The Blazers have waived Brendan Haywood and now the free agent could be a target for the LA Lakers, New York Knicks, Miami Heat, Chicago Bulls and Washington Wizards and this comes after his trade from the Cavs and some of those teams could use another big man for depth on the roster.
Haywood had been a target to get traded all offseason, as he was on a $10.5 million contract that was non-guaranteed. According to the Blazers in a press release, the team has released Haywood and Mike Miller after acquiring the players in a trade with the Cavs. The team was expected to make this move and now Haywood will be a free agent once he clears waivers. Haywood was expected to get waived due to his contract and now teams could be interested in the big man.
Miller has not been officially waived, but he is expected to be released by the Blazers as well. Last season Haywood played in 22 games for the Cavs and had averages of 1.6 points per game and 1.3 rebounds, but he could have a bigger role with a new team. The Cavaliers brought back Kevin Love and they have Timofey Mozgov and Anderson Varejao on the roster, so they didn't need Haywood. The team also needed to clear space to sign other players and that is why Haywood was traded.
There are a number of possible landing spots for Haywood, as there are numerous teams that could use a big man on the roster. The Knicks have reportedly been looking for another center to play behind Robin Lopez after losing Cole Aldrich, while the Lakers also could be interested. The Lakers have room for another player on the roster the Los Angeles Times reports that the team wants to add another big man, as they would like more depth behind Roy Hibbert with Robert Sacre the only main option. Robert Upshaw is not likely making the LA roster.
The Bulls are coming in with Joakim Noah as the main center on the roster and the team does not have much behind him at this point in the summer. The team could look at Haywood, while the Miami Heat also could be a fit if the team trades Chris Andersen and his salary. The team has been shopping Andersen all offseason and replacing him with Haywood would be a much cheaper option. The Wizards have reportedly been interested in bringing back Kevin Seraphin and if that doesn't happen, Haywood could be an option.
According to Sheridan Hoops, Michael Scotto reports that the Lakers, Knicks and Wizards are interested in Seraphin. Seraphin was a backup with the Wizards last season. The Knicks just signed Sasha Vujacic to a deal, according to RealGM, but they could still be in the mix for Haywood. The Cleveland Cavaliers are working to bring back Tristan Thompson and JR Smith on contracts this offseason after signing and Matthew Dellavedova, Richard Jefferson and James Jones and the Haywood deal helped set all that up. The Cavaliers made a trade with the Indiana Pacers last week to help facilitate the Haywood move, dealing second round draft pick Hakeem Christmas to the team.
Check here for more on Haywood and the interest in the free agent.