity to play," commented Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue. DeAndre Liggins has played for four different NBA teams in four seasons, and he's spent a big part of his basketball career playing in the D-League and Europe.
Roster spot will be filled soon
The Cleveland Cavaliers have made a lot of roster moves this season and their most recent free agent signing was the big man Larry Sanders. Considering the fact that they have him on the roster, the Cavaliers will most likely sign a forward or a guard.
However, Tristan Thompson's thumb injury could affect their decision as they could be on the lookout for another center to serve as Thompson's backup.
There are a lot of great free agents waiting to be signed by an NBA team, and there are already rumors about the Cavaliers wanting to sign some of them. In order for a free agent to be eligible for the playoffs, the Cavaliers will have to sign him by Wednesday next week. The playoffs start next Saturday and the Cleveland Cavaliers are trying their best to finish the regular season with the first seed in the conference.