Memphis Grizzlies Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Grizzlies Sign Jaren Jackson Jr. To Four-Year Extension

October 18th, 2021 at 1:55pm CST by Luke Adams

1:55pm: Jackson’s extension is now official, per NBA.com’s transactions log. According to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link), the deal has a first-year salary of $28.9MM and declines annually from there. Marks also confirms that it’ll include prior injury exclusion (Exhibit 3) language related to Jackson’s left knee.

12:41pm: There will be injury protections in the deal, sources tell Joe Vardon of The Athletic. According to Vardon, if Jackson gets hurt again, the Grizzlies would have the ability to save some or all of the money they’d owe him.

We’ll have to wait for the specific details, but typically, that sort of contract language applies to a reoccurrence of a similar prior injury. For instance, the agreement might make Jackson’s future salaries non-guaranteed if he has more health issues related to his left knee.

Joel Embiid‘s rookie scale extension with Philadelphia had language along those lines. But again, we’ll have to wait for more specifics on Jackson’s deal.

10:40am: The Grizzlies and power forward Jaren Jackson Jr. have reached an agreement on a rookie scale extension, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Agent Austin Brown of CAA Basketball tells Wojnarowski that Jackson is signing a four-year, $105MM extension with the team. It will go into effect in 2022/23.

Jackson, 22, was the fourth overall pick in the 2018 draft and started 113 of the 115 games he played for Memphis in his first two NBA seasons. In 2019/20, he averaged 17.4 PPG, 4.6 RPG, and 1.6 BPG on .469/.394/.747 shooting in 57 contests (28.5 MPG).

However, Jackson was sidelined for the majority of the ’20/21 campaign while recovering from surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee. He returned late in the season for just 11 games and didn’t quite look like he was back up to full speed, averaging 14.4 PPG on a modest .424/.283/.833 shooting line.

Despite coming off a season nearly entirely lost to injury, Jackson remains a key part of the Grizzlies’ long-term plans, along with guard Ja Morant, who will be up for a rookie scale extension of his own in 2022.

As Wojnarowski writes, Memphis views Jackson as one of the more versatile and dynamic young bigs in the NBA. The team chose to lock him up now rather than risk paying an even higher price in restricted free agency a year from now.

Wojnarowski’s report doesn’t indicate that Jackson’s $105MM deal is fully guaranteed, so we’ll have to wait to see if that number is buoyed by incentives or whether the agreement includes some non-guaranteed money or injury language. Still, it’s a nice payday for a player who has only appeared in 126 total regular season games.

Jackson’s new deal puts this year’s crop of rookie scale extensions over the $1 billion mark, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link). That figure includes massive, maximum-salary extensions for Luka Doncic, Trae Young, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Michael Porter Jr., along with contracts ranging from $50-90MM for Mikal Bridges, Robert Williams, and Wendell Carter Jr.

The deadline to complete rookie scale extensions is at 5:00pm CT today, so more deals could still get done in the coming hours. We listed all the eligible players in an earlier story.

Grizzlies Exercise 2022/23 Options For Morant, Clarke, Bane

October 16th, 2021 at 4:27pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Grizzlies have picked up the fourth-year options for Ja Morant and Brandon Clarke and the third-year option on Desmond Bane, the team announced (via Twitter). The moves were expected as all three players deliver a level of production that exceeds their salaries for the 2022/23 season.

Morant, the No. 2 pick in the 2019 draft, was named Rookie of the Year in 2020 and helped Memphis reach the playoffs last season. He will make $12.1MM next season and will be eligible for a rookie-scale extension in July.

Clarke, who was selected 21st in 2019, has been a consistent bench player and part-time starter during both of his years with the Grizzlies. He will earn $4.3MM in 2022/23 and will also be eligible for an extension next summer.

Bane, the 30th pick in 2020, was acquired in a draft-night trade and had a productive rookie year, starting 17 of the 68 games he played. He will make $2.13MM during the 2022/23 season.

Memphis elected not to pick up the $8.1MM fourth-year option for Jarrett Culver, tweets Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian. Culver, who was acquired from the Timberwolves in an August trade, will be an unrestricted free agent next offseason.

Grizzlies Cut Kris Dunn, Two Others

October 16th, 2021 at 3:43pm CST by Luke Adams

The Grizzlies have waived former lottery pick Kris Dunn, the team announced today in a press release. Matthew Hurt and David Stockton have also been cut, as Memphis finalizes its roster for the regular season.

Dunn, 27, began his career with Minnesota after being selected with the No. 5 overall pick in the 2016 draft. He was later sent to Chicago in the Jimmy Butler trade and spent three years with the Bulls before signing with Atlanta during the 2020 offseason.

Dunn has struggled to produce offensively at the NBA level, averaging 8.2 PPG and 4.1 APG in 231 career games (24.1 MPG), with a shooting line of .420/.305/.727. His strong defense earned him a two-year contract with the Hawks last offseason, but an ankle injury limited him to just four games. He was traded to Boston and then flipped to Memphis after he exercised his player option for 2021/22.

The Grizzlies acquired Dunn and Carsen Edwards in that trade with Boston last month, but have since waived both players, signaling that the 2026 second-round pick swap included in the deal was the main reason Memphis pulled the trigger.

Dunn will clear waivers on Monday and could draw interest from teams in need of a defensive specialist in the backcourt.

Southwest Notes: Mavs, Grizzlies, Rockets, Pelicans, Gordon

October 15th, 2021 at 6:17pm CST by Luke Adams

Appearing on the podcast 10 Questions with Kyle Brandt, Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said he has a vaccine mandate for his employees.

“It is your choice. It is absolutely, positively up to you. But there are consequences that come with that,” Cuban said, per Selby Lopez of The Dallas Morning News. “If you work for me, I require my employees to be vaccinated unless there’s a doctor’s reason where they can’t be.”

Since the NBA doesn’t require its players to be vaccinated, that mandate doesn’t apply to the players on Dallas’ roster such as Trey Burke, who said during training camp he remains unvaccinated.

Here’s more from around the Southwest:

John Hollinger of The Athletic interprets the Grizzlies‘ summer trades of Jonas Valanciunas and Grayson Allen as signals that the team isn’t feeling pressure to take another big step forward after making the playoffs last season. Hollinger expects his old club’s end-of-season record to look similar to last year’s, projecting a 41-41 finish.
Hollinger also recapped the offseason and previewed the upcoming season for the Rockets and Pelicans. He was confused by Houston’s four-year commitment to Daniel Theis, given that most other veterans on the roster seem to be on the trade block, but expects the Rockets to be entertaining in 2021/22, projecting 26 wins. Hollinger had mixed feelings on New Orleans’ offseason, but suggests the moves look better in totality than they did individually at the time, and forecasts 43 wins for the Pels.
Rahat Huq of The Houston Chronicle explores whether the Rockets should hang onto Eric Gordon or focus on trying to find a trade that gets him to a contender as soon as possible. As Huq observes, it’s difficult to find a good match for Gordon at this point, so it probably makes sense for the team to sit tight and see if more opportunities open up by the trade deadline or next offseason.

Grizzlies Sign Stockton, Waive Caver

October 15th, 2021 at 5:15pm CST by Rory Maher

The Grizzlies announced in a press release that they have signed guard David Stockton and waived guard Ahmad Caver.

The terms of Stockton’s contract weren’t disclosed, but it’s almost certainly an Exhibit 10 contract. As with Caver, he will likely be waived before the season starts. The move is procedural in nature, as it will allow the Grizzlies to give Stockton a bonus of up to $50K if he sticks with their G League squad, the Memphis Hustle, for at least 60 days.

Stockton is a six-year veteran of the G League and has seen action in six total NBA games since going undrafted in 2014. He has also played for several overseas teams during the course of his career. In 184 G League contests, he holds career averages of 17.3 PPG, 3.5 RPG, and 6.9 APG in 29.9 MPG, with a shooting line of .450/.369/.820. He suited up for the Hustle last season in the G League bubble in Orlando.

Caver spent the past two seasons with the Hustle after going undrafted out of Old Dominion in 2019. He had a productive run for the team last season, putting up 16.5 PPG, 4.1 RPG, and 3.9 APG in 29.4 MPG off the bench.

The move leaves the team with the preseason maximum of 20 players under contract: 15 with guaranteed deals, Sam Merrill with a partial guarantee of $500K, and both two-way slots filled.

Grizzlies Sign Ahmad Caver, Matthew Hurt; Waive Sean McDermott, Romeo Weems

October 14th, 2021 at 10:17am CST by Luke Adams

The Grizzlies have completed a series of four roster moves, announcing today in a press release that they’ve waived Sean McDermott and Romeo Weems, replacing them on the roster with Ahmad Caver and Matthew Hurt.

Both McDermott and Weems had been on Exhibit 10 contracts and it’s safe to assume that Caver and Hurt will receive similar deals.

All four players are candidates to join the Memphis Hustle, the Grizzlies’ G League affiliate. Signing them to Exhibit 10 deals now ensures the Grizzlies will secure their NBAGL rights or – if the team already holds their returning rights – will be able to award them bonuses of up to $50K if they spend at least 60 days with the Hustle.

Caver, a 6’2″ point guard, has spent the last two seasons with the Hustle and made a major impact off the bench for the team in the 2021 NBAGL bubble, averaging 16.5 PPG, 4.1 RPG, and 3.8 APG on .525/.425/.634 shooting in 15 games (29.4 MPG).

Hurt, a 6’9″ forward who played two seasons for Duke, had a very productive sophomore season for the Blue Devils in 2020/21, averaging 18.3 PPG and 6.2 RPG with a stellar .556/.444/.724 shooting line across 24 games (32.7 MPG). He signed a two-way contract with Houston in August, but was waived in September.

Dillon Brooks Has Fractured Left Hand, To Be Reassessed In 2-3 Weeks

October 12th, 2021 at 4:22pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Grizzlies have announced that swingman Dillon Brooks is still recovering from a left hand fracture and will be reassessed in 2-3 weeks.

According to the team, after normal imaging was conducted on players ahead of the 2021/22 season, the Grizzlies decided that Brooks should undergo further treatment for the hand to heal. The 25-year-old was originally sidelined for eight weeks earlier this summer after breaking his hand in two locations.

The 6’7″ wing out of Oregon averaged a career-best 17.2 PPG, 2.3 APG, and 1.2 SPG last season, to go along with 2.9 RPG, playing 67 out of 72 games for Memphis. He also posted a shooting line of .419/.344/.815.

Brooks has missed all of the Grizzlies’ four preseason contests thus far as a result of a sore right thigh.

Grizzlies Sign Romeo Weems, Waive Shaq Buchanan

October 8th, 2021 at 11:54am CST by Luke Adams

The Grizzlies have made a minor change to their 20-man preseason roster, announcing today in a press release that they’ve signed forward Romeo Weems and waived guard Shaq Buchanan.

Weems averaged 7.3 PPG and 5.0 RPG in 18 games (28.6 MPG) for DePaul as a sophomore in 2020/21, knocking down 36.6% of this three-point attempts. He agreed to an Exhibit 10 deal with the Grizzlies shortly after going undrafted in July and has now finalized that deal over two months later.

Buchanan, who has signed Exhibit 10 deals with Memphis in three consecutive years, has spent the last two seasons with the Memphis Hustle in the G League, averaging 11.6 PPG, 5.2 RPG, and 1.5 APG on .426/.349/.657 shooting in 48 games (24.8 MPG). He’s a good bet to return to the Hustle this season, and Weems appears likely to join him.

Following their moves, the Grizzlies still have a full 20-man roster, with 16 players on guaranteed contracts, two on Exhibit 10 pacts, and a pair on two-way deals.

Anderson, Bane Vying For Grizzlies' Final Starting Spot?

October 8th, 2021 at 10:35am CST by Luke Adams

Evan Barnes of The Memphis Commercial Appeal evaluates whether Kyle Anderson or Desmond Bane makes more sense as a fifth starter for the Grizzlies, assuming Ja Morant, Jaren Jackson, Dillon Brooks, and Steven Adams occupy the other four spots.

Southwest Notes: Thad, Spurs Youth, Wood, Clarke, Tillman

October 5th, 2021 at 5:43pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

New Spurs forward Thaddeus Young appears to be staying put in San Antonio for the time being. The Suns continue to be intrigued by the versatile veteran, but an immediate move is “doubtful,” per John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM (Twitter link).

Young was sent to the Spurs from Chicago in the sign-and-trade package that netted the Bulls pricey small forward DeMar DeRozan during the 2021 offseason. The 33-year-old Young enjoyed a stellar year with the Bulls in 2020/21, averaging 12.1 PPG, 6.2 RPG and 4.3 APG while logging time at the small forward, power forward, and center positions for a Chicago team in desperate need of his veteran leadership, passing skills, and defensive savvy.

There’s more out of the Southwest Division:

With longtime leaders DeRozan, LaMarcus Aldridge, Patty Mills and Rudy Gay now all gone from the Spurs‘ roster, the club’s young players have developed a strong bond together, writes Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express-News. “The Spurs do a great job of picking people who have great personalities off the court,” said 22-year-old shooting guard Lonnie Walker. “We all hang out every other day, going out to eat, doing something as a team… As we continue to build that trust, it starts to lead onto the court, knowing what each other can do, knowing what each other can’t do, what we should be better at.”
When Rockets center Christian Wood first inked a three-year, $41MM deal with Houston in the 2020 offseason, he was not anticipating that he’d soon find himself on a rebuilding roster. Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle details how Wood continues to look on the bright side of his new situation. At the time, the club still sported then-All-Star guards James Harden and Russell Westbrook, along with veteran power forward P.J. Tucker. Now all those players have moved on. Westbrook was subsequently traded to the Wizards later in the 2020 offseason (and has now been rerouted to the Lakers), while Harden forced his way onto the Nets and Tucker was sent to the 2021 title-winning Bucks. “I know what we’re trying to build and develop,” Wood said. “I’m looking ahead at the future at what this team has to offer. I know we have a bunch of young talent. I said before, we’re not going to go in try to be the No. 1 seed or No. 2 seed in the Western Conference. But we’re going to try to play every game like it’s our last.”
Though they could play together, defensive-oriented 6’8″ Grizzlies bench big men Brandon Clarke and Xavier Tillman Sr. seem poised to compete with each other to carve out rotation roles in Memphis, writes Chris Herrington of the Daily Memphian. Herrington suggests that Tillman may have an edge edge over Clarke in the eventual rotation, thanks in part to his solid shooting and half-court passing acumen.