Andre Iguodala may end up playing for the Memphis Grizzlies for a portion of the 2019-20 season, but the team is not planning to hold the veteran swingman hostage for an entire year.
Iguodala and the Grizzlies have an agreement in place where the 35-year-old does not have to report to training camp and the team will continue to search for a trade partner for him, Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian reports. Memphis has agreed to allow Iguodala to continue with his private workouts, but the understanding is that he could remain on the roster until well into the season.
Iguodala told NBC Sports Bay Area this week that he is “on the same page” with the Grizzlies, so it does not appear there is any tension between him and the team. Players who signed as free agents this summer are not eligible to be traded until Dec. 15, so Memphis may have an easier time finding a team to trade with at that point.
A previous report indicated that the Grizzlies expected Iguodala to report to camp and were refusing to engage in buyout talks with him. That is likely because they believe they can get something of value for him on the trade market.
Iguodala is owed $17.2 million next season, and the Golden State Warriors needed to unload his salary in order to complete the three-team, sign-and-trade deal that landed them D’Angelo Russell. They also sent a 2024 first-round draft pick to Memphis in the trade, so the initial belief was that the Grizzlies were simply buying a first-round pick. That may still be true, but they also want to acquire another pick by unloading Iguodala.
There are multiple teams that reportedly want to add Iguodala, which isn’t a surprise given his impressive resume.
