Cleveland Cavaliers deal injured C Chris Andersen to Charlotte Hornets

The Cleveland Cavaliers traded injured reserve center Chris Andersen to the Charlotte Hornets on Monday to open up a roster spot.

Cleveland also sent cash considerations to Charlotte for a protected 2017 second-round pick, Cavs general manager David Griffin announced.

The Hornets announced after the deal that they waived the 6-foot-10, 245-pound Andersen, nicknamed "Birdman."

The 38-year-old Andersen, who signed as a free agent on July 21, appeared in just 12 games this season after suffering a likely season-ending injury in December when he tore his right ACL. He averaged 2.3 points and 2.6 rebounds with the Cavs. He owns career averages of 5.4 points and 5.0 rebounds in 695 NBA games (45 starts).

Andersen was still attending Cavs home games as he rehabbed his knee. He told Cleveland.com on Saturday that he didn't want to discuss whether his contract would be used in a deal.

"I'm gonna leave that in-house," Andersen said. "It is a championship-caliber team and they need certain players to be out there on the floor. It's unfortunate that I'm not able to come back this season. We'll see. They gotta do what they gotta do to make sure they push the team into that position where they can repeat, then that's what they've gotta do.

"I'm aware of it, they're aware of it, we're all on the same page. We're all trying to accomplish the same goal, and that's getting them to win another championship and me be a part of it."

The defending champion Cavs plan to add another player through free agency or trade.

Currently, the Cavaliers (37-16) hold a 2.5-game lead over the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference standings, as well as an 8.5-game edge over the Indiana Pacers in the Central Division.

The Hornets later signed 7-foot center Mike Tobey to a second 10-day contract.

Tobey, 22, signed his first 10-day contract with Charlotte on Feb. 3 after being called up from the Greensboro Swarm of the NBA Development League. He appeared in 29 games (19 starts) for Greensboro in his first D-League season, averaging 11.0 points, 8.9 rebounds and 1.3 blocks in 26.0 minutes.