Lakers Rumors: Best potential new homes for Nick Young in free agency
By Jason Reed
2. Memphis Grizzlies
Instead of taking a bench role, Nick Young may look to head elsewhere to be a member of the starting unit. Memphis gives him just that and would put him alongside Mike Conley and Marc Gasol. If Young could play to his full potential in Memphis, he could form a formidable duo that could challenge the top teams in the Western Conference.
The Grizzlies have already shown success against the Warriors as well, handing them two losses last season. Obviously, keeping up with them would be near impossible and Nick Young alone would not accelerate that process. However, bringing in key role players like Young is a step in the right direction.
The Grizzlies current starting shooting guard, defensive specialist Tony Allen, is heading to free agency. Allen may be a fit for the Los Angeles Lakers, so we could see Young and Allen effectively swapping teams. With Allen out of the picture, this opens the gateway for Young to come in and be the third scoring option behind Conley and Gasol.
Veteran Vince Carter is also leaving the fray, potentially even flirting with the idea of retiring. This opens the small forward position as well, so if the Grizzlies wanted Troy Daniels to start at shooting guard they could move Young to small forward.
The Grizzlies do have some pretty bad contracts under their belt, which may be a bad sign for Young’s chances. However, with multiple contracts freeing up this offseason, Young to the Grizzlies could be a realistic possibility.