The Los Angeles Lakers made one trade prior to Thursday’s deadline, sending Gabe Vincent and a second-round draft pick to the Atlanta Hawks for Luke Kennard.
Now attention turns toward the buyout market, per Dan Woike of The Athletic.
“Next will be evaluating a group of buyout candidates. Team and league sources say wing Haywood Highsmith is a player of interest, provided his knee issues are resolved. Cam Thomas, his former Nets teammate, is another more polarizing option.”
The Nets waived guard Cam Thomas on Thursday, ending a five-year stint with the team. They also waived Haywood Highsmith as part of a deal that brought Ochai Agbaji to the Toronto Raptors.
Thomas has averaged 15.6 points on 39.9 percent shooting (32.5 percent from three) and 3.1 assists in 24 games (eight starts).
The 24-year-old Thomas has played 24.3 minutes per game. He missed a month-and-a-half earlier with a left hamstring strain from Nov. 7 to Dec. 23 and had been on a minutes restriction ever since.
Thomas had showcased some incredible offensive talents over the previous two seasons, averaging 22.9 points on 44.1 percent shooting (35.9 percent from three). Unfortunately, Thomas only played 25 games last year after suffering a season-ending left hamstring strain.
The 29-year-old Highsmith played his last four seasons with the Miami Heat. He did not appear with the Nets this year.
Last season, Highsmith started 42 of 74 games played, averaging 6.5 points on 45.8 percent shooting and 3.4 rebounds per game.