On Monday, it was reported by Ian Begley that the Memphis Grizzlies released former NBA MVP and reserve point guard Derrick Rose from his contract, per his request. Rose will make an announcement about his future later this week.
Rose, a Memphis Tiger legend who led the program to the 2008 National Championship Game, returned to Memphis after signing a two-year, $6.5 million contract last offseason.
After a messy divorce with the University of Memphis following the vacation of the 2007-2008 season due to the Tigers playing Rose when he was retroactively declared ineligible, the love the city has for him shone through during his brief stint with the Grizzlies.
Even considering his ties to the city, Rose was primarily brought in to help mentor Ja Morant following his off the court problems in the 2022-23 season and be a veteran locker room presence. In 24 games played last year, Rose averaged 8.0 points and 3.3 assists as the backup point guard.
Per Tim MacMahon, Rose will not receive any of the salary left on his contract after being released, and therefore will not be a cap hit to the Grizzlies. This leaves the Grizzlies now about $5 million under the luxury tax and they have thirteen rostered players.
With training camp starting October 1, the Grizzlies will likely use it to identify which one of their two-way players to elevate to the full-time roster, now that there are two open spots on the 15-man roster and increased financial flexibility.
Due to the lack of point guards, they have now with Rose leaving, Scotty Pippen Jr., who started 16 games last season and performed well in Summer League, is the two-way player that is expected to be signed to a full contract. Center Jay Huff and rookie wing Cam Spencer are the other two two-ways that could potentially be put on a full contract.
The Memphis Grizzlies will open preseason play in Dallas on October 7 and will begin their season on October 23 in Salt Lake City against the Utah Jazz.
