The Washington Wizards are reportedly signing fourth-year guard Ron Baker to a contract following his release from the New York Knicks, and are waiving guard Okaro White, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN:
Wizards are signing former Knick Ron Baker, league sources tell ESPN. Wiz waiving Okaro White.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) December 20, 2018
Baker will replace Austin Rivers, who was moved in a deal along with Kelly Oubr Jr. to the Phoenix Suns in exchange for 3-and-D veteran forward Trevor Ariza. Baker may not receive quite the amount of playing time that Rivers received, as the majority of his minutes will likely go to Tomas Sataransky.
Baker’s role frequently changed throughout his tenure with the Knicks, as he was asked to be a backup guard, reserve, or even a starter at times. However, Baker’s role has decreased since his rookie season, and never received much of an opportunity due to the Knicks’ plethora of young talent at the guard position – such as Trey Burke, Frank Ntlikina, or Emmanuel Mudiay, who has exceeded expectations this season.
Baker averaged 4.1 points and 2.1 assists in 52 games for the Knicks – 16 of which he started – during his rookie year in 2016-17. However, he is averaging just 1.3 points and 1.2 assists over 11 games in very limited minutes this season. The Wizards are desperately looking for any way to right the ship to their disastrous start to their season, and Baker can provide an occasional spark off the bench when given the opportunity.
