CLEVELAND -- The Kendrick Perkins era in Cleveland has once again come to an end.
According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, the Cleveland Cavaliers have waived the veteran center, just weeks after picking up his option for the 2018-19 season.
The Cavs had signed Perkins just prior to the start of the 2018 postseason, although he didn't log a minute of action throughout the team's run to the NBA Finals. The 33-year-old was inactive for all but four of Cleveland's 22 playoff games.
Originally a member of the Cavs during their run to the 2015 Finals, Perkins spent the 2015-16 campaign as a member of the New Orleans Pelicans before sitting out the following season. He returned to Cleveland on a training camp invite in 2017 before spending a large portion of the year playing for the Cavs' G-League affiliate Canton Charge.
In one regular season game -- Cleveland's finale against the New York Knicks -- the 6-foot-10 center scored 3 points and grabbed 1 rebound in 14 minutes of action. Perkins' second stint with the Cavs will perhaps best be remembered for his altercation with the rapper Drake during Cleveland's Game 1 victory over the Toronto Raptors in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
Despite his lack of time on the court, Perkins was routinely lauded as a locker room leader within the Cavs organization. The second year of his contract, which featured a $2.4 million non-guaranteed salary, was picked up primarily in hopes of being used to help facilitate a trade.
With guard/forward Rodney Hood still a restricted free agent, the Cavs are now $14.3 million below the luxury tax line, according to ESPN's Bobby Marks.
