The move clears cap space for the Pacers to sign restricted free agent center Deandre Ayton.
According to a report from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Indiana Pacers are waiving former Ohio State guard Duane Washington to clear cap space for restricted free agent center Deandre Ayton, who signed a four-year, $133 million maximum contract offer sheet on Thursday.
The 22-year-old Washington signed an undrafted free agent deal with the Pacers last summer and began his rookie season with their G League affiliate, the Fort Wayne Mad Ants. He then made his way onto Indiana’s bench, where he averaged 9.9 points, 1.8 assists and 1.7 rebounds in 48 games.
Washington notably set a single-game franchise rookie record with seven three-pointers in a road loss to the New Orleans Pelicans on Jan. 24. He then followed that up with a career-high 22 points in a loss at the Dallas Mavericks on Jan. 29, a total he matched again in a loss to the Atlanta Hawks on March 13.
The Pacers converted Washington’s two-way contract into a multi-year deal in April, which increased his salary from a flat rate equal to half of the league’s minimum salary to just under $1.5 million. It also kept him from testing free agency this summer, though he’s now available for other teams to claim on the waiver wire.
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