The Memphis Grizzlies announced the signing of second-year player Tyrell Terry to a two-way contract.
The Stanford Cardinal has spent time with the Memphis Hustle G-League team and the Dallas Mavericks since he was drafted No. 31 in the second round of the 2020 NBA Draft.
He’s shown some promise during his stint in the G-League, averaging 14.7 points, 5.1 rebounds, 3.2 assists in 13 games last season.
Memphis Grizzlies could be auditioning Terry to be Ja Morant’s back-up
We all know that Morant’s current back-up, Tyus Jones, is in the final year of his contract. He’ll be an unrestricted free agent once free agency begins in July.
Jones has been playing fantastic ball, especially when Morant went down with an injury for 12 games. Jones’ excellent play will likely enable him to receive lucrative offers from various teams around the league.
With the contract of Jaren Jackson, Jr. kicking-in next season, plus Morant being eligible for an extension, the books are about to get really top-heavy.
The Grizzlies may not be able to afford a sizable contract that Jones can command. He last signed a 3-year, $26.4 million deal back in the summer of 2019. He’ll likely receive offers closer to the $40 million range.
That sort of dollar range may price the Grizzlies out of re-signing him. Which would require the team to look for alternatives for Morant’s back-up.
Terry could be that backup. The front office could be using this two-way contract to audition Terry to see if he has what it takes to be a backup point guard in the NBA. If he shows he can handle the job, he would be exponentially cheaper than trying to retain Jones.
We’ll need to see Terry get meaningful minutes in order to make that judgment. With the rampant proliferation of Covid-19, injuries, and more than half of the season remaining, there’s a decent chance we’ll see Terry get some meaningful minutes.
If he can get the job done, the team may have found the future back-up for Morant.