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2022 Free Agents - Kyle Anderson

Summary
Anderson's value on offense mostly comes from being a skilled, versatile secondary playmaker. He has been able to make up for his lack of athleticism by always being under control. He has great footwork on drives, knowing how to use a slow-down step to let the defender fly by and create space. He has good vision and has the size and skill to execute on that vision with solid passing.

Anderson is a below-average outside shooter (in regards to both accuracy and volume), as he has only hit 33% in '21-'22 and 33% for his career. One thing that is concerning is that after previously speeding up his release a bit, which made him more of a catch-and-shoot threat, a hitch in his jumper returned '21-'22. In the '20'-21 season, Anderson had even started taking some threes off-the-dribble in pick-and-roll when the defense went under, but those attempts have decreased in '21-'22.

On defense, Anderson isn't the quickest or the strongest but has good length, allowing him to defend multiple positions. He also fights hard through screens. The Grizzlies sometimes used his length by putting him up top in a 2-3 zone, which is something that NBA teams have started doing more of in recent years.

Anderson signed a four-year contract for the full MLE back in 2018, and I wouldn't be surprised if he did the same in 2022 as a solid low-end starter / high-end bench player.
 
Cap Considerations
Anderson will be an unrestricted free agent with a $18.9 million cap hold and full Bird rights. As his cap hold exceeds the salary he will get in free agency, his cap hold is not really relevant. If the Grizzlies re-sign Anderson, his cap hold will be replaced by his starting salary, and the Grizzlies may still have some cap space available depending on his salary and what happens with their other free agents. There's also a chance that the Grizzlies operate over the cap in 2022 and retain their own free agents while having the full Non-Taxpayer MLE and the Bi-Annual Exception to add players.

If Anderson demands a starting salary of more than the full $10.3 million Non-Taxpayer Mid-Level Exception, only teams with cap space will be able to sign him, unless a sign-and-trade is worked out. It is possible that Anderson could be had for the full MLE or less.

Potential Teams: Pacers, Grizzlies, Cavaliers, Lakers, Kings

Predicted Contract: 3-year, $32.6 million with the Pacers

Actual Contract: 2-year, $18 million with the Timberwolves

I thought Anderson would get close to the full MLE, and he got a little bit less than that on just a two-year contract. I like this fit with the Wolves, despite not identifying them as one of his potential teams above.

Last updated: 6/30/2022

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