3 Realistic Luke Kennard landing spots should Grizzlies fail to reach agreement
By Mark Nilon
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It has been nearly two weeks since news broke that the Memphis Grizzlies decided to decline the fourth and final year option of Luke Kennard's contract and, though initial indications were that both sides were interested in reaching an agreement on a new deal, such a happening has yet to come about.
As things currently stand, Zach Kleiman and company have roughly $9 million in wiggle room to work with before they enter into the luxury tax threshold (set at $170.814 million) and are about $15 million removed from entering into the dreaded first apron (set at $178.132 million).
With this in mind, while the Grizzlies may want to retain Kennard for next season and presumably beyond, coming to an agreement on a new deal may be tricky because of these noted restraints.
Realistic landing spots for Luke Kennard if Grizzlies fail to re-sign him
Though hope is by no means lost that both parties can still find a mutually beneficial payday, should negotiations fall through and the Grizzlies fail to re-sign the sharpshooter, there are several ball clubs strewn across the league that could realistically end up being in the running for his services.
Detroit Pistons
The Pistons are currently one of the most confusing teams in the entire association.
Despite winning a horrifyingly low 94 total games over the last five years and recently undergoing a massive overhaul to their coaching staff, Detroit's front office has shelled out serious coin this offseason what with Cade Cunningham's $224 million max extension and the signing of Tobias Harris to a two-year, $52 million deal in free agency.
Might they be interested in putting an end to their lottery-bound season finishes or are they just trying to make use of their ridiculous amount of spending power?
Regardless of which mentality the club is sporting, Luke Kennard could be a realistic target for them should he look to test the open market.
Last season, the Pistons finished 26 in the league in three-point percentage and 27 in three-point attempts.
By far the most noteworthy long-range shooter from last season who still resides on the roster is Marcus Sasser, who cashed in on 37.5 percent of his attempts, albeit while hoisting a pedestrian 3.4 shots from deep per contest.
Outside of him, Cunningham is the only returning player who converted on three-point attempts at a conversion rate north of 35 percent.
Luke Kennard is on fire! 🔥
— NBA (@NBA) March 3, 2019
26 PTS, 6-6 from distance for the @DetroitPistons shooter! #DetroitBasketball pic.twitter.com/Q0qNWXSimh
With this in mind, adding on more experienced snipers could be a major benefit for the Pistons this summer, and a reunion with their 2017 lottery pick who boasts a career 43.9 percent clip from distance could be an idea well worth considering.