Report: Celtics to waive Guerschon Yabusele

After 3 seasons with the Boston Celtics, fan-favorite Guerschon Yabusele will be waived, per Chris Haynes of Yahoo! Sports.

Yabusele was drafted along with Jaylen Brown and Ante Zizic in the first round of the 2016 draft, and he spent his first year in China as a draft-and-stash player. In two years with the Celtics, the “Dancing Bear” put up 2.3 points, 1.4 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game on 44.2% shooting from the field, 32.3% from 3 and 68.2% from the free-throw line.

With the Celtics thin on serviceable players in the front court and perhaps with the emergence of Tacko Fall as a pinch center option, Yabusele’s poor play to open this year’s Summer League slate was the final nail in the coffin that sealed his departure.

One thing that Guerschon Yabusele brought to the team from the moment he was drafted was joy. He was an easy (and lovable) target for the memes, bench reactions and more, and other players in the locker room loved him. It’s a shame the basketball component of it never came together because his archetype as a mobile big who could shoot and also had the girth to bang down low could have been incredibly useful both last year and this upcoming season. In the end, though, things didn’t work out.

The Celtics may offer Yabusele’s roster spot to Tacko Fall, or they may hold onto it for buyout season or allow players to fight for it when Training Camp rolls around this fall. There’s also the option of perusing the free agent market for a veteran player to take the spot instead. Boston will definitely evaluate all options.

Wherever you go tonight, pour one out for Yabu.