As soon as the Grizzlies acquired him, it appeared Andre Iguodala wouldn’t be long for Memphis.
The Grizzlies’ primary impetus for the trade seemed to be a first-round pick from the Warriors, who were desperate to stay under the hard cap triggered by acquiring D’Angelo Russell in a sign-and-trade. The Grizzlies are in the early stages of rebuilding around Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr. Iguodala is a still-helpful player nearing the end of his career. Their timelines just don’t overlap.
Dallas is among the teams interested in Iguodala. What would the Mavericks offer? They’re reportedly interested in swapping the expiring contracts of Courtney Lee ($12,759,670 salary) and Iguodala ($17,185,185 salary).
Mike Fisher of DallasBasketball.com:
The Dallas Mavericks’ long-standing desire to shed themselves of Courtney Lee has manifested itself in a trade offer from the Mavs to Memphis that would send Lee and a second-round pick to the Grizzlies in exchange for veteran standout Andre Iguodala, sources tell DallasBasketball.com.
The Grizzlies’ so-far response, DBcom has been told, is that they are unwilling to take on the ballast of Lee’s $12.759 million salary in such a deal.
A Lee-for-Iguodala trade would work straight up salary-cap wise. (Future picks count as $0 for matching purposes in trades.)
This deal seems like a positive for both teams.
The Mavericks would get a productive player as they try to win now around Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis. Iguodala has excellent basketball intelligence, and he applies it as a defender and passer. Like most teams, Dallas could definitely use another versatile wing.
The Grizzlies would save money (the $4,425,515 difference between the players’ salaries plus any cash the Mavericks include) and get an extra pick. That wouldn’t be a bad double dip for Memphis, which would get a pick for each taking and sending out Iguodala. It’s hard to see him helping the Grizzlies, who probably won’t be competitive next season.
The big unknown: Could Memphis do even better by trading Iguodala elsewhere?
Of course, the Grizzlies might not view it this way. They could value Iguodala as a mentor or maybe even a contributor on a team they believe to be ahead of schedule. In that case, a second-rounder and a few million of savings might not be enough.
But if Memphis wants to flip Iguodala for an asset and send him somewhere he has a better chance of winning, this Dallas offer looks like at least a solid starting point.
