The Memphis Grizzlies are moving on from Jordan Hawkins only weeks after acquiring him, a quick separation that says as much about roster math as it does about the former lottery pick’s stalled career.
Shams Charania of ESPN reported that the club will waive the 24-year-old shooting guard, describing the decision as mutual and intended to let him look for a new team in free agency.
Hawkins arrived in Memphis last month in a cost-cutting deal that sent him and Micah Peavy from New Orleans, with the Pelicans attaching a second-round pick and a second-round swap. He never settled into a role.
Once he clears waivers, which is the expected outcome, the Grizzlies will still owe his full $7,021,895 salary for the season. That is dead money, but it does not threaten their flexibility.
Even after the cap hit, Memphis remains about $38.64 million under the luxury tax line, according to Yossi Gozlan of CapSheets.com.
The early promise that made Hawkins a first-round selection has not translated.
He declared for the 2023 draft after a sophomore year at UConn in which he averaged 16.2 points and 3.8 rebounds and shot 38.8 percent from three on high volume, helping the Huskies win a national championship. New Orleans took the 6-foot-5 guard 14th overall a few months later, betting on the shot.
Over his first two NBA seasons, he appeared in 123 games and averaged 9.2 points and 2.5 rebounds in 20.2 minutes, shooting 37.6 percent from the field and 34.8 percent from three.
Under a new front office last season his minutes fell to 13.6 per game across 51 appearances, and his scoring dropped to 5.1 points a night. The three-point percentage stayed at 34.8.
Interest exists if he reaches the open market. Earlier reporting indicated several teams would look at him, though the shape of any offer is uncertain.
Standard roster spots are scarce around the league this fall, and a player who has not yet established himself as a reliable rotation piece may have to accept a smaller deal or a camp invitation rather than a guaranteed role.
Memphis has its own squeeze. After Hawkins is waived, the Grizzlies will still carry 16 players on guaranteed standard contracts, plus Jaylen Wells on a partially guaranteed deal that becomes fully guaranteed if he makes the opening-night roster.
Peavy, owed $2.15 million, missed training camp with an ankle injury and is viewed as a candidate to be traded or released. Kris Murray is another name that has surfaced in waiver talk.
Hawkins’ exit is the first cut in a sequence the front office still has to finish before the season begins.
