Waived by the Dallas Mavericks on July 8, seven-foot center JaVale McGee is still searching for a suitable contract offer from an NBA franchise. 

JaVale McGee meeting with NBA teams, seeking out deal

His quest to land a deal precluded him from attending the Northeast Regional of the third-annual TBT basketball tournament in Philadelphia on Saturday afternoon, where he was originally slated to be competing with Team Fancy, an at-large competitor in the popular tournament's field. According to Team Fancy general manager Griffin Taylor, this could signal that McGee is in fact, nearing a deal. 

"As far as JaVale goes, he is in the process of switching teams right now, with a lot of uncertainty around that," Taylor told VAVEL.com following Team Fancy's narrow 108-105 defeat at the hands of Talladega Knights in TBT's first round. "He felt a lot more comfortable figuring that process out right now because that is his life." 

JaVale McGee averaged 5.1 points per game in 2015-16. | Arya Ahmadi
JaVale McGee averaged 5.1 points per game in 2015-16. | Arya Ahmadi

"He is meeting with a lot of NBA teams, with a lot of interviews and a lot of traveling," Taylor continued. "I know he is going to sign somewhere." 

The journeyman center, who has been plagued throughout his eight-year NBA career by criticism of his basketball IQ and his tendency to end up as the laughing point of meme videos rather than for consistent play, will be looking to join his fourth team in just three seasons. 

He received a handful of minutes for the Mavericks throughout the early portion of 2015-16, averaging 5.1 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 0.8 blocks in 10.9 minutes per contest in 34 appearances for Dallas prior to the All-Star break. However, following his team's acquisition of power forward David Lee and the emergence of center Zaza Pachulia, McGee's minutes were essentially scrapped by head coach Rick Carlisle

With the Mavericks trading for former first-overall selection Andrew Bogut and re-signing power forward Dwight Powell to a four-year contract, McGee became expendable when it came time to renew his $1.4 million salary, which was to become guaranteed on July 12. 

The 28-year-old has struggled mightily with the injury bug throughout his career as well, performing in just 62 contests in the past four seasons. His propensity for injuries has stunted his growth tremendously, harming the timing of his shot-blocking skills and his development offensively. 

However, McGee still possesses potential as a reserve center capable of utilizing his long frame to contest penetrators and finish in the post. His per-36 minute marks of 16.7 points, 12.9 rebounds, and 2.5 blocks last season underline his value, making it likely that a franchise takes a flyer on him in the coming weeks. 

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Liam OBrien
Just a Boston man who loves sports. Oh, and writing is kind of a priority.