Kofi Inkoom
The Brooklyn Nets are planning to part ways with big man Darius Bazley, as informed by sources to Shams Charania of The Athletic
Bazley, who was chosen in the first round as the 23rd overall pick back in 2019, joined the Brooklyn team this summer on a one-year contract as an unrestricted free agent, following the absence of a qualifying offer from the Phoenix Suns.
It’s worth noting that his contract was non-guaranteed, and he was striving to earn a spot on the opening night roster.
With Bazley now headed for the waiver wire, it seems that Harry Giles and Trendon Watford may have outperformed him in the competition for spots on the Nets’ regular season roster.
These three players, all operating under non-guaranteed deals, were in a tight race for the final two positions on the 15-man roster, as the Nets already had 13 players locked into guaranteed standard contracts.
Standing at 6 feet 8 inches, Bazley, who can play as a forward or center, boasts a career average of 9.1 points per game and 5.3 rebounds per game across 228 regular season games.
He has 118 starts under his belt and averages 23.6 minutes per game. Bazley exhibited his skills during the preseason with the Nets, averaging 5.7 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 1.0 steal per game.
It’s anticipated that he will garner significant interest as a free agent, as reported by Charania.
After the official release of Bazley, the Brooklyn Nets will have a roster of 19 players under contract. They still have one available two-way slot.