A couple of hours before Lester Hudson's contract worth just over $1 million would have become fully guaranteed, the Clippers waived the veteran point guard, lightening their tax bill and opening up a roster spot.
The difference between Hudson's contract and the veteran's minimum is about $68,000, which will save the Clippers that money in salary as well as about $119,000 in luxury tax payments. It's not a huge number, but Hudson is incredibly replaceable, and he himself can likely be brought back for the slightly lower veteran's minimum salary at a future date.
For now, the Clippers' depth chart at the guard positions remain confusing. Even if you assume Austin Rivers is a point guard and not a shooting guard, the team still has four shooting guards, three of whom figure to have huge roles. There's still some juggling to do before we know what the final roster will look like.
As for Hudson, he'll likely head back to China, where he'll get more money than his Clippers contract was worth anyway and compete for another MVP trophy and championship. Lester played in only 5 regular season contests and 7 playoff games, and barely spent three months on the roster.