The Grizzlies are inking shooting guard Desmond Bane to a five-season rookie scale maximum extension, agents Jim Tanner, Max Wiepking and Terrence Felder inform Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
While Woj lists the deal as being worth $207M, that amount is a projection, as the exact sum will be tied into the league’s salary cap.
Based on differences in word choices between Woj’s reports on the new extensions of Bane and Pacers All-Star point guard Tyrese Haliburton, it sounds as if Bane’s deal will likely not include the Rose rule escalator, which could theoretically allow the Grizzlies wing to eventually qualify for up to 30% of the cap.
The agreement will begin in the 2024-25 season. Provided our interpretation of the news is accurate, the new deal will pay Bane a salary commensurate with 25% of that year’s cap.
As Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial tweets, Bane’s new agreement will now leapfrog All-Star Memphis point guard Ja Morant‘s contract as the priciest in team history.
Bane has quickly outperformed his selection as the No. 30 pick out of TCU in the 2020 draft. Last season, the 25-year-old averaged a career-high 21.5 PPG on .479/.408/.883 shooting splits. He also chipped in 5.0 RPG, 4.4 APG and 1.0 SPG in his 58 healthy games with Memphis. Thanks to the strong play of Morant, Bane and Defensive Player of the Year Jaren Jackson Jr., the Grizzlies finished with the West’s second seed for the second straight season, this time with a 51-31 record.
Injuries to starting center Steven Adams and reserve big man Brandon Clarke greatly impeded Memphis’ frontcourt during its first-round playoff series against the seventh-seeded Lakers, and the Grizzlies fell in six games.
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