2019 NBA free agency tracker: Grades for every deal so far
James Ennis III: 2 years, $4.1 million (Philadelphia 76ers)
Free agent James Ennis has agreed to a two-year, $4.1M deal to return to Philadelphia, with second-year player option, league sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium. Ennis turned down more salary from multiple teams to return to a championship contender.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 2, 2019
The decisions to essentially replace J.J. Redick and Jimmy Butler with Josh Richardson and Al Horford are still up for debate, but the Philadelphia 76ers have done a categorically good job of putting their remaining cap space to good use in rounding out the rotation on the margins.
Between Mike Scott, Kyle O’Quinn and now James Ennis III, the Sixers will be allocating only $8.8 million to three serviceable bench players next season. Ennis was a slightly disappointing midseason addition last year, only averaging 5.3 points and 3.6 rebounds in 15.6 minutes per game over his 18 appearances, but that’s a small sample size and his numbers improved in the playoffs.
As a career 35.7 percent 3-point shooter, Ennis will hopefully revert back to the norm after canning just 30.6 percent of his triples in Philly. Considering he turned down more money elsewhere because he wanted to compete for a title, this is a quality depth move.
Grade: B-