Anderson fits with Memphis if Spurs don’t match offer
The Grizzlies had been quiet throughout the first six days of the NBA’s free agent period. Other than agreeing to sign Omri Casspi to a oneyear veteran’s minimum contract, the Grizzlies were off the radar as signing after signing was agreed to by other teams. Turns out they had a plan all along. The Grizzlies signed San Antonio Spurs forward Kyle Anderson to a 4year offer sheet for $37.2 million, The Commercial Appeal confirmed through league sources. The deal is for the amount of the full non-taxpayer mid-level exception, starting at just over $8.6 million in the first season, and has no team or player options.
However, because the 24-year-old
is a restricted free agent, the Spurs have 48 hours from the moment they receive the signed offer sheet to match its exact terms and keep the player. The Grizzlies had been silent throughout July because, while this deal had been in the works for a few days, restricted free agents don’t tend to agree until after the league-wide moratorium in order to minimize the amount of time teams have to choose whether or not to match the deal.
Another twist in the Grizzlies’ offer sheet comes in the form of an included trade kicker, a clause that obligates the team that trades away a player to pay him a certain percentage of the remaining value of his contract. The Grizzlies’ trade kicker in Anderson’s offer sheet is the maximum allowable by rule, 15 percent. That clause is designed to make it less likely a team would match an offer sheet — otherwise a team might accept an offer sheet on a player they don’t intend to keep long term, then trade him away. This makes that plan harder.
What about Anderson?
Anderson is a player who would likely be very comfortable with the defensive-first philosophy espoused by head coach J. B. Bickerstaff and the Grizzlies organization. Anderson played the third most minutes for the Spurs last year in the regular season, and the team was better defensively when he was on the floor.
He’s known as “Slo-Mo,” a reference to his, let’s say, deliberate pace while on court. He’s certainly not quick. In fact, his moves are often so deceptively slow they confuse opponents and create opportunities for him to score. Anderson has remarkable height and length for a player of his position, standing 6-9 with a 7-3 wingspan.
Anderson is listed as a small forward, but in keeping with the trend of the NBA, he’s an extremely versatile player on both ends of the floor. He plays a lot of time as a primary ballhandler and playmaker, with excellent vision and feel for the game. He is not, however, a great outside shooter, nor is he adept at catching and shooting. His value comes while he’s in motion on offense rather than anything he can do standing still.
Anderson was sixth last season in a metric known as real plus-minus, and second in defensive real plus-minus. (Real plus-minus is an effort to measure a player’s impact on a team while on the court, taking into account game situations, teammates, opponents and other factors.) His defensive prowess is a big reason why he’s been so successful at carving out a place for himself in San Antonio.
The Spurs have until Sunday evening to decide whether or not they match Anderson’s offer sheet. It’s a calculated risk by the Grizzlies — they want to add young players who fit into their defensive-minded, ball-movement philosophy, but they have to agree to a longerterm deal than the norm to do it. Matching it would edge the Spurs closer to the luxury tax and would complicate other decisions they have to make on other restricted free agents like Davis Bertans and Bryn Forbes.
There are very few four-year contracts for players who aren’t on maximum-salary deals these days. The trend is to sign short-term deals and reassess the market in a year or two. Much like they did for years playing a “Grit and Grind” style, the Grizzlies aren’t afraid to buck the trends. It’s up to San Antonio now to decide whether they want to keep Slo-Mo in silver and black, or if he’s going to be the newest Grizzly.
Peter Edmiston covers the Grizzlies for The Commercial Appeal.