General manager Sean Marks pivots to prioritize financial flexibility, cutting the young guard to maximize spending power and address critical frontcourt depth following a massive four-team blockbuster.
Malachi Smith's stint with the Brooklyn Nets has been cut short as the team waived him after making the Julius Randle four-team trade official on Friday evening.
Brooklyn's cap space went from $24.7 million pre-Randle trade to $11.75 million post-Randle trade. Smith's contract was non-guaranteed, so waiving him incurred no salary cap penalties and added an extra two to three million in available cap space.
The Nets also have the Room Mid-Level Exception ($9.36 million), which does not count toward the cap. General manager Sean Marks still has avenues to improve the team in the offseason, albeit at a lesser capacity.
Smith signed two 10-day contracts before signing a two-year rest-of-season contract. He played 15 games (starting four) for Brooklyn and had impressive performances toward the end of the season.
The 6-foot-4 guard averaged 8.3 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3.3 assists in his limited showings. His best performance happened against the Milwaukee Bucks on April 10.
Smith posted a near triple-double performance, scoring 19 points, grabbing eight rebounds and dishing out 10 assists. Brooklyn was competing for the best lottery odds for the No. 1 pick, so Smith played more minutes than he normally would.
Picking up Smith's team option likely solidified his spot on the roster as a third-string guard. He won't start or back up, but when the team gets hit with the injury bug, he'd be a solid stopgap.
However, Brooklyn's roster is too guard-heavy. Marks drafted Mikel Brown Jr. this year and Egor Demin, Ben Saraf, Drake Powell and Nolan Traoré last year.
Smith likely wouldn't have scratched playing time on the roster, so cutting him loose to open more cap space was more beneficial for the organization. The extra cap space allows the team to pursue other free agents and engage in sign-and-trades to add much-needed depth.
There is a need for a center in Brooklyn post-Randle trade. Nicolas Claxton was sent to the Chicago Bulls, moving Day'Ron Sharp from backup to starting center.
Signing Mo Wagner addresses the center depth issue, but he's also had his fair share of injuries. His signing hasn't been made official, and depending on the method used, Wagner's contract will cut into Brooklyn's cap space.
Adding a third big would strengthen frontcourt depth in case the team deals with injuries again. The Nets also have an abundance of picks to package in trades, which could help in negotiations to land much-needed depth across the board.
Smith's short tenure with Brooklyn comes to an end after they picked up his team option, but the Nets have added additional cap space and an extra roster spot.
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