The Sacramento Kings are waiving rookie center Filip Petrusev, per sources. The Kings plan to hold open the 15th roster spot. Sacramento’s roster now stands at 17, including two-way players.
According to a league source, Petrusev is expected to sign with Olympiacos of the Greek league. Earlier this month, the Los Angeles Clippers traded cash and the 6-foot-11 big man to Sacramento.
It came a day after the Philadelphia 76ers traded Petrusev, James Harden, and P.J. Tucker to the Clippers for Marcus Morris, Nic Batum, Robert Covington, KJ Martin, and draft picks.
Per a few NBA betting sites, the Sacramento Kings hold 13th-shortest odds to win this season’s championship. Sportsbooks are showing better odds for the Dallas Mavericks and Minnesota Timberwolves.
ESPN Sources: The Sacramento Kings are waiving F Filip Petrusev, who’s expected to sign a deal overseas. The Kings plan to hold open the 15th roster spot for the foreseeable future. Petrusev, 23, appeared in two games for Kings.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) November 25, 2023
Petrusev, 23, was selected 50th overall by the Sixers in the 2021 NBA Draft out of Gonzaga University. However, he did not make his NBA debut with Philadelphia until the 2022-23 season.
Moreover, Petrusev signed his first professional contract with Mega Soccerbet of the ABA League and Basketball League of Serbia in July 2020.
Sacramento Kings waive Filip Petrusev weeks after acquiring the big man, cash from Los Angeles Clippers
During the 2020-21 ABA season, he won the ABA League MVP, ABA League Top Prospect, and ABA League Top Scorer awards after averaging 23.6 points, 7.6 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 1.1 blocks, and 32 minutes in 21 games.
In August 2021, Petrusev signed a one-year contract with Anadolu Efes of the EuroLeague and Turkish Super League. In 13 appearances with Anadolu Efes in the 2021-22 BSL season, the center averaged 15.2 points, 6.2 rebounds, 1.0 assist, 1.2 blocks, and 22.7 minutes per contest.
Furthermore, Petrusev went on to ink a contract with his hometown club Crvena zvezda in July 2022. In 34 EuroLeague games played of the 2022-23 season, he averaged 10.7 points, 5.2 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 23 minutes per game. Plus, he shot 54.2% from the floor and 35.1% beyond the arc.
The Sacramento Kings will eat $559,782 when they waive Filip Petrusev. That’s the amount that his contract was guaranteed for this season.
Because Petrusev’s guarantee was large enough, the per-day prorated amount doesn’t factor in here.
— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) November 25, 2023
Additionally, the Serbian hooper appeared in only two games for the Kings this season. In Sacramento’s 129-93 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans on Nov. 20, the center recorded three points in seven minutes off the bench.
Petrusev has two years left on his contract and is set to make $1.1 million this season. About $560,000 is guaranteed for this season. The remaining balance would have been guaranteed had he remained on the roster until Jan. 7.
In fact, his $1.9 million salary for 2024-25 is non-guaranteed.
