The shooting guard of the Memphis Grizzlies, Desmond Bane, has recently signed a five-year, $207 million contract extension with the franchise.
His contract is the largest among the Grizzlies. With Bane’s contract extension, the team has sealed the squad, which already has Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr.
BREAKING: Memphis Grizzlies G Desmond Bane has agreed on a five-year, $207M max contract extension, his agents Jim Tanner, Max Wiepking and Terrence Felder of @_Tandemse tell ESPN. Grizzlies’ cornerstone players — Ja Morant, Jaren Jackson Jr., and Bane — are secured long-term. pic.twitter.com/tFeXZedcst
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 1, 2023
According to Adrian Wojnarowski, “BREAKING: Memphis Grizzlies G Desmond Bane has agreed on a five-year, $207M max contract extension, his agents Jim Tanner, Max Wiepking and Terrence Felder of @_Tandemse tell ESPN. Grizzlies’ cornerstone players — Ja Morant, Jaren Jackson Jr., and Bane — are secured long-term.”
The Grizzlies’ five-year deal with Ja Morant went for $197,230,450, whereas Jaren Jackson Jr.’s four-year deal was for $104,720,000. Even though Bane doesn’t play in the same stature as both of them, the Grizzlies depend on his reliable play significantly.
The average of the shooting guard last season was 21.5 points, 4.4 assists, and 5.0 rebounds. His preseason performance was also impressive, as he averaged 21.3 points, 4.0 assists, and 4.3 rebounds.
Desmond Bane will be one of the central pieces in leading the Memphis Grizzlies in this current season due to various factors. Their star powerhouse, Ja Morant, will be serving his suspension for the initial 25 games.
Another blow to the Grizzlies has come as their incredible player Steven Adams has suffered a season-ending injury for which he will have to undergo surgery. Hence, he is out for the 2023-24 season.
Regarding Bane’s contract, Joe Mullinax, a columnist for the Memphis Grizzlies, stated while acknowledging the contract extension was reasonable. He said, “He is one of the most efficient scorers, not just in terms of the modern NBA, like this past season, but in the history of the game, he is one of the most efficient 3-point shooters to start his career, literally ever,”
“So I think you’ve got to max him. I think you offer the five-year full max, and you say, ‘We are investing in you. We are investing in John Morant. Eventually, we will invest again in Jaren Jackson Jr. We believe in you, and around you, we will put pieces as best we can to accentuate your talents.”
Bane looking ahead also shared, “We’ve all been through it now. We’ve been in the playoffs three times together, and we know we need to give more to ultimately win and get to where we want to get to so really taking ownership within the locker room, within our guys of just getting to the next level whether that’s practice, games, whatever,”
