Teams have until 6 p.m. ET to get down to 15 players.
The cuts have already been pretty harsh. For some of these guys, it's a short trip to Europe or the D-League, and then back to the NBA. Others might have another job lined up already.
But if history is any guide, a fair chunk of the guys being cut are on their way to becoming basketball vagabonds. That's when you are way too skilled to hang up your sneakers, but not good enough to make anyone -- including yourself -- a lot of money.
That means your agent is not so thrilled to hear from you. That means you're trying to make a name for yourself in Europe, even though you never really wanted to go to Europe. Compromises. Bills. Stress. Not the dream.
Think about all that scouting that goes into getting a player like, say, Trey Johnson to an NBA training camp. He dedicates his life to his craft for years and becomes one of the best scorers in all of college basketball. Agents crowd around like crazy, wanting a piece of his NBA riches. Then ... boom. For the moment, at least, he's not even in the NBA, as he has been cut by Charlotte.
Some others I noticed:
- Jackie Butler was once extremely effective for the New York Knicks in short minutes. He also killed smaller defenders in summer league a few months ago. But since then he has been traded away by San Antonio and now, cut by the Rockets.
- Jared Jordan is a legend, but he is not an NBA player at the moment.
- Stacey Augmon was just cut, joining Jelani McCoy, Darvin Ham, Mateen Cleaves, Allan Houston, Samaki Walker, and several others in the club of once big-name players who didn't want their relationship with the NBA to end on this exact schedule.
- Pat Burke is hilarious, and out of NBA work. Ditto Rod Benson.
One other thing this makes me think: if you're an NBA team, it's not bad to have a roster spot open at this time of year -- you get your pick of these players and others, and they're all, I'd guess, readier than ever to play hard for not much money.
