LOS ANGELES (AP) -The last-place Clippers waived injury-prone Sam Cassell on Thursday, after he missed four straight games with a sprained right wrist.
He averaged 12.8 points, 4.7 assists, 2.8 rebounds and 25.7 minutes in 38 games. Earlier in the season, the 38-year-old point guard missed 12 games with a strained left calf.
Cassell is earning $6.1 million this season – the final year of his contract.
“After weighing all of the options and after conversations with Sam we believe this is the best solution for this team,” general manager Elgin Baylor said in a statement. “We know and appreciate the many contributions Sam made during the last three years, and we wish him nothing but the best.”
Cassell’s most productive season with the Clippers came in 2005-06, when he averaged 17.2 points and 6.3 assists. He helped them beat Denver in the first round of the playoffs before getting within a game of reaching the Western Conference finals.
Three weeks ago, Cassell denied a Boston Globe report that he was trying to buy out his contract so he could play for the Eastern Conference-leading Celtics.
But he made no secret that he was unhappy about the Clippers’ mounting losses. Cassell has said he’d like to play another season before retiring and going into coaching.
He was a member of NBA championship teams in Houston in 1994-95.
The Clippers (19-36) are last in the Pacific Division.
They have played without injured star forward Elton Brand and point guard Shaun Livingston all season because of injuries.
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