Conley could ink a deal worth more than $150 million over five years if the Grizzlies paid him the most they could.
Advertisement
Former Dallas forward Chandler Parsons will be one of Conley’s teammates after agreeing to terms on a four-year, $94.8 million max contract with the Grizzlies earlier Friday.
Parsons, after two seasons in Dallas, opted out, looking for a max contract.
It is likely that Conley and the Grizzlies could officially sign a deal after the franchise finishes other business.
Dallas, Houston, New Orleans, Brooklyn and the Los Angeles Lakers will pursue Conley when free agency begins at 11:01 p.m. Thursday night. He shot 49.2 percent from the field and 41.4 percent from three-point range, showing he can be a weapon on offense.
The first draft pick traded from Cleveland via Oklahoma City has multiple protections on it and appears it will only end up turning into two-second round picks in 2018 NBA Draft.
Conley, 28, is one of the most underrated players in the entire Association. The Grizzlies are expected to “aggressively recruit” him as their No. 1 priority during free agency, but may be balking at a five-year offer which only they can make. I think my preference still would’ve been for Nic Batum, but I (along with the rest of Grizzlies media) didn’t really have Parsons on my radar until the last couple of weeks, when we started to hear rumblings from the Griz that they planned on targeting Parsons. This team all of sudden will have lots of fire power. While it’s possible that the team could sign Parsons and either Turner or Howard, the team doesn’t have the payroll space to sign all three. He may not be Stephen Curry or Chris Paul, but when he’s at his best, he can control a game much like Damian Lillard or Kyrie Irving – even if he’s not putting up as many points as his competitors. Parsons met with members of the Trail Blazers organization shortly after the negotiation period opened. If Parsons is healthy and can get back to averaging around 16-18 points per game, he could be the ideal addition for the Blazers.
Advertisement
To put this into some perspective the current 2x MVP Stephen Curry is on a four-year $44 million contract although it was signed a few years ago and he was coming back from a few injuries (as is Conley).
