NBA Free Agency: Nabbing Tyreke Evans would give OKC edge on competition

MEMPHIS, TN - MARCH 18: Tyreke Evans #12 of the Memphis Grizzlies looks on during a team practice on March 20, 2018 at Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images)
MEMPHIS, TN - MARCH 18: Tyreke Evans #12 of the Memphis Grizzlies looks on during a team practice on March 20, 2018 at Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images)
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NBA Free Agency
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – FEBRUARY 11: Tyreke Evans #12 of the Memphis Grizzlies shoots the ball against the Oklahoma City Thunder on February 11, 2018 at Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.  (Photo by Layne Murdoch/NBAE via Getty Images)

Tyreke Evans is a key piece for the OKC Thunder winning NBA Free Agency, via adding an asset and simultaneously stunting the Warriors hopes to add depth.

Set to go into one of the most bizarre NBA Free Agency periods in recent memory, Tyreke Evans is looking to get paid. And despite coming off his best season since winning ROY in 2010, that may be easier said than done.

In the summer of 2016, the salary cap spiked from about 70 million to a little over 94 million. Most teams took that as a sign of things to come and spent like never before. With record-breaking contracts and role players like Timofey Mozgov getting paid like stars, the summer proved fruitful for some. But others weren’t so lucky.

The cap has gone up, albeit not as much as some had hoped, now sitting right around 101 million. As a result, only a handful of teams have any real money to spend. Moreover, most of those teams are young and in the process of rebuilding. They are unlikely to want to take on veteran players looking for a payday especially if they aren’t long-term fits. And with so many middling teams looking to get off bad money, the smarter thing might be to take on that money in exchange for picks and young assets.

Unlike this summer, teams next summer should have considerably more money to spend as contracts come off the books. This puts players in the unique position of being able to prove their worth on a contending team. Even though it may not be the type of money they are looking for players like Evans should consider waiting it out a year especially with the ever-growing need for multi-positional wings.

Player specifics:

Height: 6’6″
Position: Shooting Guard/Point Guard/Small Forward
Age: 28
Years of experience: 9-years
Type of Free Agent: Unrestricted
Hometown: Chester, Pennsylvania
Last Years Salary: $3,290,000

Statline:

Per Game Table
Season Pos G GS MP FGA FG% 3P% 2P% eFG% FT% TRB AST STL BLK TOV PTS
2009-10 SG 72 72 37.2 16.2 .458 .255 .485 .473 .748 5.3 5.8 1.5 0.4 3.0 20.1
2010-11 SG 57 53 37.0 16.4 .409 .291 .432 .432 .771 4.8 5.6 1.5 0.5 3.2 17.8
2011-12 SG 63 61 34.3 14.3 .453 .202 .484 .464 .779 4.6 4.5 1.3 0.5 2.7 16.5
2012-13 SG 65 61 31.0 11.8 .478 .338 .508 .508 .775 4.4 3.5 1.4 0.4 2.0 15.2
2013-14 SF 72 22 28.2 12.5 .436 .221 .461 .448 .771 4.7 5.0 1.2 0.3 2.4 14.5
2014-15 SG 79 76 34.1 14.7 .447 .304 .482 .477 .694 5.3 6.6 1.3 0.5 3.1 16.6
2015-16 SG 25 25 30.6 12.6 .433 .388 .450 .486 .796 5.2 6.6 1.3 0.3 2.9 15.2
2016-17 SF 40 6 19.7 9.3 .405 .356 .429 .462 .750 3.4 3.1 0.9 0.2 1.5 10.3
2016-17 SF 26 0 18.2 8.7 .401 .300 .446 .447 .776 3.3 3.5 0.9 0.2 1.5 9.5
2016-17 SF 14 6 22.4 10.2 .413 .438 .400 .486 .706 3.6 2.4 0.9 0.4 1.6 11.6
2017-18 PG 52 32 30.9 15.6 .452 .399 .482 .523 .785 5.1 5.2 1.1 0.3 2.3 19.4

Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 6/28/2018.