Austin Rivers is expected to have a very brief stay in Phoenix after he was traded from the Washington Wizards to the Suns on Saturday as part of a deal involving Kelly Oubre and Trevor Ariza, and it sounds like there are a number of teams that would like to add the veteran guard.
Shams Charania of The Athletic initially reported on Tuesday that the Memphis Grizzlies are expected to sign Rivers once the Suns cut ties with him, but it turns out they could have plenty of competition from other clubs.
Four to five other teams are still expressing interest in Rivers, sources said. No formal offer yet from Memphis, with several days until Rivers clears waivers. https://t.co/RUkLDrVqJF
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) December 18, 2018
Rivers is set to make $12.6 million in the last season of his contract this year, and it is unlikely that any team will want to pay him the remaining portion of that salary. The 26-year-old is averaging 7.2 points, 2.4 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 23.6 minutes per game this season.
The Grizzlies were initially reported to be part of a three-team trade with the Suns and Wizards that involved Rivers, but they ended up backing out over confusion about which players they were supposed to include. It will be interesting to see if they end up with Rivers when everything is sorted out.
