Marco Belinelli

Hawks buy out veteran Marco Belinelli's contract

Published Feb. 9, 2018 7:12 p.m. ET

ATLANTA (AP) The Atlanta Hawks have bought out 3-point specialist Marco Belinelli's contract, giving the 11th-year veteran an opportunity to finish the season on a contending team.

The move was announced before Friday night's game against Cleveland.

Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer says the 31-year-old Belinelli ''was great for us.'' Budenholzer says the move was made both for Belinelli and to give younger players, including rookie Tyler Dorsey, more playing time.

Belinelli was averaging 11.4 points while starting only one game. He has three games with five 3-pointers and has scored in double figures 30 times.

Budenholzer said Belinelli is ''a great teammate, a great player, smart. Wherever he ends up he's going to help that team.''

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Marco Belinelli

Atlanta Hawks

National Basketball Association