Bobcats waive Justin Williams

The Charlotte Bobcats today requested waivers on forward Justin Williams. The Bobcats roster now stands at 15 players.

Williams appeared in three preseason games with averages of 0.7 points, 1.3 rebounds and 0.7 blocked shots in 4.0 minutes.

The Charlotte Bobcats play their final preseason game tonight against the L.A. Lakers in Anaheim, California. Tipoff is scheduled for 10:00 p.m. ET and can be seen nationally on TNT.

Spurs waive three players

The San Antonio Spurs announced today that they have waived guard/forward Devin Green, guard Salim Stoudamire and center Darryl Watkins.

Green appeared in four games during the preseason, averaging 7.0 points, 2.8 assists, 1.8 rebounds and 1.25 steals in 21.8 minutes per game.

Stoudamire played in two preseason games, averaging 5.5 points, 2.5 assists and 1.5 rebounds in 19.0 minutes of action. Green saw action in five preseason games, averaging 3.2 points and 3.2 rebounds in 15.0 minutes of action. The Spurs roster now stands at 16.

Jazz waive Lyde and Muoneke

Utah Jazz general manager Kevin O’Connor announced today that the team has requested waivers on forwards Kevin Lyde and Gabe Muoneke.

Lyde appeared in three preseason contests with the Jazz, averaging 5.3 points and 1.7 rebounds in 10.3 minutes. Muoneke recorded four preseason games as a Jazzman, registering 1.3 points and 0.8 rebounds in 7.5 minutes a game.

The Jazz roster now stands at 16.

Rockets waive Mike Harris

Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey announced today that the team has waived forward Mike Harris.

Harris (6-6, 240, Rice) averaged 3.3 points and 4.7 rebounds in three preseason games this year. In his rookie NBA season, Harris averaged 3.6 points and 3.2 rebounds in 17 games with the Rockets in 2007-08. The former standout at Rice University was also a third-overall selection in the 2006 D-League Draft by Colorado.

Lakers waive two players

The Los Angeles Lakers have requested waivers on guard Joe Crawford and forward CJ Giles, it was announced today.

Selected by the Lakers with the 58th pick in the 2008 NBA Draft, Crawford, a 22 year-old native of Detroit, Michigan, played four seasons at the University of Kentucky, averaging 11.3 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 127 games (76 starts). In six preseason games with the Lakers, Crawford averaged 2.8 points in 7.3 minutes.

Giles, a 6-11 forward who finished his collegiate career at Oregon State after playing two seasons at Kansas, averaged 6.3 points and 5.6 rebounds in ten games last season for the Beavers. Giles played in four preseason games with the Lakers where he averaged 2.0 points and 2.5 rebounds in 7.2 minutes.

The Lakers preseason roster now stands at 15.

Mavs waive three players

The Dallas Mavericks announced today that they have requested waivers on Cheyne Gadson, JaJuan Smith and Reyshawn Terry.

Gadson (6-3, 190) signed as a free agent after spending last season in the D-League. He went undrafted out of Oklahoma State in the 2003 NBA Draft. Gadson saw action in 5 preseason games and averaged 1.6 points and 1.4 assists in 7.4 minutes per game.

Smith (6-2, 195) was signed by the Mavericks as a rookie free agent after he went undrafted out of Tennessee in the 2008 NBA Draft. Smith played in all 7 preseason games, averaging 4.7 points and 0.9 steals in 9.6 minutes per game.

Terry (6-8, 232), the 44th overall pick in the 2007 NBA Draft, was acquired by Dallas from Orlando on draft night (6/28/07). The Mavericks received the draft rights to Terry in exchange for the draft rights to forward Milovan Rakovic. He spent last season as a member of Aris TT Bank (Greek A1 League) and averaged 8.8 points and 4.5 rebounds in 19 Euroleague games. Terry saw the floor in 5 preseason games and averaged 4.4 points and 1.2 rebounds in 7.0 minutes per game.

The Mavericks roster now stands at 15 players.

Raptors waive Jamal Sampson

The Toronto Raptors announced Wednesday they have waived forward-centre Jamal Sampson. The roster currently stands at 13.

The Raptors signed Sampson as a free agent September 29. He appeared in one game in the preseason where he had two points and three rebounds.

The Raptors open the regular season Wednesday, October 29 in Philadelphia. They return to Toronto for the home opener Friday, October 31 versus Golden State.

Clippers exercise option on Al Thornton

The Los Angeles Clippers today exercised the club’s third year contract option on forward Al Thornton.

Thornton, who was selected by the Clippers as the 14th overall pick in the 2007 NBA Draft, begins his second NBA season and is now signed through the 2009-10 campaign. Under the NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement, the Clippers had the right to exercise this contract option.  Thornton will now become a restricted free agent following the 2009-10 season, with the Clippers holding the right of first refusal.

In his first season with the Clippers, Thornton was named to the T-Mobile NBA All-Rookie First Team, after averaging 12.7 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 27.3 minutes in 79 games played.  He finished the year ranked second among all rookies in scoring, fourth in three-point field goal percentage (.429), eighth in rebounding and fifth in minutes per game.  Thornton turned in his most impressive performance of the season when he tied a Clipper rookie record for points in a game, pouring in 39 points on 3/29/08 vs. Memphis.  The 39 points were also the most points scored in a game by any NBA rookie last season.