Pelicans Waive Caleb Houstan; Mavericks Sign Matt Cross

The Pelicans have waived Caleb Houstan, according to NBA.com’s transaction log.

Houstan is a four-year NBA veteran who signed an Exhibit 9 training camp deal with New Orleans in early August. The Canadian small forward holds career averages of 3.9 points in 13.4 minutes per game across 186 appearances with Orlando and Atlanta.

Known for his outside shooting, Houstan has converted 37.8% of his career three-point attempts. He averaged 1.5 PPG in 10.7 MPG during two preseason outings with New Orleans.

It’s unclear what the next step is for the 23-year-old wing. Since his contract didn’t feature Exhibit 10 language, he’s not an obvious candidate to join the Pelicans’ G League affiliate, the Laketown Squadron.

In an unrelated move, the Mavericks have signed Matt Cross to a training camp deal, per Paul Garcia of Spot Up Shot (Twitter link).

Cross, who went undrafted out of SMU in 2025, was signed-and-waived by Dallas last fall and spent the 2025/26 campaign in the G League with the Mavs’ affiliate team, the Texas Legends.

A 6’7″ forward, Cross averaged 6.1 PPG and 6.8 RPG on .500/.414/.580 shooting in 36 regular season contests with the Legends last season. He appears likely to be waived in the coming days, which would put him on track to earn a bonus if he spends at least 60 days with the Legends in 2026/27.