Mavericks to waive Willie Cauley-Stein, sign Marquese Chriss to two-year deal

The Mavericks will sign hardship addition Marquese Chriss to a two-year contract, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic. Willie Cauley-Stein will be waived to make room on the roster. 

Chriss, who signed his third 10-day deal with Dallas under the hardship provision earlier this week, has been productive since joining the team in December. He has appeared in 12 games, all off the bench, and is averaging 6.8 points and 3.9 rebounds in 11.8 minutes per night.

Chriss will earn a prorated minimum salary for the rest of the season and a standard minimum in 2022-23 for a player with six years of service, giving him roughly $3M overall, per Bobby Marks of ESPN.

The 24-year-old was taken by the Suns with the eighth pick in the 2016 draft, but he hasn’t lived up to the promise he showed during his rookie season. He also spent time with the Rockets, Cavaliers and Warriors, but he was out of the league until COVID-19 forced teams to seek emergency replacements.

Cauley-Stein is in his seventh NBA season and his third with the Mavericks. He’s averaging 1.9 points and 2.1 rebounds in 18 games, but hasn’t played since November 27.

The 28-year-old center is making $4.1M on an expiring contract, and roughly $1.95M will remain on Dallas’ books unless he is claimed on waivers, according to Marks. The sixth pick in the 2015 draft, he signed with the Mavericks as a free agent before the start of the 2020-21 season.