The Grizzlies and veteran guard D’Angelo Russell are expected to seek a buyout agreement or a trade this offseason to allow Russell to continue his NBA career elsewhere, Yahoo Sports’ Kelly Iko reports.
Russell’s timeline doesn’t align with a rebuilding Grizzlies franchise, so it would make sense for Russell to hook on with a contender. Russell wound up in Memphis as part of a complex six-team trade earlier this month.
Memphis acquired former Pistons big man Isaiah Stewart and former Dallas guard AJ Johnsonalong with a protected first-round pick, three second-round picks and a pick swap in that deal while sending Saints Aldama to the Mavs and three picks to Detroit. Russell was thrown into the trade for salary-matching purposes.
Following a forgettable 2025/26 season, Russell became the first NBA player this offseason to pick up his option. Russell is guaranteed a $5,969,250 salary for the upcoming season, which is why the Grizzlies would be better off reaching a buyout agreement if they can’t find another trade partner for Russell.
Russell is a former All-Star who averaged over 20 points per game in multiple seasons earlier in his career. However, he was never a plus defender, and his offensive production has dropped off sharply in recent years.
After averaging 12.9 points per game with a .367/.297/.826 shooting line during the second half of the 2024/25 season with Brooklyn, the former second overall pick signed a two-year, $11.7MM with Dallas last offseason. The plan was for Russell to step in for Kyrie Irving as the Mavericks’ starting point guard until Irving was ready to return from his torn ACL, but he ended up making just three starts in 26 total outings for the club, averaging 10.2 PPG and 4.0 APG on .405/.295/.717 shooting.
Russell was traded from Dallas to Washington prior to February’s deadline in the blockbuster that also sent Anthony Davis to D.C., but the veteran guard wasn’t required to report to the Wizards and sat out the rest of the season.
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