On Saturday, veteran guard Marcus Smart agreed to join the Los Angeles Lakers on a two-year, $11 million contract after the Washington Wizards bought out his previous contract. But first, the Lakers had a little work to do to be able to legally sign Smart.
With almost no room left under the first apron of the NBA’s salary cap, they needed to make a couple of roster moves to free up enough space to bring in Smart.
On Sunday, they started by waiving guard Shake Milton, who was due $3 million this coming season. Later, they also waived guard Jordan Goodwin, whom they called up from the G League at midseason.
Milton was thrown into the late December trade that brought Los Angeles forward Dorian Finney-Smith for D’Angelo Russell, Maxwell Lewis and second-round draft compensation. A seven-year veteran, he never really cracked coach JJ Redick’s rotation, and he averaged 3.9 points in 11.5 minutes a game after joining L.A.
Goodwin, 26, showed some promise in 29 games with the Lakers. He put up 5.6 points, 3.9 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.0 steals per contest while shooting 38.2% from 3-point range. The Illinois native consistently hustled for rebounds and loose balls and showed a willingness to play hard on the defensive end.
Since Goodwin has four years of NBA experience, he was ineligible to be a member of the Lakers on a two-way contract.