Jahlil Okafor's tenure with the Philadelphia 76ers will not continue past this season.
The team will not pick up the 2018-19 option on the player it drafted third overall in the 2015 draft. The team had until Tuesday night to make a decision on player options for first-rounders on rookie deals.
Okafor was in line to make $6.3 million in what would be his fourth year, if the option had been picked up. However, the Sixers opted not to retain him after they were unable to find a trade partner. The move allows the Sixers to free up $6.3 million from next season's cap space.
However, the Sixers did pick up Justin Anderson's fourth-year deal, worth about $2.5 million. They also exercised their third-year options for Ben Simmons (around $6.4 million), Dario Saric (around $3.2 million) and Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot (around $1.4 million).
The Sixers have been trying to trade Okafor for more than two seasons. However, teams are unwilling to give up what the Sixers believe is equal value. Some squads even asked for an additional player or a future draft pick in order to take Okafor off their hands.
Okafor's injury history and the perception that he is a defensive liability have a lot to do with why the Sixers have been unable to move him.
Jazz's Johnson out
Utah Jazz forward Joe Johnson will miss at least two weeks because of a right wrist injury.
The 17-year veteran had an MRI that found tendon instability in his right wrist. He suffered the injury during a 104-89 victory over the Mavericks on Monday and will be reevaluated in two weeks.
