JULY 1: Grant has officially inked a deal with the Wizards to replace Bertans, per a press release on the team’s official site.
JUNE 25: The Wizards intend to sign free agent guard Jerian Grant as a substitute player for Davis Bertans, a source tells Wizards reporter Chris Miller (Twitter link). The deal will become official on July 1, Miller adds.
Bertans has decided to opt out of the NBA’s restart this summer in large part due to injury concerns. The Wizards have a full 15-man roster, but can sign a replacement for someone like Bertans, who voluntarily opts out and surrenders his salary for the eight seeding games.
That replacement will be Grant, who spent most of the 2019/20 season playing for Washington’s G League affiliate, the Capital City Go-Go, following a brief stint in China last fall. In 39 games (33.3 MPG) for the Go-Go, the veteran point guard averaged 16.3 PPG, 5.5 APG, and 4.4 RPG with an impressive .475/.441/.835 shooting line.
Grant, a former first-round pick who has previously played for the Knicks, Bulls, and Magic, will receive a rest-of-season, minimum-salary deal as a substitute player. The Washington, D.C. native will be an unrestricted free agent at season’s end, and the Wizards won’t hold any form of Bird rights on him.
Grant will help provide depth in a Washington backcourt that will be missing point guard John Wall. Wall, who continues to recover from an Achilles tear, isn’t eligible to be replaced by a substitute player since he’ll be sidelined due to an injury rather than voluntarily opting out or being ruled out due to a health issue related to COVID-19.
Not to mention Wall can probably play…
Sure, but not worth it at all for 8 games
Wall is never going to live up to expectations after his supermax extension almost 3 years ago. He is going to be using up over $40M of the Wizards cap space each of the next 3 seasons, they’re stuck with him. They desperately need to trade Beal.
No way, Beal is the future foundation for the Wizards.
They need to package Wall in a CP3 type deal.
Will probably cost them Rui plus a 1st or a couple of 1st at the very least.
Knicks are a very real option. But may still take a 2nd or even 3rd team.
How is that a CP3 type deal? The Knicks don’t have anything resembling Russell Westbrook to send back. It is just ridiculous that people have been saying that John Wall won’t live up to the expectations before he ever gets a chance to. Everyone said CP3 wouldn’t live up to expectations and that the Thunder would be among the worst teams in the league after giving up George/Westbrook and yet they are in the playoffs. They wouldn’t be there without Paul. Wall may disappoint, but he may not too. It is completely unfair to just assume he is a disappointment before he ever sets foot back on the court.
Too true, too true! I will never ever understand all the hate for Optimus Dime, the guy is a legend & he earned that contract by playing amazingly well before getting injured, so he deserves it! He is one of the best PG’s of the last 40 years, no argument there, right?
I think many fans haven’t got ideas of their own & just jump to whatever bandwagon they catch!