With training camp set to begin next week, he has been quietly busy in front of the high school office in recent days. Anton Watson, Chase Ross and Meechie Johnson Jr. were signed. It goes to Exhibit 10, even though they retired one day after Watson. Ross and Johnson went back to Cole Swider and William Kyle III not far after the intermission on Sunday night.
Why am I going to sign someone’s point the next day? Why are the Lakers signing these guys when they already have 16 players under standard contracts? Essentially, they are using the expanded roster limits on practice fields — teams can have up to 21 players until the regular season is cut — to build their G League.
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The 10 contracts effectively allow the Bruins to funnel some extra cash to their players as long as they remain in the newly signed Coachella Valley Lakers for at least 60 days. They are eligible to receive anywhere between $5,000 and almost $90,000 from the school if they make it, and the money will not count towards the school’s combined salary, so it will not reach the luxury of agrarian or proximity to the first precinct. Essentially, there is no point in getting into high school unless you’re a fan of Mark Walters, Bob Iger or Josh Kushner.
They have to stop Ross and Johnson before the start of the regular season to be eligible for that bonus. But with the Jets already having 16 players under contract, both players will have to do an uphill battle against the regular-season lineup as it stands. It’s unfortunate that he wants to keep around training camp if they deserve either a roster spot or one of the three two slots, because players in Exhibit 10 deals cannot be converted to two-way contracts once the regular season begins.
The Boston Celtics selected Watson first with the No. He is the 54th overall pick in the 2024 draft. They signed him to a two-way deal in the offseason, but he never appeared in a regular-season game for them until March 2025. The Knicks claimed him on waivers two days later, and he played a grand total of 22 minutes over nine games at the end of the 2024-25 campaign.
Rude Watson signed to Exhibit 10 last year, much before releasing him before the start of the 2025-26 regular season. Averaged 11.0 points, 4.9 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.4 steals while shooting 50.0% overall and 33.2% from deep for the then-South Bay Lakers in 50 appearances that year.
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Ross de Marquette this past summer after averaging 14.3 points, 4.2 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 2.3 steals per game as a senior. He was named to the Big East All-Defensive team this past year.
Johnson also started this past summer after throwing in college at Ohio State and South Carolina. He averaged 17.2 points, 4.3 assists, 3.3 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game as a senior, although he shot just 41.4% overall and 32.6% from deep.
The Bruins now have six players signed to 10 contracts, which is the most they are allowed to have. Watson, Ross and Johnson figure to join Robbie Avila, Kyle Williams III and Robert McCray in the G League in a few weeks to complete the Coachella Valley Lakers roster. If any of them manage to focus on the Christmas number, they will likely have a few strange lions to grieve around the holidays this year.
These signs, so that all the sounds, as if following, went round the edges, and were very strong. The odds of any of them becoming impactful players for the high school is not one day. But the bottom line is that the company is taking advantage of the Exhibit 10 to get as many players as possible into their ecosystem, especially if the cost to do so is a rounding error for owners.
Unless otherwise noted, all road states NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaned Glass or * Basketball Reference. All salary information is available spotter and the salary-cap information pathway RealGM.
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