Suns sign veteran C O'Neal

The Phoenix Suns signed veteran center Jermaine O'Neal to a one-year, $1.35 million contract, the Arizona Republic reported Saturday.

O'Neal, who has had injury problems the past few years, was signed to be a backup. The 33-year-old has played in just 61 percent of his teams' games the past eight seasons because of chronic knee injuries.

He appeared in 49 games combined over the past two seasons for the Boston Celtics because of knee and wrist surgeries. He averaged 5.0 points and 5.4 rebounds in 22.8 minutes per game last season before it was cut short because of a left wrist injury.

O'Neal is a six-time All-Star who has averaged 13.7 points and 7.4 rebounds per game for his career.