The Washington Wizards are dealing with a crazy amount of injuries, specifically to their backcourt. Bradley Beal, Alan Anderson, Gary Neal and Otto Porter have all missed time recently, and even John Wall, who hasn't missed a game, is dealing with an injury. With the need for help in the backcourt, the Wizards made a move to bring in Jarell Eddie from the D-League, and they waived Ryan Hollins in a corresponding move.
Eddie has played extremely well in the D-League so far this season, but this seems like a short-term signing for the Wizards until they get players healthy, as Eddie is likely to be cut by Jan. 10 when his contract will become guaranteed, according to J. Michael of CSN Mid-Atlantic.
Eddie played for the Wizards in the summer league in 2014 and was offered to join them in training camp but took more money elsewhere. The Wizards have kept their eye on the 24-year-old out of Virginia Tech and have even come close to signing him on a few occasions, but now it has finally happened. Eddie was shooting 53 percent from three for the Austin Spurs, The San Antonio Spurs' D-League affiliate, before he signed, and will likely provide the Wizards with backcourt depth.
Eddie's contract is non-guaranteed so the Wizards can waive him anytime before Jan. 10 without any financial repurcusions, and they will likely do so unless the injuries linger for longer than they expect. The Wizards decided they needed more help in the backcourt than they did in the frontcourt which is why they waived Hollins in favor of Eddie, but it is possible that later in the season Hollins could be back with Washington, according to Nick Borges of ESPN.
Hollins appeared in five games for the Wizards including three starts, and he averaged 1.6 points and 2.2 rebounds in 9.6 minutes per game. Eddie, on the other hand, is a 6-foot-7 shooting guard that went undrafted in 2014, but he has been in NBA training camps the past two years and the D-League, and this could be his first shot to play in the NBA. Eddie is known as a guy who can light it up from three and comes into Washington hot, so maybe the team can catch lightning in a bottle before it has to decide whether or not to cut him.
