The New Jersey Nets traded forward Yi Jianlian to the Washington Wizards on Tuesday, creating even more room under the salary cap.
The Wizards dealt forward Quinton Ross to the Nets, who also sent an undisclosed amount of cash to Washington.
The Nets freed up another 3 million U.S. dollars with the deal, leaving them about $30 million to spend once free agency opens on July 1.
Yi was the No. 6 pick in the 2007 draft by Milwaukee and has now been traded twice. He averaged career highs of 12.0 points and 7.0 rebounds last season, but was limited to 51 games because of injury.
The Chinese forward, scheduled to earn 4.1 million U.S. dollars next season, has averaged 9.6 points and 5.8 rebounds in his career.
"This trade is a good opportunity to add a skilled 7-footer with significant NBA experience who was the sixth overall pick in the draft just three years ago," Wizards president Ernie Grunfeld said in a statement. "Yi fits in very well with our ongoing plan of building towards the future with a core of young, talented players."
Ross spent last season with Dallas and Washington, and also has played for the Clippers and Memphis Grizzlies in his six-year career. He holds career averages of 4.3 points and 2.2 rebounds.