A few tidbits I’ve picked up today in the aftermath of last night’s draft. I’ll have a fuller offseason speculation post up sometime this weekend.
*The Grizzlies extended qualifying offers to Marreese Speights ($3.8 million) and Darrell Arthur ($3 million) today, making them restricted free agents, but declined to do so for O.J. Mayo and Lester Hudson, making them unrestricted. No real surprises. The team seems committed to bringing back either Arthur or Speights, and could bring back both depending on how free agency pans out. More likely is that one of the pair will be retained, along with unrestricted free-agent center Hamed Haddadi. Mayo’s qualifying offer ($7.3 million) was simply too big given the team’s luxury tax situation. It’s theoretically possible Mayo could be brought back at a lower figure or used in a sign-and-trade deal, but both of those seem very unlikely. As for Hudson, he could still be brought back at a minimum-type contract, but I suspect any additional backcourt signings would have to have either defined point-guard skills or a more reliable three-point stroke.
*Vanderbilt shooter John Jenkins, who went a couple of picks before the Grizzlies, would have been considered at #25 but likely would not have been the pick. Perry Jones III, the draft’s biggest dropper, who went to Oklahoma City at #28, was not seriously considered. The most talked about options in addition to ultimate pick Tony Wroten Jr. seem to have been point guard Marquis Teague and forward Draymond Green. My understanding is that Green was the runner-up at #25.
