According to multiple media reports the Grizzlies have agreed to terms with free agent swingman Tony Allen for a three-year, roughly $10 million deal. And for a team that desperately needed to add one or two proven contributors to its bench, this is a solid move.
Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley has been vocal about his expectations of a playoff appearance for the Grizzlies this season, but without improvement from the bench such a leap wasn’t likely, not even in a Western Conference that has lost more stars this summer than it’s gained. The team could have hoped that internal improvement among young returnees or the performance of rookies Xavier Henry and Greivis Vasquez would give the needed boost. And those hopes might have been realized. But past history suggests that relying strictly on unproven youth is not a wise bet.
In a free agent market in which promising role players such as Wesley Matthews (5 years, $33 million) and Travis Outlaw (5 years, $35 million) have gotten very generous deals and with the Grizzlies seemingly unwilling to come within sniffing distance of the luxury-tax line, the team was likely being priced out of the Ronnie Brewer market even if they’d maintained their matching rights to him. And given that reality, Allen seems like a decent back-up option.
