Wolves reach buyout deal with Allen Crabbe

The Timberwolves placed shooting guard Allen Crabbe on waivers, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic. Crabbe agreed to a buyout with the team, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). The Wolves confirmed the move in a press release.

Crabbe spent about six weeks in Minnesota after being acquired from the Hawks in a January 16 deal. He appeared in nine games, averaging 3.2 PPG and 1.3 RPG in 14.6 minutes per night. Because he was waived before tomorrow’s deadline, he will be eligible for the playoffs if another team picks him up.

He has been away from the team for several games because of personal reasons, so a buyout wasn’t surprising, notes Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic (Twitter link).

The move may be enough to get the Wolves under the luxury tax, tweets Bobby Marks of ESPN. Minnesota was $894K above the tax line before parting with Crabbe. He was still owed about $4.6M on his $18.5M contract, while the prorated minimum on a replacement would fall at $516K. The amount Crabbe agreed to give back in the buyout hasn’t been released.

The Wolves now have a roster opening that they can fill or keep for the rest of the season.