UPDATE – Buyout Bonanzas: Granger, Butler, Fredette Could Help Playoff Teams; Udrih claimed by Grizz

Baby Goes West
The Clippers are set on the perimeter, with Chris Paul and Darren Collison running the offense and J.J. Redick, Jamal Crawford and Matt Barnes filling the wings. But they have lacked depth in the frontcourt beyond Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan.

Antawn Jamison and Byron Mullens were traded Thursday to shed salary and create roster spots for someone like Davis, who is comfortable and familiar with Rivers’ system.

Davis’ playing time with the rebuilding Magic decreased as the season progressed, and a buyout was arranged. The good news for the Clippers is that Davis’ production improved with his reduction in playing time.

Davis	Minutes	FG %	Points	Rebounds	Blocks	O Rating	D Rating
Season	30.1	45.3	12.1	6.3	0.5	99	107
February	24.5	48.6	9.6	3.4	0.62	108	107

 

Davis is scoring nine more points per 100 possessions this month than his season average while remaining the same defensively. His rebound rate is down, but his field goal percentage has improved more than three percentage points. This is encouraging for the Clippers, who could use Davis and the experience of his 69 career playoff games.

Butler Being Bought Out
Milwaukee is negotiating a buyout with veteran forward Caron Butler, as Gery Woelfel first reported. Butler’s former team, Miami, could be a fit and it appears that Butler could be the Heat’s top priority at this point. 

Butler has had one of his worst seasons this year, shooting 38.7 percent from the floor, his worst percentage since he was with the Heat in the 2003-2004 season, and the Bucks were outscored by 13 points per 100 possessions when he was on the floor. But he’s still shooting 36.1 percent from three and some team will want his veteran presence in the locker room going forward.

Marc Stein reports that Butler is “on course” to be released on Wednesday, while David Aldridge reports that San Antonio and Oklahoma City also have interest to some degree.

Jimmer Exiting Sacramento

After the Kings failed to trade once-heralded guard Jimmer Fredette last week, both sides decided to move on and a buyout agreement should be made on Wednesday, according to Yahoo’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Fredette was never able to fulfill the basketball world’s lofty expectations for him after a legendary collegiate career at BYU overinflated his ability to succeed on the NBA level.

Fredette’s minutes thinned after Sacramento drafted Ben McLemore and Ray McCallum, but a funny thing happened: Fredette got far more efficient with his reduced playing time, and The Jimmer is having by far his best season as a pro. In 11.3 minutes, Fredette is shooting 47.5 percent from the field, an extremely impressive 49.3 percent from three and has a career-high PER of 16.5.

Here’s a look at his hot spots:

Fredette has been extremely efficient from the corners and the wings from three and is well above average as a shooter between eight and 16 feet. Memphis definitely has interest but Fredette is leaning towards signing elsewhere, according to Marc Stein. Denver reportedly had interest in Fredette last week before acquiring Aaron Brooks in a trade from Houston.

Fredette could also be appealing to a contending team looking for a long-range shooter off the bench. Memphis could be one of those interested teams, according to ESPN’s Marc Stein.

Sacramento has already signed former Pacers reserve Orlando Johnson to a 10-day contract after Johnson was released last week following the Evan Turner trade. Johnson really regressed offensively in his second pro season, and Indiana was outscored by 11 points per 100 possessions when he was on the floor, not an easy feat given how good the Pacers have been this season.

Interestingly, a report by Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle reported that Sacramento worked out former Rockets first-round pick Royce White before they seemingly decided on Johnson, and Sam Amick reports that White could end up with the Kings after all. White’s return to the NBA would have caused quite a stir.

Knicks Replace Metta, Udrih
After buying out the contracts of Metta World Peace and Beno Udrih on Monday, the Knicks have made quick work of finding their defensive-minded replacements. After finalizing an agreement with big man Earl Clark, Chris Broussard reports that New York will replace Udrih with former Lakers reserve Shannon Brown, as Chris Broussard reported

Clark was bought out by Philadelphia after being acquired from Cleveland in last week’s Spencer Hawes trade. Brown spent time with the Spurs and Wizards this season.

Both World Peace and Udrih could be appealing to contending teams. World Peace’s defense could make him a target of a team like the Clippers, while perhaps a team like San Antonio could use point guard depth after trading Nando de Colo to Toronto last week. Udrih, who played the first three seasons of his career with the Spurs, was claimed off waivers by Memphis.

Other Possible Names

Antawn Jamison leads the list of other notable players who could land with contenders this week. Jamison negotiated a buyout with the Hawks after being dealt by the Clippers, and one interested party could potentially be Oklahoma City. The Thunder will be without center Kendrick Perkins for up to six weeks as he rehabilitates from groin surgery, an injury he suffered on Thursday against Miami.

Players who could be bought out of their deals this week include Charlotte’s Ben Gordon, who is on the last year of his contract and isn’t very relevant after the Bobcats acquired guards Gary Neal and Luke Ridnour from Milwaukee last week.

Boston, looking for some players who could be in their future plans on cap-friendly contracts, worked out former Dallas guard Roddy Beaubois this week according to CSNNW.

There are also some players who finished up their seasons in China and can make an impact, as our James Hsu noted. We will update this post as the week progresses.

Shlomo Sprung is a national columnist for Sheridan Hoops who loves advanced statistics and the way they explain what happens on the court. He is also the web editor of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle. A 2011 graduate of Columbia University’s Journalism School, he has previously worked for the New York Knicks, The Sporting News, Business Insider and other publications. His website is SprungOnSports.com. You should follow him on Twitter.