The Memphis Grizzlies have an open roster spot at the present moment. If they want to use a 10-day contract for that opening, what players should they sign?
With the trade deadline gone, the various uses of extra roster spots for an NBA team have shifted dramatically. Instead of being used to possibly take in a player via trade, they can now be used to sign a player for the playoffs or to try and hit on some young talent that may not currently be in the NBA. Either way, roster spots are valuable at this point of the season. Thankfully, the Memphis Grizzlies have one.
They weren’t supposed to, Memphis left the trade deadline with 17 players (15 pro contracts and two two-way players), but Brandan Wright requested a buyout and wanted to play for a contender. Once that was done, a roster spot was open for Memphis to use on whoever they pleased.
With the playoffs out of the question, the Grizzlies’ utilization of this roster spot is easy: They should use it to sign young players to 10-day contracts. This would allow the Grizzlies brass to watch a young player play NBA minutes and see if he’s worthy of keeping the rest of this season and beyond. If the player stinks or doesn’t fit in, he’s gone in 10 days. If he fits in well or shows signs of being a useful player someday, he can be signed to a contract. Either way, it is a great way to try and evaluate some young talent in the pipeline.
Rarely does a perfect or obvious candidate for a 10-day contract appear; players who fit in perfectly like that are already signed. For Memphis, however, any young player with promise is worth a look, and given that (outside of center) the Grizzlies lack talent at every position, there are a ton of viable options to take a look at with a 10-day deal. Let’s look at three of them.
Our first two options are candidates for similar reasons. They are the only two G League All-Stars who aren’t currently on assignment from another NBA team or on a two-way contract with another organization. Walter Lemon Jr. and Trey Burke would have been in this category, but they already signed deals with the New Orleans Pelicans and New York Knicks, respectively, showing how important it is to act fast on these talented guys.
Jameel Warney
Jameel Warney, a Stony Brook graduate, has NBA Summer League experience, but his basketball pedigree goes beyond his days playing for an association team’s affiliate.
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Warney was a member of Team USA early in the fall of 2017 during the 2017 FIBA AmeriCup. Not only was he a member of the team, he was a standout. At the conclusion of the tournament, he was named the MVP of the event thanks to his 12.8 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. In recognition of his performances, Warney was named the USA Basketball male athlete of the year.
So, yeah, Warney is pretty accomplished for a guy who has never played an NBA regular season minute.
This year, he is balling for the Texas Legends, the G League affiliate of the Dallas Mavericks. The burlesque power forward is averaging 20.1 points and 9.5 rebounds per game in the minors, and he’s doing it his way.
Warney is a huskier player, and his lack of athleticism is probably why he hasn’t gotten an NBA call-up yet. However, he’s very crafty and can find ways to score in any situation:
That kind of finish is what he is most skilled at, and his touch around the basket is his biggest asset.
Outside of Marc Gasol, the Memphis Grizzlies don’t have a player like that. Warney might already be the second-best finisher in the paint on the Grizz roster if they were to sign him, so he may be worth a look on a 10-day contract.
Christian Wood
Wood is the other G League All-Star not on any sort of NBA contract. Unlikely Warney, however, he has spent time on an NBA roster before. His rookie season was spent on the Charlotte Hornets, and in his sophomore season he got some minutes with the Philadelphia 76ers. Today, he plays for the Delaware 87ers.
Warney and Wood are essentially yin and yang. Warney is the crafty and bruising inside finisher. Wood is the athlete and decent shooter. Wood is 6’11” and can jump out of the gym. He can finish lobs and put-backs better than most players at his level, but he must improve his 3-point stroke, as he’s only shooting 32.7 percent in Delaware this season.
What does that mean? It means he is developing modern skills. All teams, including the Memphis Grizzlies, want athletic centers that can shoot. Maybe with NBA coaching, he could improve on that area of his game.
Even so, look at this athleticism! Certainly it’d be worth giving this guy a look:
The challenge with Wood in Memphis is that they have tons of young players they are playing at center between Ivan Rabb, Deyonta Davis and Brice Johnson. None of those guys is nearly as athletic as Wood, and the UNLV product could prove to be the exciting, bouncy big that Memphis needs.
Justin Dentmon
Justin Dentmon has one huge problem for the Grizzlies. He is 32 years old. That makes him a less likely candidate for Memphis.
However, this dude can score a basketball. In his five seasons in the G League, he’s averaging a whopping 22 points per game on 39.9 percent shooting from 3-point range.
He’s got mean handles, a smooth jumper, and deadly touch around the basket. The Memphis Grizzlies need someone with every single one of those skills. Dentmon is 6’0″, and he uses his low center of gravity to blow right by defenders, then uses his touch to finish:
His jumper is silky smooth too, and the Grizzlies happen to rank 27th in 3-point percentage:
That is where the rubber meets the road. Dentmon can flat out score points. He substantially helps the Grizzlies on offense in the near future. Long-term, he probably isn’t a solid option, which could dissuade the front office, but Memphis could still see what he can do at his age.
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Given how expensive the roster is already, the Memphis Grizzlies may not even use their roster slot. If they do though, they should give these guys a look.