Former Arizona players Nick Johnson and Brandon Ashley will start the season out of the NBA barring a last-minute pickup after being waived over the weekend, while T.J. McConnell will find out today if he makes the Philadelphia 76ers.
Both Johnson and Ashley will still get paid no matter where they end up, however. In Johnson's case, he'll get paid plenty: He's guaranteed $845,059 this season as part of a three-year deal he signed with Houston last season, and $980,431 next season. The Nuggets, who chose to keep Erick Green instead of Johnson, will have to pay him those amounts if another NBA team does not pick him up.
Ashley signed a partially guaranteed deal with the Mavericks and, while the guaranteed portion has not been disclosed, it could be in the low six figures.
McConnell also has a partially guaranteed deal with the 76ers that will pay him a six-figure amount, his agent said, and injuries on the Sixers' roster have given him a good opportunity in the preseason. But if he doesn't make the team, he'll collect the guarantee and be free to sign with another team or go to the D-League without anyone holding his rights.
Both Johnson and Ashley left UA as juniors; Johnson after the 2013-14 season, when he was Pac-12 Player of the Year, and Ashley after last season. Johnson went in the second round of the 2014 NBA Draft while Ashley was undrafted.
