Denzel Valentine’s tenure as a New York Knick was officially a paper transaction.
The Knicks announced Monday night that they have waived Valentine, hours after officially acquiring him from the Los Angeles Lakers. The team also announced they had waived guard Wayne Selden to accommodate a roster spot for Valentine, albeit a temporary one.
New York won’t be too short come Tuesday night, however, as they also announced that Mitchell Robinson and Jericho Sims have cleared COVID protocols and are once again eligible.
The Knicks acquired Valentine Monday afternoon in a three-way deal that also saw them net the draft rights to center Wang Zhelin and guard/forward Brad Newley as well as $1.1 million from the Lakers, but with his full $1.94 million salary due to become guaranteed on January 10, it was likely the Knicks would release him, as the Lakers planned to had the Rajon Rondo deal been between just them and Cleveland.
Selden was signed in September and played 19 minutes over three games for the Knicks.
On the other side, the returns of Sims and Robinson will bolster a Knicks frontcourt that is down Julius Randle and Nerlens Noel due to COVID protocols.
Sims last played on Dec. 23, while Robinson went into protocols on Saturday and missed just one game, Sunday’s loss in Toronto.
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