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2025 Free Agents - Santi Aldama

Aldama was the 30th pick in the 2021, but has outplayed that draft position and has been a nice rotation player for the Grizzlies, even starting a chunk of games over the past several seasons. At 6'11", Aldama has the size to play either big position, and his ability to stretch the floor makes it easier to play him next to another big. He is a 35% 3-point shooter on pretty good volume, which makes him a decent enough threat from outside, even if he's not someone that puts fear in defenses. Inside the arc, Aldama has struggled. He isn't the most athletic player, so he's not going to get a lot of dunks, and needs to rely on craft and creativity to finish inside. He has hit 68% of his shots at the rim, which is about average for a big. He hasn't been very effective from midrange either, so his true shooting is just 56.5%. He did improve from inside the arc in '24-'25, posting career highs in rim finishing and two point percentage. Defensively, Aldama is a little bit stuck between positions. He isn't all that quick laterally, which makes it hard for him to defend wings. He also isn't someone that will be a real rim protector and anchor the defense. The Grizzlies have had good defenses with Aldama on the floor, but he has typically played next to really good talent, and the Grizzlies have been better defensively when he sits. His block and steal rates are decent, but he doesn't get many rebounds. Aldama will still only be 24 years old as a free agent in 2025, so I would expect more improvement going forward. He may not be a starting-level player, but he has shown that he can contribute to a good team and be a consistent part of its rotation.

Summary

Aldama will be a restricted free agent with an $11.9 million cap hold, a $5.9 million Qualifying Offer, and full Bird rights.I wouldn't expect Aldama's QO to come into play, but I wouldn't completely rule it out considering 2025 could be a rough year for free agents and the Grizzlies could play hardball with him as a restricted free agent. For other teams, if Aldama demands a starting salary of more than the full $14.1 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 (although Base-Year Compensation rules would make this complicated). However, it's possible that Aldama could be had for the full MLE or slightly less, so teams below the first apron will be able to sign him to an offer sheet.

Cap Considerations

Trey Lyles (2 years, $16 million, 2023) Zeke Nnaji (3+1 years, $32 million, 2023) Grant Williams (4 years, $52 million, 2023)

Player/Contract Comparison

Potential Teams: Grizzlies, Nets, Spurs, Kings, Pelicans

Predicted Contract: 3-year, $50 million with the Grizzlies

Actual Contract: 3-year, $52.5 million (3rd year team option) with the Grizzlies

Aldama re-signed with the Grizzlies on a pretty similar contract to what I projected.

Last updated: 7/29/2025

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