Detroit Pistons: 3 potential free agents from the Memphis Grizzlies

The Detroit Pistons will be looking for talent in the 2022 NBA Draft and free agency, including from teams that have been eliminated from the playoffs.

In the next installment of our free-agent series, we’ll look at the Memphis Grizzlies, a team that has a lot of roster stability and not too many free agents.

The Grizzlies are one of the teams the Pistons are trying to emulate, as they are building through the draft around star guard Ja Morant, which is what the Pistons hope to do with Cade Cunningham.

The Grizzlies will undoubtedly be giving Morant a max extension this summer after he led them to the #2 seed in the Western Conference this season, and they are set up to contend for the immediate future.

They do have three unrestricted free agents who will hit the market and the Detroit Pistons could have some interest depending on a lot of factors.

Detroit Pistons: Free agents from the Memphis Grizzlies

Kyle Anderson: Unrestricted free agent

Anderson was a key role player for Memphis in 2020-21, averaging 12.4 points, 5.7 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.2 steals while starting all 69 games he appeared in and shooting 36 percent from long range.

He regressed in almost all of those categories this year, as he mostly came off the bench and played six fewer minutes per game.

Anderson is a nice, well-rounded role player with size, but he’s better suited to play that role on a team that is already good.

The Detroit Pistons also need shooting and he shot just 33 percent from 3-point range on low volume. The Pistons could use a veteran backup on the wing, but Anderson is not a great fit.

Tyus Jones: Unrestricted free agent

Tyus Jones is a guy I would love for the Pistons depending on what they do with their own guys. He’s a solid backup point guard who takes care of the ball, can run the offense and shot 39 percent from 3-point range this season.

But the Detroit Pistons already have Killian Hayes, Cory Joseph (player option), Saben Lee, and Carsen Edwards (team option) under contract for next season, not to mention a team option on guard Frank Jackson, who plays a similar role off the bench.

It’s possible Joseph could opt out or be traded, I doubt the Pistons pick up Edwards’ option and Lee and Jackson could be sent packing as well.

If all of those things were to happen, and Jones wanted to take a similar role for the Pistons that he played in Memphis, he might be worth a flyer. But he’d then be competing with Hayes for minutes off the bench potentially, which isn’t the worst thing but could push Killian back on the depth chart depending on who the Pistons draft.

There are a lot of moving parts here, so it’s not likely to happen. I do like Jones as a backup, but it’s hard to see how he ends up on the Detroit Pistons unless they liked him for a Frank Jackson-type role and thought he was a significant upgrade.

Sam Merrill: Unrestricted free agent

Merrill was waived by the Grizzlies after playing little for them this season and then suffering an ankle injury that put him out for the season.

The 26-year-old shooting guard did appear in 30 games for the Grizzlies as a rookie and shot 44.7 from 3-point range in limited action.

We know Merrill can shoot, as he was one of the top shooting prospects in his class, but can he do anything else? The Pistons certainly need shooting and Merrill is a guy they could likely take a flyer on for cheap, possibly even on a two-way deal.

He doesn’t really seem like a Troy Weaver guy, as he can’t defend, but he can shoot and the Pistons need shooting badly, so he’s a possibility on a low-ball deal, but probably a long shot given his injury history.