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As expected, the Dallas Mavericks have re-signed center Bernard James, who had been waived to make room for the Monta Ellis signing. He had been pulled from the Summer League, as a precaution, in case he was claimed.
Once James cleared waivers, the stage was set for James to come back. Dallas has apparently signed him for the minimum:
The #Mavs have re-signed center Bernard James to a one-year contract worth $788,872.
— Dwain Price (@DwainPrice) July 26, 2013
Though the move is a small one, it did come with some risk. James, who posted a solid PER of 14.74 as a rookie and cost next to nothing, was not guaranteed to get through waivers. Meanwhile, Dallas looks to be entering next season with a center rotation of Samuel Dalembert, a 32 year old playing for his fifth team in five years(who hasn't played more than 25 minutes in years), and Brandan Wright. James immediately becomes the team's second best rebounder and post defender.
It is entirely possible that James will play an important role next year, assuming Dallas doesn't sign a more accomplished big man(and by most accounts Dallas is an extreme longshot to get Greg Oden). So, as small moves go, this one might be fairly big.