Former New York Knicks guard Cuttino Mobley has dropped a nearly 3-year-old case against Madison Square Garden, and according to a source close to the player, did so in an attempt to return to the NBA.

"[Cuttino] wants to play again in the NBA. He dropped the case because no team would sign him," the source said Friday. "He believes he was misdiagnosed by the Knicks and had sued them 2½ years ago. But because [the lawsuit] wasn't going anywhere, and it was taking too long, he decided to drop it to possibly get in with another team."

The U.S. District Court's Southern District of New York sent out a news release Friday saying that "the plaintiff in this case has dismissed the claims against the defendant."

The claims involved Mobley, 37, accusing the Knicks of pressuring him to retire as a way to save approximately $19 million.

Mobley's frustrations with the Knicks started in November 2008, shortly after they acquired him from the Los Angeles Clippers via trade. While he knew he had a heart irregularity, an MRI exam the team ordered after his physical revealed a more serious condition. He ended up retiring because of a heart disease called hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, but things got messy from there.

In November 2011, Mobley filed the lawsuit that contended the Knicks knew of his condition, but pushed to make the trade anyway, then sent him to specialists they knew would oppose him playing so insurance could pay his contract and it wouldn't count against the luxury tax.

In a statement at the time, the Knicks said, "We are confident Cuttino's claims have no merit and will not prevail."

Mobley went on to have discussions about a contract with other teams, but none of them signed him because the Knicks had medically disqualified him.

With the case dropped, Mobley is hoping to change that.

He is playing pickup games at the Clippers' practice facility, which also have included Blake Griffin, Metta World Peace, Lou Amundson, Matt Barnes, Darren Collison, Austin Daye, DeMar DeRozan, Baron Davis, Xavier Henry, Kris Humphries, DeAndre Jordan, and Terrence Ross.

"Cuttino is looking good. He's in crazy good shape," the source said.

Mobley last played in 2008 with the Clippers. During his nine-year career, the 6-foot-4 guard averaged 16 points and 1.2 steals per game for the Houston Rockets, Orlando Magic, Sacramento Kings and Clippers.