The Los Angeles Lakers have requested an application from the NBA to have former forward Luol Deng‘s salary removed from the books, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic.
The Lakers are citing a career-ending injury to Deng, Charania noted.
Deng, 35, hasn’t played for the Lakers since 2018, and even that was just one game (the season-opener). After agreeing with then-coach Luke Walton that he should move on rather than playing meaningless minutes, Deng reached a buyout agreement.
He officially retired a year ago. Still, his salary remains on the books through the 2021-22 season.
The defending champion Lakers are expected to revamp much of their bench as they push forward with star forwards LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
