In a somewhat surprising move, the Dallas Mavericks announced they were waiving back-up center Sean Williams on Thursday.

Williams had played in 8 games this season for Dallas, averaging 3.6 points, 1.6 rebounds and 0.6 blocks:

Mavs waive Sean Williams. Roster down to 14. Williams gotta be thinking, "Waiving me & keeping Lamar?"

— Art Garcia (@ArtGarcia92) March 22, 2012

The 6'10 235 center had bounced back and forth between the Mavericks and their NBDL affiliate, the Texas Legends, all season long, but had been with the team for most of the last month ever since a string of injuries hit Dallas' roster.

However, in the process, Williams used all three possible assignments to the D-League he had available to him as mandated by the CBA.

In his brief playing time, he showed glimpses of the excellent defensive potential that made him a first-round pick of the New Jersey Nets in 2007. He washed out of the league due to off-the-court issues but there were no reports of any incidents in his time in Dallas.

While the move saves the team a small amount of money, Marc Cuban has never been one to pinch pennies, so the release may indicate the Mavericks have plans to use Williams' roster spot in the upcoming days.

For more on the defending NBA champions, head over to Mavs Moneyball.