Los Angeles Lakers reach deal to buyout Luol Deng allowing forward to enter free agency
Saturday 1 September 2018 20:36, UK
The Los Angeles Lakers have waived Britain’s Luol Deng, two years after signing him to a four-year, $72m (£55.6m) contract.
Deng, who is now a 14-year NBA veteran, played 56 games during his first year with the Lakers but featured in just one game last season following Magic Johnson's arrival as the franchise's President of Basketball.
The forward's deal is a remnant of the administration of former Lakers basketball boss Jim Buss and general manager Mitch Kupchak, who signed Deng in 2016 along with fellow high-priced 32-year-old Timofey Mozgov.
Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka said: "We made this move to further our future salary cap and roster flexibility as we continue to build this Lakers team according to our current overall vision."
Deng has averaged 15.0 points, 6.1 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game over NBA career. The 33-year-old is expected to attract plenty of interest across the league as a free agent.
