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Grizzlies Notes: Coaching Search, Joerger, Conley

May 8th, 2016 at 10:56am CST by Arthur Hill

Former Pacers coach Frank Vogel will be part of a long list of candidates to replace Dave Joerger, according to Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal. Tillery expects the Grizzlies to reach out to veteran coaches David Blatt, Brian Shaw, Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy. GM Chris Wallace promised a “thoughtful and comprehensive” process, adding that there is no rush to find a replacement. He plans to consider college coaches as well as NBA assistants. “We don’t have a guy,” Wallace said. “We’ll talk to people and see how it goes. It’s not about dealing from a pre-existing category. It’s about finding the right guy. We’re very much in the preliminary stages.” Tillery writes that “reshaping” the team, which the front office didn’t believe Joerger was willing to do, will be among the responsibilities for the next coach.

There’s more out of Memphis:

Wallace’s call for stability in the organization is laughable, writes Geoff Calkins of The Commercial Appeal, pointing out that in the past four years, the Grizzlies have been through an ownership change, two GM changes and two coaching changes. Joerger had been expressing his unhappiness in subtle ways throughout the season, Calkins notes, and felt betrayed when Jeff Green and Courtney Lee were dealt away at the trade deadline. Joerger also said the roster was “old and slow” and repeatedly praised Jazz rookie Rodney Hood, whom the Grizzlies passed over in the draft. Calkins questions whether free agent point guard Mike Conley will want to re-sign with an organization that has seen so much turnover.
The Grizzlies may not have enough to offer on the free agent market, according to Ben Dowsett of Basketball Insiders. Memphis must decide by June 29th whether to pick up a $9.4MM option for next season on Lance Stephenson. If the Grizzlies keep him and all their other contracts while renouncing Matt Barnes and Chris Andersen, they will have about $60MM in guaranteed salary against a cap projected at more than $90MM. However, Conley carries a $14MM cap hold, which means money must be cut in other areas for the team to offer a max contract. Vince Carter and JaMychal Green are possibilities, as they both have contracts that won’t be guaranteed until January. Brandan Wright and his $5.7MM deal could be traded to clear more room. Dowsett speculates about Eric Gordon, Joe Johnson, Arron Afflalo, Gerald Henderson and Leandro Barbosa as possible free agent targets.

Western Notes: Grizzlies, Arthur, KG, Aldrich

April 11th, 2016 at 12:44pm CST by Chuck Myron

GM Chris Wallace says the Grizzlies have skewed toward youth with the players they’ve signed to compensate for injury this season, given the cushion they’d already built for a playoff spot and the opportunity to “catch lightning in a bottle” with a prospect who pans out, as he tells Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal. Memphis has had success in this regard in the past with JaMychal Green, and Wallace is optimistic that Xavier Munford, who recently signed a two-year deal, will follow in his footsteps. “I’m very proud of both of those guys,” Wallace said. “They were given a golden opportunity to make the case that they’re NBA players. [Green]’s played more games than anybody has for us this year. JaMychal has proven he’s an NBA rotation player. Xavier came from further off the beaten path than JaMychal. Xavier had never been in an NBA training camp. Xavier had never had a call-up. But he’s got good size and is very long and rangy. He’s got good potential defensively. When he’s out there, it looks like he belongs and he does well. The coaching staff and his teammates are getting more and more confidence in him. You always have to be projective with younger players. He’s a major upward curve that’s very intriguing for us in the future.”

See more from the Western Conference:

Darrell Arthur wants to remain with the Nuggets, and he would like to do so with a new three or four-year deal, as he tells Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post. Still, the 28-year-old power forward is undecided about whether to turn down a player option worth more than $2.94MM for next season, as he also said to Dempsey. He’d have to opt out to get that long-term deal he wants, since he’s ineligible to sign an extension on the two-year deal he signed with the team last summer. In any case, he fielded strong interest from other teams at the trade deadline, according to Dempsey.
Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor is optimistic that Kevin Garnett will return for next season, the last on his contract, but coach Sam Mitchell, a teammate of Garnett’s from 1995-2002, isn’t so sure the 39-year-old won’t retire this summer, as Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune relays. “There’s one person who knows his future, and that’s him,” Mitchell said of Garnett. “You know how he is. He’s just not going to tip his hand one way or the other. He has earned the right to do that.”
Doc Rivers believes the insertion of Cole Aldrich into the rotation in December sparked the Clippers‘ second unit, and he’s thrived in even more playing time of late, as Ben Bolch of the Los Angeles Times examines. Aldrich has a minimum-salary player option for next season.

Western Notes: Durant, Grizzlies, Spurs, Rockets

March 4th, 2016 at 1:00pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Thunder absorbed a pair of discouraging losses to the Clippers and Warriors this week, but while their chances of title contention don’t look as strong as they did a few days ago, Kevin Durant is OK with that, as Royce Young of ESPN.com chronicles (on Twitter). Durant’s comments are particularly resonant against the backdrop of his free agency this summer, observes Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com (Twitter link), especially in light of the report that the former MVP regards the Warriors as his top choice outside the Thunder.

“This is an exciting time for me,” Durant said. “I’m happy that we’re going through this because like I said it’s easy to be … we don’t want to be front-runners. That’s not who we are. That’s not who I am. And I’m not going to let the team be that way. When you’re losing, that’s when you really got to show your character and show who you are. We’re going to keep our heads up, all our guys are going to stay positive and keep working and learn from it.”

No team is as much of a front-runner as Golden State is, of course. See more from the Western Conference:

Injuries have forced the Grizzlies to place a greater emphasis on younger players, from trade acquisitions Lance Stephenson and P.J. Hairston to incumbent reserves like JaMychal Green and Jarell Martin, as The Commercial Appeal’s Ronald Tillery examines.
Suns interim coach Earl Watson was a major influence on San Antonio’s decision to sign Jonathon Simmons, stemming from his time as Simmons’ coach on the Spurs D-League affiliate last season, notes Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News amid a larger look at the unlikely path the shooting guard took to the NBA.
The Rockets assigned Montrezl Harrell and K.J. McDaniels to the D-League, the team announced (Twitter link). They join Sam Dekker, who’s already on assignment from Houston.

Grizzlies Notes: Conley, Joerger, Chalmers, Gasol

November 19th, 2015 at 1:59pm CST by Chuck Myron

Mike Conley doesn’t seem anxious to leave Memphis, just as Marc Gasol wasn’t last year, but Gasol didn’t make any promises until he re-signed in July, and Conley isn’t either, observes Chris Mannix of SI.com.

“It’s easy to feel obligated; it’s easy to want to stay,” Conley said to Mannix. “This is where I’ve had my whole career. At the same time I understand this is a business. I have to weigh my options just like [Gasol] did. Hopefully it will be an easy decision, whatever it is.”

Since Conley, No. 3 in our 2016 Free Agent Power Rankings, is apparently thinking along the same lines as Gasol, even if he’s reluctant to say he’ll draw the same conclusion, check out what Gasol had to say about what went into his decision to re-sign this past summer amid the latest from Memphis:

Dave Joerger‘s job wasn’t in jeopardy at any point earlier this month in spite of the rumors, and no indication came forth that owner Robert Pera had grown impatient, writes Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal. Joerger pushed for the team to trade for Mario Chalmers, and the team did so, indicating the sway Joerger still has within the organization, Tillery notes.
The Chalmers trade has been a boon for the Grizzlies, opines Chris Herrington of The Commercial Appeal, who examines what he brings to Memphis, the emergence of JaMychal Green in the rotation, and more in his weekly Pick and Pop column.
The feeling that he had unfinished business with the Grizzlies helped lead Gasol to re-sign, as he told Mannix for a separate piece. “I think every conversation always led to that. About how much the city means to me, how much my teammates mean to me, how much this franchise means to me,” Gasol said in part. “At the end of the day, I felt responsible for that. There was a lot of attention and a lot of people wanted to talk, but this is where I wanted to be.”

Western Notes: Bryant, Rockets, Grizzlies

November 2nd, 2015 at 10:07pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Lakers would be better off if Kobe Bryant retired, John Smallwood of the Philadelphia Daily News opines. Bryant hasn’t been an impact player since the 2012/13 season and no longer serves a useful role on a rebuilding team, Smallwood continues. The veteran wing player doesn’t have the mentality to help develop the Lakers’ younger players and his burning desire to win actually hurts the team’s chances of holding onto its first-round pick, Smallwood adds. The Lakers must convey their 2016 pick to the Sixers unless it’s in the top three. Becoming a role player on a contending team via a trade or buyout doesn’t suit Bryant’s personality or ego, so there’s no point in Bryant continuing his career, Smallwood concludes.

In other news around the Western Conference:

Rockets coach Kevin McHale is unsure when he’ll feel comfortable playing center Dwight Howard in back-to-backs, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle reports. Howard missed most of the preseason with back tightness after sitting out a portion of last season with fluid buildup in his right knee, Feigen continues. “Dwight’s going to have to build his way up to being in NBA shape and being able to perform at the level he wants,” McHale told Feigen. “It’s not realistic to say you’re going to take that much time off and be able to come back and play.”
JaMychal Green is a strong rebounder and that’s the most compelling reason for him to be in the Grizzlies’ rotation, Chris Herrington of the Memphis Commercial Appeal opines. Green, playing on a partially guaranteed deal, has been used as Memphis’ 10th man in the early going and has shown the foundation to be a useful role player, Herrington continues. If he continues to improve on catch-and-shoot opportunities, he’ll secure a rotation spot, Herrington adds.
Kings coach George Karl believes mental mistakes and faulty shot selection are the team’s biggest issues after the first three games, Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee reports. “I see a team that needs to get better and get smarter and get serious about those two things,” Karl said to Jones. “We’re not a connected team yet.”

Grizzlies Waive Ryan Hollins

October 26th, 2015 at 4:02pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Grizzlies have waived Ryan Hollins, the team announced via press release. Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal reported moments before the 4pm Central deadline for the move to take place that Hollins was about to hit waivers (Twitter link). He was presumably going head-to-head against JaMychal Green for a regular season roster spot, as the 14 other Grizzlies have full guarantees, though Jarnell Stokes, who possesses a fully guaranteed one-year veteran’s minimum salary, had reportedly fallen out of favor lately. Hollins’ deal is non-guaranteed, though the Grizzlies will have a small cap hit since they failed to waive him by Saturday’s deadline to remove non-guaranteed salary from the books, presuming he clears waivers. Green has a partial guarantee of $150K.

Hollins, 31, was trying to make an NBA regular season roster for the 10th consecutive season, even though he’s averaged only 11.8 minutes per game for his career. He saw about that same level of playing time in the preseason for Memphis, averaging 5.4 points and 3.0 rebounds in 11.5 minutes per contests over seven appearances.

The Wizards, Kings, Clippers, Mavericks and Pelicans were all reportedly interested in Hollins at some point over the summer, suggesting that he stands a decent chance to surface on another team’s roster sometime soon. Teams can continue to sign players to non-guaranteed contracts until January, when 10-day deals begin.

And-Ones: Williams, Curry, Green, Draft

March 5th, 2015 at 9:05pm CST by Will Joseph

Since being acquired in a February trade, Mo Williams has been thriving with the Hornets, who have won three straight and are currently clinging to the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference, writes Cody Taylor of Basketball Insiders. The Hornets are planning on playing both Williams and Kemba Walker together once Walker, who has been cleared to resume all basketball activities, returns to the lineup, Taylor adds. Williams, who’ll be an unrestricted free agent at season’s end, is averaging 21.6 points and 8.9 assists in 35.0 minutes per game, and, as Taylor notes, his leadership has been valued by Hornets coach Steve Clifford.

Here’s more from around the league:

The Venezuelan club Marinos de Anzoategui tried to sign former NBA lottery pick Eddy Curry, but visa issues scuttled the deal, Emiliano Carchia of Sportando reports (Twitter link). The 32-year-old big man last played in the NBA for the Mavs during the 2012/13 campaign.
JaMychal Green‘s three year deal with the Grizzlies will pay him $134,295 for the remainder of this season, $845,059 in 2015/16, and $980,431 for the 2016/17 season, Eric Pincus of Basketball insiders notes (Twitter link). Green’s deal comes with a partial guarantee of $150K for next season, Pincus adds.
Texas freshman center Myles Turner’s decision to play for embattled coach Rick Barnes has hurt the NBA prospect’s draft stock, writes Jonathan Tjarks of RealGM.
University of Wisconsin sophomore forward Nigel Hayes might be headed to the NBA, writes Gery Woelfel of The Racine Journal Times. Woelfel has heard Hayes is viewed as a late first-round pick with upside. Hayes is not currently listed in the top 100 players by DraftExpress, and is the No. 80 prospect on Chad Ford of ESPN.com‘s (Insider subscription required) big board.

Eddie Scarito contributed to this post.

Grizzlies Sign JaMychal Green To Multiyear Deal

March 2nd, 2015 at 5:25pm CST by Zachary Links

MONDAY, 5:25pm: The deal is official, the team announced via press release. It includes partially guaranteed salary beyond this season, as we passed along earlier from Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports.

“Before first coming to Memphis, JaMychal was the top prospect in the NBA Development League, and he has impressed us both in games and in practice during his tenure with the Grizzlies,” GM Chris Wallace said in the team’s statement. “JaMychal is not only a gifted athlete with tremendous upside but he is a humble, very hard working individual who has quickly earned the respect of his new teammates.”

SUNDAY, 1:05pm: The Grizzlies and JaMychal Green have reached agreement on a three-year deal, according to Shams Charania of RealGM. Green completed his second 10-day contract with the Grizzlies on Saturday night.

One has to imagine that the final two seasons are not fully guaranteed, but details of the pact are not yet known. The deal probably called for Memphis to use a portion of its mid-level exception since that’s the only way that the deal could span three years.

Green, 24, averaged 23 PPG and 10.7 RPG in 20 games for the Austin Spurs this season. He didn’t see nearly as much burn in his four games with the Grizzlies, however, notching a total of eight points and five boards in 15 minutes of action. Green first joined the Grizzlies on February 2nd as a free agent after a 10-day stint with San Antonio.

In total, Green has inked three 10-day deals this season between the two with the Grizzlies and his previous stint with the Spurs.

Western Notes: Green, Stockton, Grizzlies

March 2nd, 2015 at 5:00pm CST by Chuck Myron

Draymond Green offered an ominous comment for Warriors fans to Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe, saying he wants to savor the feeling of being a part of a fun, winning team while it lasts. Green, who’s set for restricted free agency this summer, is the only member of the team’s core who isn’t signed through at least next season, as Washburn points out.

“I’ve said it multiple times this year, we know how good we are,” Green said. “We’re having so much fun. It’s a fun group to be around. It’s easy to capitalize on this, when you enjoy being around the people you’re around every day. This is a special group, a special bond, so let’s make the best of it, because this team will probably never be together again. That’s just the nature of this business. One addition, one subtraction, and the team isn’t together no more. So take advantage of it while you’ve got it because I’m sure this team will never be together again. It’s a fun time. One of the funnest times of my life. Live in the moment.”

Golden State executives have given plenty of signals that they intend to match any offer for Green, who reportedly has interest in signing an offer sheet with the Pistons. So, it’s ultimately up to the Warriors to decide if he comes back, though his price may prompt the team to let someone else go. Here’s more from around the Western Conference:

The Kings have decided against signing David Stockton to another 10-day contract, tweets James Ham of Cowbell Kingdom. Sacramento’s deal with Stockton, son of Hall-of-Famer John Stockton, expired Sunday.
The three-year contract that JaMychal Green reportedly agreed to sign with the Grizzlies will include partially guaranteed salary that extends beyond this season, a source tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link).
Nuggets players didn’t seem to give coach Brian Shaw much of an endorsement when they broke a huddle with a “six weeks” chant Friday, but Shaw today told reporters, including Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post, that it wasn’t a reference to the time left in the season. They were instead talking about the weeks that had elapsed since the team’s last win at home, Shaw said.

Grizzlies Re-Sign JaMychal Green

February 19th, 2015 at 12:34pm CST by Chuck Myron

THURSDAY, 12:34pm: The Grizzlies formally announced the signing via press release.

TUESDAY, 12:24pm: The Grizzlies and JaMychal Green have agreed to what will be the power forward’s second 10-day contract with the team, sources tell Shams Charania of RealGM. The first expired with the beginning of the All-Star break last week. It’ll be the third 10-day pact for the power forward, who spent a single 10-day stint with the Spurs last month, but this will be the last short-term arrangement he can sign with Memphis this season, which would have to sign him for at least the balance of the season next time.

Green has been much sought-after, with the Knicks, Bucks, Bulls and Blazers apparently interested after he began the season with San Antonio’s D-League affiliate. He averaged 23.0 points and 10.7 rebounds in 31.6 minutes per game across 20 D-League appearances this year, though his NBA playing time has been sparse, as he’s seen just 6.3 MPG in six total regular season games with Memphis and San Antonio.

The move will restore the Grizzlies to a full 15-man roster, assuming they don’t make any other transactions before Green’s signing takes place. Memphis is relatively close to the tax threshold, but another 10-day contract for Green, who’s in his first season of NBA regular season action, almost certainly won’t cost more than the minimum salary of $29,843.