Memphis Grizzlies: 3 players facing the most pressure in 2019-20

3. Jonas Valanciunas

If the reports and rumors are true that Andre Iguodala won’t make it to Opening Night on the Memphis Grizzlies roster, that leaves 7-foot center Jonas Valanciunas as the highest-paid player in Memphis.

Valanciunas is due to make $16 million this season and he’s on the books for another two seasons after that, making an average of $14.5 million per year. Even when a team isn’t expected to win, the player making the most money is under pressure to play up to his salary.

The 27-year-old Valanciunas was traded to the Grizzlies last season as part of the Marc Gasol deal — meaning he went from being a contributor on the eventual NBA champions to a starter on one of the worst teams in the league.

In 19 games with the Grizzlies, Valanciunas averaged 19.9 points, 10.7 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game. He is similar to Boston Celtics center Enes Kanter; he consistently puts up good-looking numbers, but he doesn’t seem to make a very meaningful impact.

Depending on who you ask, he’s either underrated or overrated.

Given his age and experience, and being one of the few Grizzlies with a history of lengthy playoff runs from his time with the Raptors, Valanciunas may be called upon to be a leader for this young squad.