clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Spurs will waive Reggie Williams, keep Rasual Butler, per report

The roster for opening night is set.

Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

The Spurs will waive Reggie Williams, trimming the roster to 15 players. Rasual Butler has not been released and will make the roster, according to Yahoo Sports' Shams Charania.

Williams and Butler were both on fully non-guaranteed contracts and were battling for the last available spot. The only other player that didn't have a fully guaranteed contract was Matt Bonner and his place in the final roster was never really in question. Jonathon Simmons only had a small guarantee but is on a multi-year deal and can be sent down to Austin for more seasoning. It was always going to come down to Williams or Butler and the Spurs chose the latter.

With this decision the Spurs will have 15 players under contract, the maximum allowed by the NBA during the regular season. They can waive Butler at any time before Jan. 10 without being on the hook for the totality of his contract.

Williams was with the team last season and actually had better numbers during preseason than Butler. In six games he averaged four points and two rebounds while shooting 41 percent from beyond the arc. There was nothing special about his performance but no one on the fringes really stood out, which is why it was hard to predict who would make the final cut.

Ultimately, Butler's reputation as a quality shooter might have been enough to secure the last spot despite not having a lot of success as a three-point threat in preseason. He was also willing to play power forward in small lineups, which provides Gregg Popovich with more lineup flexibility. He's not expected to have as big a role as he had with the Wizards last season but as wing depth, he's a solid choice.

Regular season roster

Tony Parker, PG

Patty Mills, PG

Ray McCallum, PG

Danny Green, SG

Manu Ginobili, SG

Jonathon Simmons, SG

Kawhi Leonard, SF

Kyle Anderson, SF

Rasual Butler, SF

LaMarcus Aldridge, PF

David West, PF

Boris Diaw, PF

Matt Bonner, PF

Tim Duncan, C

Boban Marjanovic, C