In a move that was more of a formality than anything else, the Oklahoma City Thunder waived big Meyers Leonard on Thursday following the trade deadline.
Leonard had been acquired from the Miami Heat as part of the Trevor Ariza trade. When the announcement of the deal was made, the Thunder explicitly stated that Leonard would not join the team or basketball activities. The former Heat big used an anti-Semitic slur while live streaming a video game and had been suspended by the Heat.
Oklahoma City released a statement shortly after the trade deadline that Leonard had been waived.
Leonard was used as salary filler from Miami in the Ariza trade, which also netted the Thunder a 2027 second-round draft pick and a $12.8 million trade exception. Leonard had a team option for next season, which is no longer applicable now that he has been released.
That was the only public announcement the Thunder had made as of 6 p.m. Central Time on the day of the trade deadline. Adrian Wojnarowksi and Shams Charania reported that George Hill had been traded to the Philadelphia 76ers, but this deal had yet to be announced by the team.
Other than those two moves, the Thunder remained quiet on the final day to make trades in the 2021 NBA season.
This post originally appeared on OKCThunderWire. Follow us on Facebook!
