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The Toronto Raptors waived point guard Lorenzo Brown on Monday, saving themselves about $800,000 (and more in luxury taxes).
Toronto has waived guard Lorenzo Brown, league source tells ESPN. His contract would've become guaranteed for season later today.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) January 7, 2019
Brown signed $1.6 million contract this past summer; only $800,000 of it was guaranteed, and the guarantee date for the remaining $800,000 was today, January 7, at 5:00 p.m.
With three healthy point guards and a cap sheet stretching into the aforementioned tax, the Raptors clearly felt it made more sense to save that $800K now and maintain some more roster flexibility for the rest of the year.
Toronto now has 13 guaranteed contracts on the roster, plus Chris Boucher and Jordan Loyd on two-way contracts. No word yet on whether or not Toronto will convert one of the two, sign an additional player (teams can add players on 10-day contracts now), sign an unrestricted free agent, wait until the trade deadline, or wait until buyout season. All of these options are in front of them, but they will have to carry the minimum 14 players going forward.
Brown was drafted 52nd overall by the Timberwolves in 2013. He signed a two-way deal with the Raptors before last season, splitting time between the Raptors and the Raptors 905, ultimately leading the 905 back to the G-League Finals and winning the league MVP award.
This season he played in 26 games with the big club, averaging about 8 minutes a game; although his shooting never got on track, he demonstrated solid D when out on the floor.