Report: The Spurs sign Stanley Johnson, waive Alize Johnson

After signing him two weeks ago, the Spurs have waived forward Alize Johnson. He appeared in four games for the Spurs, averaging 1.8 points in 7.5 minutes per game.

He was signed from the Austin Spurs mostly as a stopgap due to San Antonio’s depleted state at the forward positions the past few weeks, but with the recent return of Josh Richardson and Jeremy Sochan, any potential playing time for him is likely gone. Assuming he clears the waivers, he could return to Austin.

That leaves an open spot on the Spurs roster, and they are already filling it with another combo forward in Stanley Johnson on a one-year deal. (Keldon, Alize, Stanley — you can never have too many Johnsons!)

Stanley was drafted 8th overall by the Detroit Pistons in 2015 out of Arizona, where he was part of their main rotation for three-and-a-half seasons before being traded to the Pelicans, and he has been a journeyman ever since. He last appeared in 48 games for the Lakers in the 2021-22 season, where he averaged 6.7 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 1.7 assists.

It’s starting to look more and more like the Spurs are just going to keep rotating players through the 15th slot for the sake of giving them a look, which isn’t surprising for a rebuilding team. That probably wasn’t originally the plan, but Stanley will be the third player after Alize and Jordan Hall to occupy that spot ever since it was opened via the waiving of Josh Primo. If it’s ever permanently filled this season, Charles Bassey seems like a deserving candidate, but it’s possible the Spurs are looking to milk his two-way contract for all its worth before committing to him the rest of the season, or maybe they’re waiting to see what happens at the trade deadline.

In the meantime, thank you to Alize for your contributions, and welcome to San Antonio, Stanley!